Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Motivational Factors Related To Female Participation In Collegiate Sports, Francisco Soto Mas

Francisco Soto Mas

Despite the many health benefits, physical activity trends in females have been consistently reported to be lower than that of males. Other demographic variables may also be related to sport participation. The purpose of this study was to explore the factors that motivate college females to participate in sports. This was a cross sectional, causal-comparative survey study. Eight motivational factors were explored: fitness, skill/mastery, enjoyment, affiliation/recognition, team factors, ego/competition, parental support, and external rewards. Female college athletes (N=82) from two post-secondary institutions were surveyed using the 35-item Modified Sports Motivation Survey. Results indicated that all factors were important to participants …