Motivational determinants of a sport specific behavior: The effect of attitudes and expectations upon the intentions of sport competitors to practice sport psychological skills

Although sport competitors in increasing numbers have been introduced to the concepts of sport psychology skills, (e.g., goal setting, attention-concentration control, thought restructuring) sport psychology specialists have expressed a concern regarding the apparent lack of commitment toward the practice of such skills. It is the assumption of this researcher that a sport participant's decision to either practice or avoid the use of sport psychology skills is a learned response and can be attributed to his/her beliefs and evaluations of the consequences associated with this process.;The study was designed to examine beliefs and attitudes (motivational determinants) of a sample of sport competitors and determine the effects that each factor has upon intentions (dispositions) or behavioral decisions to practice sport psychology skills.;The method used to investigate the problem is grounded in Fishbein and Ajzen's expectancy-value (valence) model (Fishbein and Ajzen, 1975). Contemporary research which has explored the social psychological construct of attitudes supports the notion that Fishbein's regression model has contributed to a better understanding of attitudes and beliefs, and has also proven to be a valuable approach for predicting a wide range of intentions and behaviors (Ajzen and Fishbein, 1980).;The method of summated rating scale construction produced a reliable and valid instrument for the purpose of operationalizing and measuring the conceptual constructs set forth in the theory of reasoned action.;Results from the study supported the theme that intentions to use sport psychology skills can be estimated from attitudinal and normative considerations. A moderately high multiple correlation (R =.46) between the predictors and intentions was evidenced. Multiple regression analysis also established that the relative contribution of the attitude predictor was considerably more important for the purpose of explaining the variation in intentions (attitude beta weight =.46, normative beta weight =.01).;It appears that the problem of adherence as it pertains to using sport psychology skills can be adequately addressed by investigating salient beliefs, outcome evaluations, and motivations to comply. This information may assist sport psychology specialists in their efforts to understand why some sport competitors adhere to a sport psychology program while others do not.