Outside‐school physical activity participation and motivation in physical education

Background Experience in non‐school contexts can shape and reshape students' motivation and mediate their learning in school. Outside‐school physical activity may provide students with an extensive cognitive and affective foundation and influence their motivation in physical education. Although a trans‐contextual effect of physical education has been explored, very little empirical research has examined the impact from outside‐school context to physical education. Aims Using self‐determination theory and a hierarchical model of motivation, this study was designed to examine the association between participation in organized outside‐school physical activity programmes and self‐determination process in physical education. Sample Participants included 545 9th graders (305 males and 240 females, age range = 14–16 years, mean age = 14.66 years) enrolled in required physical education classes in three suburban high schools in a large Midwest metropolitan area in the U nited S tates. Methods Self‐determination variables were measured using relevant instruments, and information on organized outside‐school physical activity experiences was gathered in a survey. Structural equation modelling analyses were conducted. Results Students who participated in organized outside‐school physical activity programmes displayed overall higher motivation; however, the strength of associations among the self‐determination variables (i.e., pathways from perceived autonomy support to relatedness, from autonomy to competence, and from self‐determined motivation to in‐class physical activity engagement) was stronger for their non‐participant counterparts. Conclusion There are dynamic relationships between participation in organized outside‐school physical activity programmes and self‐determination process in physical education. Physical educators need to identify, appreciate, and instructionally address individual students' differences during teaching and learning.