Goal orientation and beliefs about causes of sport success among Malaysian athletes

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to investigate goal orientations (task and ego) and beliefs (effort, external factors, ability, and illegal advantage) and how these relate to success in sports competition for both National and International level athletes in Malaysia. The sample consisted of 100 male and female Malaysian athletes (55 at National level and 45 at International level) and the study was carried out during a period of centralized training at the National Sport Council of Malaysia. The subjects completed the Task and Ego Orientation in Sport Questionnaire (TEOSQ; Duda & Nicholls, 1992) and the 21-item Beliefs About the Causes of Sport Success Questionnaire (BACSSQ; Duda & Nicholls, 1992). The results showed that there was no significance difference (p > .05) between the National and International levels athletes in TEOSQ and BACSSQ, but indicated that task and effort were key orientations and beliefs towards success. To this extent the research showed that both the National and International level athletes looked towards task orientation and effort as key indicators of their motivation for success, which in turn suggested that similar training schedules, facilities, and motivations were key factors. As a result of the findings the authors also suggest that further research needs to be conducted on the International level athletes in order to explore in more depth the reasons why they selected goal orientations and effort. It is suggested that those athletes at International levels should focus more on ego orientation and abilities as their key goal orientations and beliefs towards success. Recommendations for further research which takes better account of cultural and gender difference are also suggested.

Key words: Task and ego orientation, motivation behavior, cross-culture study, elite athletes and cultural differences.

AJPHERD Vol.11(2) 2005: 112-120