The Role of Dispositional Orientations and Goal Motives on Athletes’ Well- and Ill-Being

Findings in different contexts suggest that task orientation and ego orientation are related to adaptive and maladaptive motivational patterns, respectively. In sport, these personal dispositions could influence other important variables such as the goals that athletes pursue (and why they pursue them) during the season and their well- and ill-being. The main purpose of this research was to examine the relationship between athletes’ dispositional goal orientations, their goal motives, and their reported well-being (subjective vitality) and ill-being (physical and emotional exhaustion). The study involved 414 Spanish university athletes (206 female and 208 male) with an age range of 17 to 33 years (M = 20.61; SD = 2.58) that completed a package of questionnaires at the beginning of the season. Results of path analysis revealed that athletes’ task orientation was negatively associated to physical and emotional exhaustion indirectly through autonomous and controlled goal motives. In contrast, ego orientation was positively related to physical and emotional exhaustion via its link to controlled goal motives. Athletes’ task orientation directly and positively predicted subjective vitality, even though goal motives were not significant mediators. These findings support previous evidence about the protective role of athletes’ task orientation, in contrast to ego orientation, confirming its positive relationship with well-being and its negative one with ill-being. Additionally, it extends the knowledge regarding interdependencies between goal orientations and goal motives and how both contribute to athletes’ optimal or compromised functioning.

Translation and validation of an extended German-language version of the Perceived Locus of Causality Questionnaire (PLOCQ-G) in a sample of physical education students

The aims of this study were to translate and validate an extended German-language version of the Perceived Locus of Causality Questionnaire (PLOCQ), a questionnaire that assesses behavioural regulations in the physical education (PE) context. Items assessing integrated regulation were added given that the original PLOCQ omits this factor. The sample consisted of 223 students from different German secondary schools. Psychometric analyses provided support for the six factors and 24-item model. Inter-correlations among the factors predominantly mirrored a simplex-like structure, except for the correlations between introjected and identified regulation and integrated regulation and its adjacent forms of regulation. Construct validity was demonstrated with positive correlations between the autonomous forms of regulation on the one hand and task orientation, perceived competence, and enjoyment on the other. Overall, this study showed that the PLOCQ‑G with six factors and 24 items has good psychometric properties and can be used to assess behavioural regulations in German PE students.

Student perceptions of the classroom environment, student characteristics, and motivation for music lessons at secondary school

The literature suggests that there is often no alignment between student preferences and what and how it is taught in the music classroom. A total of 749 Cypriot secondary school students, aged 12 to 14 years, responded to a survey addressing enjoyment of music, motivation for school music lessons, and perceptions of the music classroom environment. The survey included a questionnaire with six subscales: Involvement, Affiliation, Teacher Support, Task Orientation, Order and Organization, and Rule Clarity. High ratings for Affiliation, Teacher Support, and Rule Clarity suggest that, overall, students’ perceptions of the classroom environment were positive. They were not uniform, but varied on the basis of student characteristics. Girls rated Rule Clarity higher than boys. Younger students tended to rate Task Orientation, Order and Organization, and Rule Clarity higher than older students. Higher-achieving students tended to rate Affiliation and Teacher Support higher. Older boys rated Involvement lower than younger boys, whereas older girls rated Involvement higher than younger girls. It can be inferred that boys experienced a gradual increase in perceived Affiliation as their achievement improved, although the pattern was less consistent for girls. Girls tended to report higher motivation for school music lessons than boys. Motivation was enhanced by classroom environments in which students experienced higher levels of enjoyment of music, engagement, and support from teachers. The findings show that the music classroom environment should be characterized by student engagement, clarity of rules, good organization, clear goals, teacher support, and affiliation between classmates.

On the Effectiveness of Scaffolding Strategies and Task orientation on Receptive and Productive Knowledge of Lexical Collocations

The present study aimed at investigating the effects of scaffolding strategies using input and output-oriented tasks on Iranian EFL learners' receptive and productive knowledge of lexical collocations. For this purpose, 540 adult intermediate-level EFL learners- both male and female- were selected and divided into six experimental groups; three input-oriented and three output-oriented tasks. Each experimental group received treatment under one of the three scaffolding strategies of direct corrective feedback, cooperative group technique, and visual cues. After the treatment period, a 40-item multiple-choice test and a 40-item fill-in-the-blanks test were administered to assess the participants' receptive and productive collocations knowledge. To analyze the data, two separate two-way ANOVA procedures were used. The results indicated that visual cues were the most effective scaffolding strategy in teaching lexical collocations. Moreover, the cooperative group technique had a significant positive impact on learning collocations compared to direct corrective feedback. The results also showed that the participants in the output-oriented tasks group significantly outperformed those in the input-oriented tasks group. These findings can have practical implications for language learners, teachers, and materials developers, and theoretical implications for researchers.

Values, motivational orientation and team cohesion amongst youth soccer players

There is a close link between moral education and sports activities. A well-organized sport can be an excellent means of transferring positive values to children and adolescents, which can influence motivation and group processes. This study aimed to analyse (a) the relationships between social, personal and individualistic values, motivational orientation and team cohesion amongst young soccer players and (b) compare differences in these variables between players competing in different age categories. Our participant sample comprised 401 male soccer players of Spanish teams (mean age = 14.64 years) competing in official competitive leagues, of five age categories, Under-10 years to Under-19. All participants responded to three instruments: the Values Scale for Positive Adolescent Development, the Perception of Success Questionnaire and the Group Environment Questionnaire. Correlation and regression, and analysis of differences between categories were performed. The results confirm that personal values are mainly related to task orientation, and individualistic values to ego orientation. The values of responsibility, integrity and honesty were the best predictors of task orientation, and social recognition and hedonism predict ego orientation. Honesty and responsibility were the main predictors of both task and social cohesion. Younger players showed a higher level of social values, task orientation and social cohesion, while older players show higher individualistic values and ego orientation. Implications for research or practice are discussed.

Learning Community and Its Impact on Attitude toward Computer-Based Statistics

This study examined the three dimensions that should exist in a learning community, namely Student Cohesiveness, Integration, and Task Orientation, related to their influence on attitude toward computer-based statistics. Attitude toward computer-based statistics itself is measured using constructs of the revised Technology Acceptance Model (TAM). This study was designed to justify the value of information systems (IS) in overcoming accounting students' statistical problems. The use of IS probable to reduce the pressure in dealing with statistics so that there is an opportunity to increase accounting students' competitive advantage. The respondents consisted of 105 undergraduate accounting students. The data was collected using a 5-scale Likert questionnaire then analyzed using Structural Equational Modelling (SEM). With purposive sampling, this study was collected 105 responses obtained from private and state universities. The results indicate that task orientation is the key indicator of the learning community, affecting attitude toward computer-based statistics. Meanwhile, the second-order factors show that all three predictors were essential in explaining attitude toward computer-based statistics and significantly impacted Reuse Intention. This study also suggests implementing an informal learning community to build learning dynamics that are more independent but still controllable so that the learning topic is integrated with certain subjects.

THE WORK CULTURE IN ISLAMIC SCHOOL BASED ON PESANTRENIN LAMPUNG PROVINCE, INDONESIA

This study was aimed to find 1) the concept of work culture in Islamic school based on pesantren, 3) the principle leadership behavior of Islamic school based onpesantren in building thework culture , and3) the effect of principle leadership behavior of Islamic school based onpesantren in building thework culture. The results of this research shows thatfirst, the concept of work culture in islamic school based on pesantren is Transculturation pesantren-value model , second, the principle leadership behavior in building the work culture applied the task orientation, relationship orientation, and spiritual values orientation. Third, the principal leadership behavior in building a work culture in Islamic school based on pesantren has effect and contribute to the affectivecommitment, normative commitment, job satisfaction and lack of turnover intentions, and also the involvement of workingphysically, emotionally, and cognitively.

Collaborative knowledge sharing in global distributed teams: antecedents of innovation performance

Purpose Existing research on collaborative innovation mechanisms from the perspective of global operation is very limited. This paper aims to address the research gap by studying the factors influencing globally distributed teams’ innovation performance, especially how effective knowledge sharing between distributed teams promotes collaborative team innovation. Design/methodology/approach This research proposes a model to investigate how collaborative knowledge sharing affects global operations [team dispersion, task orientation, information and communication technology (ICT) usage] and innovation performance based on the data collected from 167 managers in 40 local Chinese IT and offshoring firms. Using the theory of Cognitive Diversity and Innovation Diffusion and Synergy, separate hierarchical regression analysis was used to test the proposed model. Findings The findings of this study demonstrate that effective collaborative knowledge sharing plays a crucial role in enhancing innovation performance in a global operation. Specifically, innovation capacity can be improved by task orientation, ICT usage and team dispersion. Originality/value This research study contributes to the development of global distributed operations and innovation among distributed teams in multinational corporations.

How is Middle School Students’ Scientific Reasoning Ability Associated with Gender and Learning Environment?

This study examined middle school students’ scientific reasoning ability in relation to gender and learning environment perceptions. The data were obtained from 269 (148 girls and 121 boys) students. A two-tier multiple-choice test was used to assess students’ scientific reasoning ability, while a Likert scale-type self-report questionnaire was used to assess students’ learning environment perceptions. Results showed that there was no significant difference between girls and boys regarding their scientific reasoning abilities. On the other hand, students’ scientific reasoning ability was found to be positively associated with involvement, task orientation, and teacher support, while it was negatively related to cooperation in science learning environments. Since students spent thousands of hours in classrooms, it is vital to examine and deepen the knowledge about the relationship between the learning environment and student outcomes. The current study presented and discussed considering the context of science education in Turkey; further studies can be conducted in different countries and contexts.