The effect of variety-support in physical education on participation: the serial mediation role of enjoyment and motivation *

Abstract

Although adolescents' Physical Activity (PA) levels are associated with various benefits, PA participation rates remain low. Previous studies have revealed that one of the psychological factors that may have a significant impact on adolescents' PA and participation in Physical Education and Sport (PES) is perceived variety-support. The aim of this study is to examine the serial mediation role of enjoyment and motivation in the relationship between variety-support and participation in PES. For this purpose, firstly, the The Perceived Variety-Support in Physical Education Scale (PVSPES) developed by Eather et al. (2022) adapted to Turkish and applied to middle school (n=561) and high school (n=457) samples. CFA results showed that the Turkish version of the PVSPES was measurement invariant across gender and educational level. The study, which examined the serial mediation role of enjoyment and motivation in the relationship between variety-support and participation, was conducted using structural equation modeling with a sample of 1018 (532 female, 486 male) middle school (n=561) and high school (n=457) students. The findings of the study revealed that students' perceptions of variety-support in the PES had a significant positive direct effect on course participation. It was found that enjoyment (b = .086, BootSE = .014, 95% CI [.059, .115]) and motivation (b = .061, BootSE = .012, 95% CI [.039, .087]) mediated the relationship between variety-support and participation. The serial mediation model revealed that the serial mediation effect of enjoyment and motivation was significant in the effect of students' perception of variety-support on participation (b= .087, BootSE= .011, 95% CI [.067, .109]). As a result, it was found that students' perception of variety-support in PES increases enjoyment and motivation towards the courses, and as a result, both factors positively affect course participation through serial mediation. Offering a variety of activities to students in PES will increase their enjoyment and motivation towards the course and contribute positively to their course participation.