Pediatric Exercise Science, 1993,5 , 263-274
0 1993 Human Kinetics Publishers, Inc.
Sources of Information Underlying Personal
Ability Judgments in High School Athletes
Thelma S. Horn, Susan D. Glenn, and Amy B. Wentzell
This study was conducted to test whether there are age and gender differences
in the criteria that high school athletes use to evaluate their ability in sport
contexts. To test this issue, 435 high school athletes from a variety of sports
were administered the Sport Competence Information Questionnaire which
provides a measure of preference for 10 competence information sources.
A 2 x 2 (Gender x Age Level) MANOVA revealed that older adolescents
were more apt to use self-comparison/intemalinformation,goal achievement,
and sport attractionlenjoyment to judge their sport ability while younger
athletes were more dependent on the evaluation of peers. In addition, females
scored higher than males on the use of self-comparison/intemalinformation
and on evaluative feedback from significant
others. In contrast, males scored
higher on the use of competitive outcomes and speedlease of learning to
evaluate personal sport competence. The results indicate that high school
athletes do vary in the sources of information they use to judge their sport
competence, and that gender and age can account for a significant amount
of that variation.
In the past couple of decades a number of theories have been developed
to explain differences between children in their achievement motivation (e.g., 2,
6,9). Although these theories differ from each other in several ways, all of them
emphasize perceived ability as an important construct in understanding children's
achievement behavior. Generally these theories hypothesize that children who
have high perceptions of their ability in a particular achievement domain will
be more motivated to participate in activities in that domain, will work hard to
achieve competence, and will enjoy their participation. In contrast, children
who have low perceptions of their ability will exhibit low motivation, lack of
persistence, and considerably lower enjoyment when working in such a domain.
Given the importance of perceived ability, a few researchers have begun
examining how children form perceptions of their competence in particular
achievement contexts. These researchers have attempted to identify the particular
types of information children use to judge whether they are good or not so good
Thelma S. Hom and Amy B. Wentzell are with the Dept. of Physical Education,
Health and Sport Studies at Miami University, Oxford, OH 45056. Susan D. Glenn is
with the Dept. of Exercise and Movement Science at the University of Oregon, Eugene,
OR 97403.
264 - Horn, Glenn, and Wentzell
in a particular achievement activity. Although there are many potential sources
of information in any achievement domain that children can use to judge their
ability, the research suggests that these sources vary as a function of age. In the
academic domain, for example, Stipek and MacIver (17) reviewed the empirical
research to conclude that the information children use to assess their intellectual
abilities shifts over the elementary school years from an emphasis on effort,
evaluative feedback from adults, and simple task mastery to an emphasis on peer
comparison, performance outcomes (grades), and across-domain comparisons.
Thus the information children use to evaluate or assess their academic ability
appears to follow a developmental pattern.
In the sport domain as well, Horn and colleagues (10, 12) have found a
developmental pattern with regard to the sources of information that children
use to judge their sport or physical competence. Their results indicated that
children between the ages of 8 and 14 years show a relative decline in the use
of evaluative feedback from significant adults, especially parents, and an increase
in the use of peer comparison (i.e., comparing own performance with that of
peers) and peer evaluation (i.e., evaluative feedback from peers) to judge personal
competence. These results again suggest that the criteria children use to evaluate
their sport ability changes across the childhood years.
In contrast to the number of studies conducted with children in the elementary and middle school years, very little research has been done to examine the
criteria used by adolescents to evaluate their sport competence. Given the number
and intensity of physical, psychological, and emotional changes that occur during
these years, it would seem reasonable to believe there would also be changes in
the way younger and older adolescents evaluate their sport ability. Thus the
purpose of this study was to examine the criteria used by male and female athletes
who ranged from 14 to 18 years of age.
Although this was essentially an exploratory study due to the fact that the
sources of sport ability information had never been examined in this age group,
the related literature in both the sport and nonsport areas was reviewed to identify
some tentative hypotheses concerning possible age and gender differences in
competence criteria. In regard to potential age differences, it was hypothesized
that from early to late adolescence children would show a decrease in dependence
on such external sources of information as peer comparison, peer evaluation, and
winPoss outcomes and a comparable increase in the use of self-determined or
internalized standards of performance. This hypothesis is based on research and
theory from the developmental psychology literature (3, 9, 19) showing that
children over the adolescent years develop or internalize a set of personal standards and/or values that can then be used to evaluate their own performance and
behavior in subsequent achievement situations. Support for this developmental
phenomenon in the sport setting was demonstrated in a recent study conducted
by Vealey and Campbell (18) with a sample of 103 elite figure skaters ranging
in age from 13 to 18 years. Correlational analyses showed that age was positively
related to athletes' tendencies to base performance satisfaction and feelings of
competence on performing well, and negatively related to their tendencies to
base satisfaction and feelings of personal competence on winning.
In regard to gender differences, the research by Horn and colleagues (10,
12) with younger children 8 to 14 years has shown no differences in the type of
information used by boys and girls to judge their sport competence. However,
Sources of Information - 265
based on research in the developmental psychology literature (14, 15, 16) which
suggests that gender differences in many psychological variables may either first
emerge or intensify during the adolescent period, it was anticipated that gender
differences would be evident in this study.
Specifically, it was hypothesized that female athletes would rely more
on skill improvement, goal achievement, and other more internal sources of
information to evaluate their sport ability while males would rely more on peer
comparison and performance outcomes (i.e., win/loss records and game performance statistics). This hypothesis was based on related research in the sport
psychology area which has shown consistent gender differences in achievement
orientation. Gill (8) and her colleagues, for example, in their research with high
school and college subjects on sport achievement orientation, have consistently
found that males score higher than females on competitiveness and on win
orientation. In contrast, females score higher than males on goal orientation, that
is, an emphasis on achieving personal goals in competitive sport.
Duda (4,5), working from a goal perspective theory, has also found gender
differences in the sport cognitions of adolescent athletes. Specifically, female
athletes scored higher in task orientation (emphasis on skill improvement) while
males scored higher in ego orientation (emphasis on demonstrating more ability
than relevant peers).
In an interesting and related study on gender differences in the antecedents
of state (pregame) anxiety and self-confidenceof university-level athletes, Jones
et al. (13) found that females' pregame cognitive anxiety and self-confidence
could best be predicted by their perceptions of mental and physical readiness
and perceptions of match importance. However, males' pregame anxiety and
self-confidence were most highly associated with their perceptions of the team's
ability to win and their rating of the other team's ability. These results suggest
that male and female athletes do differ in the factors that affect pregame levels
of state anxiety and self-confidence.
Finally, in a study conducted to examine the sources of information used
by adult participants to judge their performance in exercise contexts, Ebbeck
(7) found significant differences between men and women. Specifically, male
exercisers appeared to rely more on external information such as peer feedback
while females indicated greater use of self-referenced information such as goal
achievement, personal effort, or skill improvement to judge how successful they
were in the exercise setting.
The combined results of the research cited above served as the basis for
the study hypotheses expressed earlier concerning gender differences in sources
of competence information. These hypotheses, combined with those based on
the developmental literature, were tested via a questionnaire study with high
school athletes.
Methods
Subjects and instrumentation
The subjects for this study included 435 high school athletes ranging in age from
14 to 18 years, who were attending a summer sport camp at a midwestern
university. This subject sample included 264 males (M age = 16.02 k.91) and
266 - Horn, Glenn, and Wentzell
171 females (M age = 15.78 k.82). These athletes were in Grades 9 through 12
and represented a variety of sports including basketball, volleyball, tennis, soccer,
and ice hockey.
omplete a 39-item questionnaire designed to
All subjects
assess what sources of information adolescents use to judge their sport ability.
This Sport Competence Information questionnaire begins with a short narrative
concerning the use of competence judgments in high school sport situations (see
Figure 1). This narrative is followed by a list of 13 items describing the various
sources of information available in the sport context and which athletes could
use in judging their sport competence: parental feedback, coach feedback, peer
feedback, peer comparison, speed or ease of learning, amount of effort exerted
in practices and games, attraction toward or liking for sport, game performance
statistics, game outcome (winfloss),internal information (e.g., anxiety, self-confidence), degree of skill improvement over time, spectator feedback, and achievement of self-set goals. Subjects are asked to rate on a scale of 1 to 5 how
important each source of information is to them in evaluating personal sport
competence. The complete questionnaire contains three narrative sets, each of
which assesses the subjects' use of the 13 sources of information.
Sources of Competence Information
Some high school athletes are pretty confident over most of the season that they
are having a good year in their sport. Other athletes doubt from time to time
whether they are having a good year in their sport.
Listed below are a series of items which represent sources of information that a
high school athlete might use in judging how well she or he is doing over the
season. Please rate each source of information as to how important it is to you
in helping you know over the season whether you are doing well or not so well
1. How easy it is for me to
learn a new skill or play
2. The praisefcriticism I get
3. How confident or unsure I
am before and during games
4. Whether or not I am performing the way I expected
myself to perform
5. What my parents say to me
Sources of Information - 267
The 39 items included in the Sport Competence Information questionnaire
were selected based on (a) previous research concerning competence judgments
in younger athletes (10, 12), (b) a review of the adolescent literature, and (c) a
pilot questionnaire that was administered to 107 male and female high school
athletes from a variety of sports.
Study Procedures
Questionnaires were administered in a group setting to all subjects during a rest
break after a morning, afternoon, or evening practice session. The questionnaires
were administered in the practice environment either by the principal investigator
or by trained research assistants and took the subjects approximately 20 to 25
minutes to complete. Informed consent was obtained prior to subjects' participation in the study.
Results
Factor Analysis of the Questionnaire
Due to the exploratory nature of this study, the 39-item questionnaire measuring
subjects' preferences for particular sources of competence information was subjected to a principal-axis factor analysis. This was deemed necessary in order to
determine whether the 13 information sources assessed in this study would
actually be representative of a smaller number of more general latent constructs.
Initial factors in this analysis were extracted using a minimum eigenvalue of 1.0,
and the results of both orthogonal (varimax) and oblique (oblimin) rotations were
examined. Because the factor structures obtained from both rotations were similar,
and all correlations between factors in the oblique rotation were low, the orthogonal results were selected for further analyses.
The factor analysis resulted in a 10-factor solution. A minimal loading of
.40 was used as a criterion value in the interpretation of individual factors.
Examination of the factor weights (see Table I ) indicated that each factor was
rather easily interpreted and represented a conceptually meaningful source of
competence information. Thus it appeared that the 13 original sources of information could be reduced to a more parsimonious and conceptually more integrated
list of the sources of information used by adolescent athletes to judge their sport
ability.
As shown in Table 1, items loading highly on Factor 1 represent the use
of self-comparison information (i.e., skill improvement over time) combined with
such internal information as self-confidence, self-motivation, degree of exerted
effort, and personal expectations to evaluate personal competence. Thus this
factor was labeled self-comparison/internal information. Factor 2, competitive
outcomes, reflects the use of game or match outcome (winning or losing) and
personal performance statistics to judge competence. Factor 3, parental
evaluation/feedback, indicates dependence upon evaluative feedback from parents. Items loading high on Factor 4, peer comparison, show a use of peers'
performance to judge own competence.
Factors 5, spectator evaluation, and 6, coach evaluation/feedback, represent
the use of evaluative feedback from significant others in the sport environment.
Factor 7, speedlease of learning, suggests dependence on the speed or ease with
268 - Horn, Glenn, and Wentzell
Table 1
Factor Analysis Results: Sources of Competence lnformation
Factor weights
Information sources
Skill improvement over time
Willingness to work in practice
Ability to improve skills
Ability to motivate self
Improvement from last season
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
1
0
.55 .03 .01 .10 .08 .08 .15 .09 .10 .16
.68 .OO .08 .03-.01 .08 .03 .06-.02 .08
.63 .12 .07 .03-.01 -.05 .16 .05 .06 .01
.60 .OO .07 .05 .01 .14 .ll -.01 -.02 .07
.53 .02-.03 .08 .13 .13 .09 .08 .24 .14
Good feeling after practices
.44 -.05 .18 .19 .10 .09-.07 .04 .ll .13
.49 .08 .OO .27 .10 .06-.01 .07 .17 .02
Performing up to my expectations
.43 .10 .08 .04-.01 .09 .22 .06 .12 .09
Effort needed to maintain skill
Self-confidence before games
.49 .I4 .05 .13-.02 .08 .16-.06 .20 .05
Personallteam winnoss record
.09 .79 .13 .11 .10 .01 .18 .09 .O1 .ll
Personallteamwinlloss record
.06 .86 .ll .08 .15 .03 .17 .07 .06 .09
Winlloss of important games
.16 .63 .05 .14 .15 .15 .16-.04 .01 .02
Personal game statistics
.06 .45 .10 .36 .14 .02-.03 .08 .14 .06
Parents' evaluation or feedback
.12 .ll .80-.05 .08 .05 .03 .09 .04 .05
Parents' judgment of my ability
.12 .13 .86 .09 .10 .06 .10 .10 .04 .08
Parents' comments after game
.12 .ll .83 .ll .18 .ll .06 .03 .02 .05
Comparison to teammates in games
.ll .09 .07 .62 .07 .03 .19 .16 .03-.lo
Quality of play in games
.28 .10-.03 .42 .14 .01 .ll .03-.01 .08
Comparison to teammates in practice .21 .17 .09 .58 .12 .12 .20 .30 .06 .OO
General comparison to teammates
.12 .13 .OO .59 .13 .ll .08 .I 1 .OO .02
Spectators' judgments
.14 .26 .22 .17 .62-.05 .14 .20-.04 -.01
Evaluation from fans and media
.09 .18 .08 .23 .69 .08 .07 .30 .01 .03
Spectators' reactions
.05 .18 .18 .18 .79 .08 .10 .14-.01 .OO
Coaches' comments
.I0 .02 .12-.03-.03 .71 .09 .16 .I0 .05
Coaches' evaluation
.24 .08 .03 .10-.02 .71 .09 .10 .12 .04
Praise or criticism from coach
.09 .06 .05 .13 .12 .67 .02 .09 .02 .04
Speed of learning new skills
.26 .17 .07 .19 .10 .09 .57 .10 .09 .03
Time ta leam
.29 .18 .07 .22 .12 .06 .67 .07 .04 .11
Ease of learning
.24 .16 .05 .ll .13 .16 .63 .21 .05 .ll
Peers' evaluation
.06 -.01 .09 .10 .15 .05 .09 .63 .07 .OO
Teammates' evaluation
.06 .07 .08 .20 .18 .24 .ll .70-.05 .05
Teammates' judgments
.13 .14 .06 .29 .19 .22 .09 .56 .01 .04
Achievement of self-set goals
.34 .10-.01 .07-.lo .14 .08 .04 .62 .06
.35 .10 .12 .03-.05 .12 .10 .O1 .78 .08
Reaching preseason goals
.29 .12 .06-.06 .01 .04 .06 .03 .04 .72
Liking to play
.26 .08 .12-.01 .OO .09 .15 .03 .08 .73
Enjoyment of sport
.36 .14 .09 .13-.03 -.01 .29 .03 .ll .08
Precompetjtion feelings
.01 .37 .ll .35 .15 .01 .01 .07 .18-.03
Performance statistics
.33 -.I5 .10 .16 .06 .18 .21 -.06 .ll .O1
Effort exerted in practice
9.10 3.5'2.252.1.3 1.70'1.501.30 1.1'61.09 1.01
Eigenvahe
% Variance explained
23.9 8.9 5.9 5.6 4.5 3.9 3.4 3.1 2.9 2.7
Sources of Information - 269
which new skills are learned to judge personal sport ability, while Factor 8, peer
evaluation, reflects use of evaluative feedback from teammates. Factor 9, goal
achievement, reflects dependence on achievement of self-set goals as a means
to determine personal competence, while Factor 10, sport attraction/enjoyrnent,
indicates reliance on degree of attraction or liking for the sport as an indicator
of personal competence.
It should be noted that 3 of the 39 items in the questionnaire did not load
highly enough on any one factor and thus were not used in the interpretation of
the individual factors. In addition, none of the items loaded on more than one
factor. The 10 factors accounted for 64.8% of the variance in the data. The
internal consistency of the items loading highly on each factor was assessed
through the use of Cronbach's alpha. Obtained coefficients for the 10 factors
ranged from .74 to .90. The factor pattern weights obtained from this analysis
were used to calculate 10 factor scores for each subject. These factor scores were
then used as a measure of each subject's preference for each of the 10 derived
sources of competence information.
Group Differences in Competence Judgments
The purpose of this study was to test whether there are age or gender differences
in the criteria that adolescents use in judging their sport ability. To examine this
issue, a 2 x 2 (Gender x Age Level) multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA)
was conducted. The dependent variables were the 10 factor scores representing
subjects' preferences for particular competence information sources. The independent variables were gender and age. The two levels of the age variable were
obtained by separating the entire sample into two categories. The older group
(M age = 16.8 k.83) comprised predominantly high school juniors and seniors
who played at the varsity level (n=305) while the younger group (M age = 15.3
k.69) included athletes who played on freshman or junior varsity teams (n=130).
The results of the MANOVA revealed a nonsignificant age-level-by-gender
interaction effect, Wilks' lambda = .98; F(10, 422) = .99; p<.45. However,
significant main effects were found for both age level, Wilks' lambda = .95;
F(10, 422) = 2.05; p<.03, and gender, Wilks' lambda = .95; F(10, 422) = 2.06;
p<.03.
To determine more specifically how athletes' preferences for particular
competence information sources differed by age and gender, the discriminant
function analysis results were examined. A minimal criterion for determining
significance was set at .30. Examination of the obtained discriminant function
coefficients for the age-level main effect (see Table 2) showed that the two age
groups differed significantly on 4 of the 10 information sources. Specifically, the
older athletes scored higher than the younger athletes on use of self-comparison/
internal information, goal achievement, and sport attractiodenjoyment. In contrast, the younger athletes showed greater dependence on peer evaluation as a
means to judge their sport ability.
Examination of the discriminant function coefficients for the gender main
effect (see Table 3) showed that the male and female athletes differed on 6 of
the 10 factor scores. Specifically, females scored higher than males on the use
of self-comparisodint&
information and on feedback from peers, coaches,
and spectators. In contrast, male athletes scored higher on the use of competitive
270 - Horn, Glenn, and Wentzell
Table 2
Age Level Differences in Competence lnformation
Factor score means
Competence information
factor scores
Younger athl. (n=130)
M
SD
Older athl. (n=305)
M
SD
Stand. discrim.
func. coeff.
Self-comparisonl
internal info.
Competitive outcomes
Parental eval./feedback
Peer comparison
Spectator evaluation
Coach eval./feedback
Speedlease of learning
Peer evaluation
Goal achievement
Sport attractionlenjoy.
Table 3
Gender Differences in Competence lnformation
Factor score means
Competence information
factor scores
Self-comparisonlinternalinformation
Competitive outcomes
Parental evaluationlfeedback
Peer comparison
Spectator evaluation
Coach evaluationlfeedback
Speedlease of learning
Peer evaluation
Goal achievement
Sport attractionlenjoyment
Males
M
SD
Females
M
SD
Stand. discrirn.
func. coeff.
Sources of Information - 271
outcomes and speedlease of learning as a means of evaluating personal sport
competence.
Discussion
The results of this study show there are significant differences between younger
and older adolescents in the type of information they use to evaluate their personal
sport ability. Specifically, athletes in the later high school years show greater
use of self-comparison processes (skill improvement over time), internalized or
self-determined performance standards (achievement of self-set goals), and internal information (e.g., prematch self-confidence,ability to motivate self, enjoyment
of sport activity) to evaluate how competent they are at a particular sport. Athletes
in the early high school years show a greater tendency to use evaluative feedback
from peers to judge their sport ability. No age-level differences were found in
regard to the other sources of competence information such as peer comparison,
competitive outcomes, coach feedback, parental feedback, speedlease of learning,
or spectator evaluation.
These results are consistent with research and theory in the developmental
literature (3,9, 19) suggesting that over the adolescent years individuals develop
an internalized set of performance and behavioral standards that they can then
use in subsequent situations to evaluate their performance ability. The results
from this study indicate that a similar developmental progression occurs in regard
to competence judgments in the sport context.
The finding that younger adolescents are more dependent than older adolescents on peer evaluation is also consistent with previous research showing that
dependence on parental feedback declines between the ages of 8 and 14 years
while preference for coach and peer feedback increases (10). Thus it appears
that young adolescents are very much oriented toward peer approval but that this
dependence on peers may decrease somewhat from early to late adolescence.
Again, this developmental pattern is consistent with results from the more general
developmental psychology literature (3).
Although the findings obtained in this study do provide support for a
developmental pattern in regard to competence judgments, these findings must
be interpreted with some caution. Specifically, it is important to note that age in
this study was confounded with competitive level, skill ability, and years of sport
experience. Thus it is certainly possible that the differences found in this study
between the two age groups are not due as much to cognitive maturation as to
changes represented by the level of competition (i.e., freshman/junior varsity to
varsity), increase in actual skill ability, and number of years of involvement in
the sport. Obviously the program structure, team climate, and coaches' behavior
may change as athletes progress from freshman and junior varsity teams to varsity
level teams. Such changes may in turn be responsible for, or at least interact
with, maturational changes in cognitive abilities to result in the age-level differences that were observed in this study with regard to adolescents' competence
judgments. Therefore the group differences found in this study cannot be totally
attributed to maturation.
Along these same lines, although the age-group comparisons showed significant mean differences between younger and older athletes in preference for
particular information sources, there was also considerable variability between
272 - Horn, Glenn, and Wentzell
the athletes in each age group. Thus it is apparent that there are factors other
than developmental level that have an impact on adolescents' preferences for
specific information sources. Therefore, continued research is needed to investigate possible socioenvironmentalfactors (e.g., parental behaviors, program structure, coaching philosophies and behaviors) that may be more important than age
in explaining why children become more or less dependent on selected sources
of competence information.
In regard to gender differences, the results of this study do indicate that
male and female adolescents differ somewhat in the criteria they use to evaluate
their sport performance. Specifically,males are more reliant on the use of competitive outcomes (winfloss and performance statistics) and speed or ease of learning
new skills while females show greater preference for self-comparison and internal
information and for evaluative feedback from significant others in the sport
environment.
In general, the fact that gender differences in preferences for competence
information sources were found in this study but not in two previous studies
conducted with younger children (10, 12) is consistent with research in the
developmental psychology literature (14, 15, 16) showing that gender differences
in many psychological variables may not emerge until adolescence. Although
the reasons for such age-by-gender interactions are not yet known, it can be
speculated that the sociocultural environment changes for females as they reach
puberty. Such changes can affect the way female athletes perceive sport and their
position in it.
Whatever the explanation for the observed differences between male and
female athletes, the specific differences obtained in this study are consistent with
the results found in related sport research studies. Gill (8) and Duda (4, 5), in
their work on competitive orientation and goal achievement orientation, have
generally found that male high school and college athletes are more apt to
emphasize competitive outcomes (winfloss records) and peer comparison while
females are more oriented toward task mastery and goal achievement.
The results of this study also showed that females are more sensitive to or
more likely than males to use such internal information as degree of self-confidence, self-motivation, and positive postactivity feelings to judge their performance abilities. Again, the specific reasons for such gender differences are
unknown but may well be due to sociocultural tenets that allow or even require
females to be more expressive and/or sensitive than males regarding emotional
states.
An unanticipated finding in this study was that females showed greater use
of evaluative feedback from a variety of individuals in the sport setting. Although
unexpected, these results are consistent with other data we have recently collected
examining high school athletes' preferences for particular coaching behaviors
(20). Our preliminary analysis of these data indicates that high school female
athletes show significantly greater preference than males for coaches who provide
frequent reinforcement, praise, and social support. In comparison, high school
male athletes are more comfortable than females with coaches who provide no
feedback in response to performance successes or errors.
The value that female interscholastic athletes place on feedback from others
may be due to the fact that females tend to be more affiliative than males.
Alternatively, as mentioned earlier, the sport environment may be different for
Sources of tnformat1.m
- 273
males than for females. Specifically, based on research in academic contexts (I),
it could be hypothesized that females receive less contingent and performanceoriented feedback from teachers, coaches, and parents throughout the youth sport
years. Thus, as adolescents they may place a greater value on feedback and prefer
more of it than their male peers.
In summary, the results of this study do show that the criteria that adolescents use to evaluate their sport ability vary as a function of age level and gender.
However, it is also apparent that many other factors influence adolescents' selfevaluation. In research with younger athletes ages 8-14 years, Horn and Hasbrook
(1 1) found that certain psychological characteristics such as level of perceived
competence or perceived performance control could explain a significant amount
of the variation within specific age groups in subjects' preferences for particular
sources of competence information. It is certainly likely that similar results may
be found with adolescent athletes. That is, perhaps such things as the athlete's
level of trait anxiety, sex-role orientation, and locus of control along with other
psychological characteristics also have an impact on her or his preferences for
particular competence information sources. In addition, as noted earlier, it could
be expected that such things as program structure, coaches' behavior, and general
team climate may also affect the way in which individual athletes judge their
sport ability. Thus, continued research in this area is certainly recommended.
From a more practical or applied perspective, the results of this type of
research indicate that children and adolescents differ in the information they use
to judge their ability in sport situations. Thus, interested adults who want to
facilitate a child's perception of competence must know exactly what information
or criteria that child is using to judge her or his performance. Armed with such
knowledge, the adult will be better able to structure the sport environment in
ways that will facilitate the child's perceived competence than if it is assumed
that all children are affected in the same way. The results of this study provide
some understanding about the criteria that are important to various adolescent
groups. This information should be used by practitioners in their attempt to
provide an optimal sport environment for all children.
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