Introduction
Any individual’s aspects of behavior are determined by an internal energy force known as motivation, which significantly affects an individual’s thinking, the feeling of an individual, and how they interact with others. In youth sports, motivation has greatly affected the potential of young athletes and has been accepted as a vital prerequisite enabling young athletes to fulfill their potential. However, due to the inherently abstract nature of motivation, it is not an easy task to exploit it fully. Some coaches might find it like magic how they manage to get the best out of their teams through motivation, while other coaches might find it as ab elusive concept that they struggle to master.
The study of motivation in young sports utilizes numerous approaches where some of the approaches involve positive and negative reinforcement schedules, while other approaches mainly focus on the sense of mastery of an individual over various circumstances. This article will utilize a contemporary approach to explore the constituents of motivation in youth sports, that is, the self-determination theory, which will focus more on the role played by an individual choice and the strategies that coaches can use to increase enthusiasm and motivation in youth sports.
Self-determination is an individual’s ability to make choices and manage their life. When one is self-determined, one possesses greater control, contrary to being non-self-determined, where one feels their life is greatly controlled by others. Self-determination theory argues that individuals are motivated by three innate psychological needs in their growth and change: autonomy, relatedness, and competence. Self-determination is a very important concept in applied psychology due to its role in the psychological health and well-being, in this case, of young athletes. Coaches promoting self-determination among young athletes in sports have worked in the field of sports to the motivation of young athletes. SDT is a concept that explains how young athletes being self-determined influences their motivation in that they feel a bit more motivated to do what they think will positively affect their outcome (Fenton et al., 2016).
Techniques Coaches Can Use To Increase Motivation In Youth Sports
Goal Setting
Young athletes need to be guided and encouraged to set some achievable long-term goals. Coaches can empower these young athletes to set their goals, accept the existence of various challenges in achieving their goals and be able to pursue the set goals with enthusiasm. In order for young athletes to achieve their long-term goals, they also need to be guided to setting appropriate medium-term goals. These medium-term goals would enable them to be on track to achieving their long-term goals as they are predominantly process-oriented. Coaches need to monitor and revise the goals the youth athletes have set regularly and avoid the mistake of being too rigid in the approach they use to monitor and revise the goals (Menting et al., 2019).
Use of Extrinsic Rewards
According to Self-determination Theory, the effective use of extrinsic rewards reinforces the sense of competence and self-worth of a young athlete. Thus, it is advantageous for these young athletes to be rewarded in a rather informational way and not controlling. A controlling reward can significantly hinder the intrinsic motivation youth athlete can get. An informational reward that coaches should embrace is those that involve relatively little monetary worthiness. Coaches can also present these rewards to the designated athlete in front of other potential candidates and with emphasis on the prestige of the reward (Petranchuk, 2019).
Motivational Music
Motivational music can be particularly a nice method that coaches can employ to motivate young athletes, especially when they are in their training and prior to participating in a competition. Some coaches like Tim Foster, who was a Sydney Olympics gold medallist, use this strategy in his indoor training sessions. He uses fast or loud music during circuit training and soft or slow music during sessions of recovery (Petranchuk, 2019). Research has shown that this method increases the work output of young athletes, and perceived exertion is said to be reduced and also improve the pleasure the young athletes experience during their sessions with their coaches.
Positive self-talk
Coaches should embrace positive self-talk in the young athletes they coach that would motivate them in various achievement domains. In positive self-talk, young athletes would be able to use their powerful inner voice to reinforce their self-esteem or any other important aspects related to their performance. When guided on how to do it appropriately and with appropriate repetition, self-talk eventually positively influences the belief system of young athletes. Positive self-talk can be task-relevant, mood-related, or positive self-affirmation (Thibodeaux & Winsler, 2021).
Conclusion
Every individual, especially youth athletes, possesses an untapped energy source that coaches can draw upon them and bring about superior results for the athletes. Enhancing motivation in young athletes is fundamentally all about bringing a change of attitude to the young athletes, ensuring that the young athletes develop a ‘can do’ mindset in their activities, and engaging in systematic behaviors, which are their set short-term process goals which would eventually facilitate their improvement and achieve their long-term goals. Coaches, as the leaders of the youth athletes, play a key role in that they have a significant influence on how the young athletes are motivated or the entire team feels. A coach can instill a good work ethic into the youth athletes they coach, be able to recognize every young athlete’s effort, and instigate appropriate reward structures that are aimed at reinforcing the athletes’ sense of competence. It is important for coaches to note that the strategies to work effectively to increase the motivation of young athletes are supposed to be molded under specific circumstances and according to the needs of each athlete.
References
Fenton, S. A., Duda, J. L., & Barrett, T. (2016). Optimising physical activity engagement during youth sport: a self-determination theory approach. Journal of sports sciences, 34(19), 1874-1884.
Menting, S. G., Hendry, D. T., Schiphof-Godart, L., Elferink-Gemser, M. T., & Hettinga, F. J. (2019). Optimal development of youth athletes toward elite athletic performance: How to coach their motivation, plan exercise training, and pace the race. Frontiers in Sports and Active Living, 1, 14.
Petranchuk, T. (2019). The Impact of Extrinsic Motivation on Athletic Performance.
Thibodeaux, J., & Winsler, A. (2021). Stay Positive: Self-talk in Relation to Motivational Climate, Goal Orientation, and Self-talk Encouragement in Tennis. Research Quarterly for Exercise and Sport, 1-12.
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