Introduction
In the field of sports and exercise psychology, the most important theme for performance and mental health is motivation. It significantly enables athletes to acquire and maintain an exercise regimen that influences mental and physical health. Motivation is a significant subject because it is a driving force of human actions and performance. Also, multiple approaches to motivation in sports, including self-determination, improve athletes’ mental health. Thus, it is crucial to understand the motivation of athletes based on their participation and performance in sports. Furthermore, it is essential to review the literature on the influence of motivation on the athlete’s mental health and performance. Therefore, the paper compares the athlete’s participation in individual or team disciplines to demonstrate the positive impact of motivation on commitment, mental well-being, and performance.
Review of research paper
Moradi et al. (2020) provide valuable insights into how motivation promotes the athlete’s positive mental health and commitment. The research article extensively explores how motivation works across individual or team disciplines. Besides, the authors present data and findings which elaborate on how motivation to participate and perform better is crucial. They indicate, “motivation to perform better is necessary. It allows athletes to gain significant focus and commitment to achieve goals or win.” (Moradi et al., 2020). The authors effectively illustrate how athletes are motivated to boost their performance based on various internal and external factors such as mastery, skill development, improved health, and rewards. For instance, motivation enables athletes to learn new skills, which can promote physical and mental well-being. Thus, these insights connect with the class materials, especially the theories of motivation, including self-determination and planned behavior. Hence, a significant relationship exists between internal and external motivation and better mental health or performance among athletes.
Nevertheless, the research paper significantly applies multiple insights on motivation among individual or team athletes and male or female players. It supports my topic as it relates to performance and health. The results indicate that individual athletes are more motivated to participate and perform better than a team. In addition, there is a significant difference in motivation factors between male and female athletes. The authors argue that “male athletes are motivated by factors such as achievement, energy release, skill development, fitness, and teamwork.” (Moradi et al., 2020). However, motivation enables female athletes to seek fitness, improved performance, confidence, and situational aspects. As a result, the paper shows that progress and achievement in sports play a significant role in individual and team athletes.
Moreover, it illustrates how motivation is crucial in physical exercise., and positive mental health. When athletes possess positive motivation, including the desire to acquire a personal goal or improve their performances, it promotes a general sense of satisfaction and well-being (Moradi et al., 2020). This will positively facilitate better mental health because motivation is considered a significant determinant of behavior in sports. However, extremely high and negative motivation levels lead to burnout, anxiety, and stress among athletes.
Ultimately, this research on motivation in sports is important in human development. It explores the athletes’ uniqueness and enables them to acquire physical and mental well-being and improve their performances. Motivation allows athletes to achieve goals and master skills because they are driven to perform better. Based on the course materials, motivation is a vital representation of an athlete’s physical activity and behavior, including self-determination to succeed, commitment, focus, situational factors, interests, and setting goals. Nevertheless, motivation promotes the athlete’s ability to achieve performance goals and establish resilience to help them overcome challenges such as injury or setbacks (Moradi et al., 2020). Therefore, the research paper provides valuable insights into how motivation is an important part of an athlete’s physical and psychological development concerning participation and performance. Coaches should establish continuous exercise and participation to motivate athletes positively.
Conclusion
The athlete’s participation in individual or team disciplines demonstrates a positive impact of motivation on athletes’ participation, mental well-being, and performance. The research paper illustrates how athletes are motivated to boost their performance based on various internal and external factors such as mastery, skill development, improved health, and rewards. It shows that progress and achievement in sports play a significant role in individual and team athletes. Motivation is important in human development in sports because it allows athletes to achieve goals and master the skills to perform better. However, the paper has some flaws and gaps in existing knowledge. For instance, the paper needs more empirical evidence on the differences in motivation among individual athletes or teams. Also, there are gaps regarding motivation influence on relatedness, autonomy, and psychological competence needs among athletes. Future studies should focus on the role of motivation in improving the performance and mental health of individual athletes or teams. They should also expound on the significance of mental health as a motivation outcome among athletes with a disability or physical injury.
References
Moradi, J., Bahrami, A., & Dana, A. (2020). Motivation for participation in sports is based on athletes in team and individual sports. Physical Culture and Sport. Studies and Research, 85(1), 14-21. https://sciendo.com/article/10.2478/pcssr-2020-0002