Promoting females enjoyment in recreation sports and its impact of goals, beliefs, and self-determination in some selected secondary schools in Ijebu-Ode Local Government Area of Ogun State

Background to the Study

Evaluation of participation in female sport and recreation has been ignored for decades. Research by the Sports Information and Science Agency indicates that women have been disadvantaged as far as participation in sport and recreation is concerned for many years (Bmi  Sports Info, 1997:1-2). In addition they have not had coaching and refereeing opportunities, and were not able to occupy administrative positions (Bmi Sports Info, 1997: 1-2). Statistics, according to Bmi Sports Information (1997:4-5), indicates that only 2,5 million of the 12,5 million South African women aged 18 years and older participate in organised sport. This leaves 9, 9 million women who are not participating in sport. Less than 21% of women participate in sport, compared to 40% of men, clearly demonstrating a much lower participation level to that of men. This participation level varies considerably from one culture group to another with 48% white women participating in sport, but only 15% of black women. During the 21st century, sport and recreation activities have been thoroughly masculinised. 

However, women cannot afford to allow this tendency to continue unchallenged. The way sport is encouraged and organised for male participants is perhaps the most impressionable way females observe that males are to be active while females are not (Birrell and Cole, 1994: 48-49). A series of social processes is implicated in the way in which sport and recreation is seen as male territory while women are effectively excluded. Gender is a key factor within the world of sport. Researchers found evidence to support the phenomenon that women’s motives for participating in sport are different from men’s motives. Women are less competitive than men, and therefore, participate in sport for intrinsic motives, whereas males participate more for extrinsic motives. Women on average participate more for friendship and fun, while males participate to win(Chantel, Guay, Debreva-Martinova and Vallerand, 1996: 180).Spears and Swanson in (Gouws, 2001: 242) defines sport as the activities involving power and skill, competition, strategy engaged in for the enjoyment and satisfaction of the participant and others. This definition includes both organised sport and sport for recreational purposes. It clearly includes the component of sport as entertainment, which encompasses professional sport.Similarly, Snyder and Spreitzer (2001:242) defines sport as an activity which takes place within a specific time, space and area where certain rules are clearly defined with the purpose to nominate a winner or loser. Sport is seen as a physically active pastime practiced at a wide variety of levels, under agreed rules, not necessarily, but often, in a competitive setting, at the very least competing with oneself (Watt, 1998: 10).Gouws, (2001: 242) refers to various perceptions. Sport is competitive in nature and is based on the natural tendency of man to compete with himself, others and nature.By practicing sport, man is pursuing excellence, because sport tests the perseverance of every participant. Birrel and Cole (1994: 50) define sport as something in which men and children participate in, though males far more than females. If women want to play the game, they are going to have to play it by ‘male-generated rules’. The defining process is effective and shows the fact that far fewer women participate in sport activities.

Furthermore,  Sport is now also taking a leading role as far  as equalizing the playing fields for women. For many years women have been disadvantaged as far as participation in sport and movement into coaching, refereeing and administrative positions are concerned (Bmi sports info, 1997: 1-2). Over the past decade much more opportunities, but not as much as that given to men, have been created for sportswomen.But with the bulk of sports sponsorship going to cricket, football, rugby and golf and with redressing social imbalances, opportunities for black girls and women have been sandwiched. Much pressure to perform is also placed on a black sportswoman when she emerges as a potential international athlete. For example, Athletes Dikeledi Morapane,Sarah Mahlangu, Farwa Mentoor, footballers Portia Modise and Veronica Phewa carry the hopes and  aspirations of  millions of black  women who  want  to be  black sports heroines (Roberts, 2004: 12-13). Admittedly, these sportswomen have been assisted through age group competitions and into international sport but not enough black women have been brought through the ranks. Gender imbalances continue to embarrass our non-racial, democratic South Africa. South Africa is producing world champions and world class female athletes  whose  performances inspire thousands of female  athletes  in  all sports, but sponsors are not showing the keenness to be associated with the development of our sportswomen (Roberts, 2004: 12-13).In  almost  the same vein, Roberts,  (2003:  3-4)  in his examples comments that South Africa’s elite sportswomen have over the past decade shown that they are not only world class female competitors in South Africa but that they are also capable of winning world titles and Olympic medals. Therefore, sportswomen such as swimmer Penny Heyns, tennis player Amanda Coetzer, athlete Elana Meyer, rowers Rika Geyser and now world high jump champion Hestrie Cloete have not only competed creditably throughout the world but have also done South Africa proud.On the other hand,  enjoyment is an elusive concept that is difficult to articulate and is individualistic (Biddle and Chatzisarantis, 1999). Constructs of enjoyment have been examined in an attempt to identify its determinants (Carroll and Loumidis, 2001;Goudas and Biddle 1993; Portman, 1995, Ryan, Fleming and Maina, 2003). Researchers have also identified the teacher (Carlson, 1995; Hassandra, Gouda and Chroni, 2003;Ryan, Fleming and Maina, 2003), choice (Carlson, 1995; Dyson 1995), perceived competency (Carroll and Loumidis, 2001; Dyson, 1995; McKiddie and Maynard, 1997; Ntoumanis, 2001; Portman, 1995) and instructional strategy (Mitchell, 1996) as important indicator  variables and  determinants  of  enjoyment in educational contexts.Therefore, enjoyment as a construct must be increasingly understood if we are to understand children's initial and continued engagement in physical activity (Gam and Cothran, 2006). Physical education is of particular interest since it continues to be a critical component of a youth's educational involvement in physical activity and has been shown to impact future exercise habits (Coakley and White, 1992).Again, enjoyment has been described as a "positive affective response to the sport experience that reflects generalized feelings such as pleasure, liking, and fun" (Scanlanand Simons, 1992: 203-204). With enjoyment being a factor that  influences  females participation in physical education, sport and physical activity, scholars have often linked enjoyment to intrinsic motivation, (Csikszentmihalyi, 1975; Deci and Ryan, 1985), while others believe  that enjoyment  of sport  is  broader than intrinsic motivation  and goes beyond feelings of competence and control (Scanlan & Lewthwaite, 1986; Scanlan & Simons, 1992). Consequently,  recreation is defined as any activity, which is not conscientiously performed for the sake of reward beyond the activity itself, which is usually engaged in during leisure. Recreation offers a main outlet for the individual’s physical, mental and creative powers, in which the individual engages because of inner desire and not because of outer compulsion (Gouws, 2001:239). Goodale and Godby in (Gouws, 2001: 239)defined recreation as the strong desire that exists to escape for a while from the daily,routine world, as well as from the rules and roles of the world. A second characteristic is that pleasure and enjoyment forms part of the activity. During recreation every individual has freedom of choice. The choice centers around when, how, with whom and where recreation will or will not take place. Therefore, recreation is seen as the physical (when related to sport and usually the allied mental) re-creating (renewing) of the body and the person (Watt, 1998:9). Subsequently, when faced with obstacles, females with entity beliefs tend to showdetrimental performance, and negative affect and cognitions. In physical activity settings,Wang and Biddle (2001) found that high incremental belief was one of the key factors affecting intrinsic motivation towards physical education. Entity or fixed belief, however,resulted in less adaptive motivational profiles. They also found that females tended to beover-represented in the less adaptive motivational profiles as compared to males.According to the theories, sport ability beliefs are seen as antecedents of achievement goals (Biddle, 2003; Dweck, 1999; Dweck and Leggett, 1988). 

Spray and his colleagues (Spray, 2006) provided support for the causal links between conceptions of sport ability and situational achievement goals.  Again,  on the side of the self-determination continuum, intrinsic motivation represents the motivation when one is doing something for its own sake and not for external rewards.  The self-determination theory also posits that there are at least three main types of extrinsic regulatory processes: external regulation, introjected regulation and identified regulation. External regulation is characterized by behaviour that is controlled by external forces, such as rewards or punishments. Introjected regulation is behaviour controlled by internal pressure to act, such as avoidance of guilt and shame.Identified regulation involves acting out because behaviour is seen  as personally important. 

Statement of the Problem 

The state of females’ enjoyment in recreation sports is insignificant compare with that of that males’ counterpart. However, some factors have been identified as responsible for such differences in physical activity. These factors include intrinsic motivations of females in recreational sports which have always resulted in low performance. Another factor forming  the problem statement  is  the perceived  competence  of females which could impact directly on their goal, belief and determination in promoting their enjoyment in recreation sports, especially in Nigeria.Moreover, the effect of social factors and/or situational factors is also one of the identified factors that may be influencing promotion of females’ enjoyment in recreation sports as well as its impact on their goals, belief and self-determination. However, literatures have revealed that it is important to promote incremental beliefs among females’ students in physical activity, like recreation sports by focusing on important aspects of sport ability, as a result, females are more likely to adopt a mastery approach in taking part in sport or physical activity and thereby promoting their enjoyment.Consequently, the attitude of  physical education teachers during physical education lessons tends to contribute to hindrances to enjoyment of females in recreation sports as well as their goals achievement, beliefs and self-determination. This, in turn,may foster intrinsic motivation of females to engage in physical activity outside physical education lessons. Therefore, physical education teachers must provide an enjoyable experience such that females’ students do not feel that they are taking part in physical education because of external rules or feeling of guilt. Hence, when students were more self-determined or intrinsically motivated, they enjoyed their PE experience more. These could be important in increasing the likelihood of females’ enjoyment and its impact on goals, beliefs and self-determination in physical activity. Against this background, this study intends to investigate on the outcome of the above reiterated factors on females’ enjoyment in recreation sports and their impact on goal, beliefs and self-determination.

Purpose of the Study 

The overall purpose of this study is to investigate on promoting females enjoyment in recreation sports and its impact of goals, beliefs and self-determination in some selected secondary schools in Ijebu-Ode Local Government Area of Ogun State. Specifically, other related objectives of the study will include the followings:

(i) To establish the relationship between promotion of females’ enjoyment in recreation sports and its impact on goals, beliefs and self-determination in some selected secondary schools in Ijebu-Ode Local Government area of Ogun State.

(ii) To establish the relationship between females’ enjoyment in recreation sports and that of their males’ counterpart in some selected secondary schools in Ijebu-Ode Local Government area of Ogun State.

(iii) To examine the perceived competence of females in recreation sports and its impact on goal, belief and self-determination in some selected secondary schools in Ijebu-Ode Local Government area of Ogun State.

(iv) To examine the effect of social factors and/or situational factors on females’enjoyment in recreation sports and their influence on goal, beliefs and self-determination in some selected secondary schools in Ijebu-Ode Local Government area of Ogun State.(v) To find out whether the attitude of physical education teachers have any significant impact on females’ enjoyment in recreation sports.