Gender differences in children's conceptions of competence and motivation in physical education.Find More Like This
Authors:
Lee[a], Amelia M.
Fredenburg[b], Karen
Belcher[c], Don
Cleveland[a], Nancy
Sport, Education & Society; Oct99, Vol. 4 Issue 2, p161, 14p, 2 charts
ABSTRACT This study investigated the competence perceptions and motivational beliefs of 50 physical education students who had adopted stereotypical perceptions of two gender oriented physical activities, dance and basketball. Specifically, the research asked students to explain why basketball is sometimes viewed as more appropriate for boys and dance is viewed as more appropriate for girls. The research also aimed to understand why students think they will not be as skilled and why many seem not to try in activities not viewed as gender appropriate. Participants were 50 fifthgraders who had personally adopted stereotypical perceptions regarding appropriateness of basketball and dance for male and female participation. A standardized open-ended interview technique was utilized to ascertain what mediated student viewpoints about competence and motivation and how children viewed and assessed teacher motivational practice. Results indicated that competence and motivational beliefs of students with well-established sex-role conceptions are driven by a sense of gender appropriateness.
For decades researchers have used theories of motivation, such as self-efficacy (Bandura, 1969, 1986, 1989), expectancy value (Atkinson, 1964), and goal orientation (Nicholls, 1984) to understand why some children feel more competent than others and to explain differences in their motivational levels. These models have focused on the concept of perceived ability or competence as a mediating construct in achievement behaviour. Because a great deal of empirical work has established links between students' ability perceptions and their motivation, persistence, affective reactions and choices of activities to engage in (Eccles et al., 1984; Nicholls, 1984; Stipek & MacIver, 1989), some researchers have focused on helping teachers select teaching approaches that will enhance competence beliefs (Ames, 1992). In general, teachers have been encouraged to bind a student's success to effort rather than ability, and to emphasize improvement rather than performing better than others in the class. The goal of this research was to study the competence perceptions of children in physical education and to clarify their beliefs about why some children are more motivated than others. We also asked children to assess the motivational influences of four different teaching practices.
Gender Differences in Perceptions of Competence
Over the years, several researchers have reported gender differences in children's beliefs about their own competence in various movement and sport activities, and these differences must be considered in studies of ability-related perceptions. In general, boys consistently report higher perceptions of their overall physical competence and are more positive than gifts about their ability in most traditional sport activities (Eccles et al., 1989; Harter, 1982; Marsh et al., 1984). There is evidence to suggest, however, that females might not display a lack of confidence in all situations (Lenney, 1977). For example, research has documented that sex linked movement tasks can mediate gender differences in ability perceptions, with males displaying more confidence on masculine-typed tasks and females displaying more confidence on feminine-typed tasks (Clifton & Gill, 1994; Lirgg, 1991; Sanguinetti et al., 1985). While masculinity and femininity have multiple meanings that are socially constructed (Vygotsky, 1978), masculine-typed tasks are generally those requiring strength, power, and competitiveness. Typical feminine-typed tasks, however, are associated with the attributes of graceful movement qualities. This distinction is consistent with Western society's definition of masculinity as behaviour that is aggressive, competitive, and tough (Streitmatter, 1994). Thus, team sports will typically receive a masculine label while activities such as dance and gymnastics will be defined as feminine. From these studies there is agreement that stereotypes can have powerful influences on children's thinking about their own competence and thus might limit their effort and persistence to those activities considered sex-appropriate. Although there is agreement in the literature that sex stereotypes influence beliefs about competence, few researchers have actually assessed how children view and label various tasks. Before the specific research questions in this study could be answered it was important to confirm that stereotypes about movement activities do exist at young ages. Researchers interested in studying gender differences in ability perceptions for tasks stereotyped as masculine or feminine have been warned against using sex-typing from previous studies without establishing that the perceptions about the task are the same for the group being studied (Lirgg, 1991).
For decades, researchers (e.g. Metheny, 1965) have attempted to identify activities according to sex-type by asking respondents to rate activities they consider acceptable for male or female participation. While there are some inconsistencies among studies, there is agreement for the extreme masculine and feminine ratings. Typically team sport activities such as football, basketball, and soccer are considered more masculine, and creative activities such as dance and gymnastics are considered more feminine (Clifton & Gill, 1994; Csizma et al., 1988). If boys and girls differ in their task specific expectancies for sex-typed movement and sport activities, these differences could mediate motivational beliefs and behaviours in physical education classes. While gender alone cannot explain differential motivational and achievement patterns in students, it is important for teachers to understand the stereotypical views of their students before they can provide learning environments that will develop positive attitudes. Recent research indicates, for example, that overall young males value sport activities more than females do and some believe that females as a whole do not have the natural ability to be successful in physical education (Lee et al., 1995).
A Focus on Explanatory Models
In recent years researchers have sought to explain how gender images influence the experiences male and female students will have in physical education. Satina and her colleagues (Satina et al., 1998), for example, used patriarchal consciousness (Lorde, 1984) to demonstrate how curricular offerings and teacher practices contribute to a social construction of gender and account for the low motivational and achievement patterns in female students. Other researchers (e.g. Wright, 1997) have analysed how a teacher's use of language can create a learning environment which positions female students as marginal in relation to the dominant practice of traditional team sports. The level of motivation and non-compliance of the females in athletic and highly competitive classes confirms their femininity (Wright, 1996, 1997).
Despite this initial focus on explanatory models, subjects in the research focusing on gender differences in self-confidence on sex-typed tasks have rarely been asked to explain the basis of their views. Early childhood experiences and the way girls and boys are socialized into movement and sport activities will influence how students perceive, interpret, and respond to teachers and the curriculum they offer. It is clear that if young girls have gender-typed beliefs incorporated into their beliefs about their own competence in movement and sport they will have lower expectations for success and will value only those activities perceived as appropriate for their gender (Meece & Courtney, 1992). Perhaps more important for teachers to understand are the beliefs, goals and attitudes of children who have positive and/or negative views of their ability in stereotyped activities. There is little information to explain why children believe certain sports are more appropriate for males than for females. Most of the research, especially in the US, designed to study gender differences in ability perceptions for tasks labelled masculine or feminine has relied on surveys and questionnaires with little attempt to study students' thinking about the different activities and to understand the rationale underlying their motivational beliefs. Recently a number of researchers have explored, through open-ended interviews, students' thinking about the general nature of physical education (see Graham, 1995). For example, Portman (1995) asked questions to determine students' views of effort, and to determine which students have fun during physical education. Veal & Compagnone (1995) and Lee et al. (1995) studied students' perceptions of their own effort and skill. Children's thinking about competence in movement has been influenced by culture and gender expectations and the stories children tell about different types of learners are important to a more complete description of motivational characteristics (Maehr & Nichols, 1980; Xiang et al., 1995). Previous research has assumed that motivational beliefs are rather general individual characteristics and has tended to ignore students' justifications for their gender-role labels and their beliefs about competence for themselves and others in movement and sport. This study, by way of contrast, was designed to examine what children think and feel about children's competence and participation in sex-typed movement activities.
The Teacher's Role
A major goal of educational reform efforts today is to identify ways that teachers can help students feel more competent and thus increase their levels of motivation in all school related activities. Considerable research supports the notion that teachers can enhance students' levels of motivation by evaluating them on effort and improvement rather than ability, emphasizing individualized learning, and providing task related feedback that would assist them in their efforts to improve (Ames, 1992; Brophy, 1987). These teachers would work with students on an individual basis and focus on technique rather than performance. Students would be encouraged to select challenging but attainable tasks. Praise and encouragement planned to direct student attention to a point in technique is consistent with this approach and might help students focus on skill improvement. If teachers succeed in creating this mastery oriented environment then students, regardless of their competence beliefs, should be more intrinsically motivated to learn.
Futhermore, much learning in physical education and school in general is product oriented and the environment encourages a student to focus on the quantity of performance rather than the quality (Brophy, 1983; Goudas, & Biddle, 1994). Even though there is evidence that a mastery environment is more likely to enhance motivation in students some teachers use social comparison to recognize winners and skilled performers. The use of extrinsic rewards such as stickers and tokens, or the public display of students' achievement are examples of social comparison practices used by teachers. When the recognition practices used by teachers focus on skill achievement and performance outcomes it is possible that the rewards will undermine intrinsic motivation (Ames, 1992). Students, especially those who compare unfavourably with others in the class, begin to view themselves as lacking ability and this view in turn can decrease effort and interest (Ames, 1992). However, there is some evidence to indicate that when rewards are given for effort rather than performance, goal directed behaviour and feelings of competence can be enhanced (Blumenfeld, 1992). Taken together, the literature reviewed suggests that teacher practices can have an impact on a range of motivational variables including the enhancement or determinants of ability self-perceptions. While many educational practices can increase students' motivation to learn, it can be argued that the effectiveness of each practice will depend in part, on how it is perceived and defined by the learner. Before a complete understanding of the effectiveness and potential harmfulness of teachers' efforts to enhance student motivation is possible the perspective of the students must be considered.
This study examined children's perspectives about competence and motivational beliefs in gender oriented movement activities. Specifically, the following questions were addressed: (1) how do children with stereotypical beliefs justify their decisions about student competence and motivation in sex-linked tasks, and (2) what beliefs do children have about the effectiveness of various strategies used by teachers to enhance all students' motivation to learn?
Method
Participants and Procedures for Group Assignment
This study is part of a larger project designed to investigate age and gender differences in performance and learning expectancies for movement activities. The total sample included 745 first, third, and fifth grade males and females (M = 376, F = 369) drawn from physical education classes in six different public and private schools located in different geographical regions of a State in the south-eastern part of the US. The schools were chosen to provide a good cross-section of the State in terms of social class and academic achievement. Parental consent was obtained for all subjects. Participants for the present study were 50 fifth grade students (M = 27, F = 23), aged 10-11 years, who met the criteria established for four homogeneous groups with stereotypical perceptions of sport activities in general and the accompanying beliefs about their own competence (e.g. boys are more skilled in basketball and girls are more skilled in dance). The identification of these groups required a two step process. First, the entire sample (N = 745) was asked to respond to a self-report instrument designed to determine gender appropriateness of movement and sport activities. Using a five-point Likert scale, students ranked gymnastics, dance, jogging, soccer, tennis, roller skating, football, softball, basketball, cheerleading, jump rope and volleyball as: 1 = definitely for girls, 2 = mostly for girls, 3 = both for boys and girls, 4 = mostly for boys, or 5 = definitely for boys. These physical activities have been used in previous research on sport stereotypes and gender (Csizma et al., 1988; Lirgg, 1991), and with the exception of cheerleading are typically included in a physical education curriculum. Second part of the survey involved students responding to four questions about each of the 12 activities. The questions were phrased to elicit information concerning (1) students' perceived competence about their current abilities, (2) their confidence in their ability to learn the activity in the future, (3) the extent to which they valued the activity, and (4) their expressed interest in learning the activity. The wording of the questions was suggested initially by Eccles et al. (1983) and has been used by other researchers since that time (e.g. Clifton & Gill, 1994). The second question which was designed to assess the children's assessments of their confidence to learn the activity was used in this study as a measure of each child's perceived learning expectations. Specifically, the children were asked to indicate on a five-point Likert scale how well they would do if their teacher taught a unit (1 = not very well, 2 = not well, 3 = OK, 4 = well, and 5 = very well).
To select activities that the children viewed as sex-linked the mean scores from the self-report instrument were ranked from low (i.e. more appropriate for girls) to high (i.e. more appropriate for boys). The activity with the lowest mean, rated more feminine was cheerleading (M = 1.5). The activity with the highest mean, rated most masculine, was football (M = 4.5). Other activities labelled definitely for gifts or mostly for girls were dance (M = 2.1) and gymnastics (M = 2.4), while those determined mostly or definitely for boys were basketball (M = 3.5) and soccer (M = 3.5). The ranks of the combined male and female means for the activities included in this study were quite similar to those obtained by other researchers (Csizma et al., 1988), with cheerleading, dance, and gymnastics viewed as activities more appropriate for females, and football, basketball, and soccer viewed as more appropriate for males. Though not the most extreme, basketball and dance were selected for in-depth analysis in this study because these activities were part of the required curriculum at each of the participating schools. For the entire sample (N = 745) there was the expected gender difference (p < 0.01) in responses to the question designed to get information about students' confidence levels for learning basketball and dance. Males (M = 4.4) were more confident than females (M = 3.8) in basketball and females (M = 4.3) were more confident than males (M = 3.1) in dance.