Measuring social motivational orientations in sport: An examination of the construct and concurrent validity of the SMOSS

Abstract

Social reasons for engaging in sport have been recognized by a number of researchers; however, the area of social goals has received only limited research attention. One reason for this lack of attention may be the lack of a measurement tool with known psychometric properties with which to assess social goals. Recently, Allen (2003) developed a conceptually based measure of social motivational orientations in sport, and preliminary analysis indicated a potentially useful scale. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to examine the construct validity, specifically the factorial, convergent, and discriminant validity, of the social motivational orientations in sport scale (SMOSS). The participants were 244 adolescents who responded to a questionnaire examining social motivational orientations and interest and boredom in sport. Confirmatory factor analysis demonstrated support for the factor structure of the scale and social motivational orientations were related to interest and boredom in sport. Future research opportunities relating to social motivation are discussed.