16 Faculty of Sport, University of Ljubljana, ISSN 1318-2269 Kinesiologia Slovenica, 10, 2, 16–25 (2004) Saša Cecić Erpič 1* PSYCHOMETRIC PROPERTIES OF THE MOTIV ATIONAL Dušica Boben 2 CLIMATE INVENTORY IN PHYSICAL EDUCATION: Branko Škof 1 A CONFIRMATORY FACTOR ANALYSIS Vlasta Zabukovec 3 Renata Barić 4 P SIHOMETRIČNE ZNAČILNOSTI VPRAŠALNIKA ZA MERJENJE MOTIVACIJSKE KLIME PRI POUKU ŠPORTNE VZGOJE: KONFIRMATORNA FAKTORSKA ANALIZA Abstract Motivational climate which determines situational goal structure can be comprehended as a joint goal orientation of individuals sharing the same learn- ing environment or situation. There are two basic patterns of motivational climate, namely learning oriented climate and performance oriented climate. Papaioannou (1994) developed a Learning and Per- f o r m a n c e O r i e nt a t i o n s i n Phy s i c a l E d u c a t i o n C l a s s e s Questionnaire (LAPOPECQ) based on Ames’ (1992) comprehension of the motivational climate. LAPO- PECQ assesses pupils’ perception of goal orienta- tions during physical education classes. The aim of this research was to examine the psychometric char- acteristics of the Slovenian version of LAPOPECQ. 171 pupils (39% boys, 61% girls) from different pri- mary and secondary schools took part in the study. The resu lts of factor a na lysis showed t hat t he factor structure of the Slovenian version closely fits the structure of the original version of LAPOPECQ. The instrument consists of five factors measuring teach- ers’ behaviours, pupils’ satisfaction with learning, climate with clear-normative based criteria, climate with clear-ability based criteria and pupils’ worries about mistakes. The results show that the Slovenian version of LAPOPECQ is a reliable and metrically suitable instrument for assessing the motivational climate in the context of physical education. Key words: achievement orientation, motivation, motivational climate, physical education, psycho- metric characteristics Izvleček Motivacijska klima določa situacijsko ciljno struk- turo, ki jo lahko pojmujemo tudi kot skupno cilj- no orientacijo posameznikov v določenem učnem okolju ali situaciji. Obstajata dva temeljna vzorca motivacijske klime: klima, usmerjena k učenju in razvoju spretnosti, ter klima, usmerjena k izraža- nju superiorne izvedbe in doseganju rezultata. Na podlagi Amesovega (1992) pojmovanja motivacij- ske klime je Papaioannou (1994) razvil vprašalnik Learning and Performance Orientations in Physical Education Classes Questionnaire (LAPOPECQ), ki m e r i u č e n č e v o z a z n a v a n j e c i l j n i h o r i e n t a c i j p r i u r a h športne vzgoje. Namen članka je ugotoviti psihome- trične karakteristike slovenske priredbe instrumen- ta. V študiji je sodelovalo 171 učencev iz različnih osnovnih in srednjih šol (39 % dečkov, 61 % deklic). Rezultati faktorske analize so pokazali, da se fak- torska struktura slovenske različice instrumenta v veliki meri sklada z originalno. Vprašalnik ima pet faktorjev, ki merijo učiteljevo vedenje, zadovoljstvo učencev z učenjem, uspeh definiran z normativni- mi kriteriji, uspeh definiran s sposobnostmi ter za- skrbljenost zaradi napak. Rezultati kažejo, da je slo- venska različica LAPOPECQ zanesljiv in metrijsko ustrezen instrument za merjenje motivacijske klime v kontekstu športne vzgoje. Ključne besede: ciljna orientacija, motivacija, mo- tivacijska klima, športna vzgoja, psihometrične karakteristike 1 Faculty of Sport, University of Ljubljana, Slovenia 2 Center for Psychodiagnostic Resources Ltd., Slovenia 3 Faculty of Arts, University of Ljubljana, Slovenia 4 Faculty of Kinesiology, University of Zagreb, Croatia * Corresponding author: Faculty of Sport, University of Ljubljana Gortanova 22, SI-1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia Tel.: +386 1 5207735 Fax.: +386 1 5207730 E-mail: sasa.cecic@sp.uni-lj.si Motivational climate in physical education 17 Kinesiologia Slovenica, 10, 2, 16–25 (2004) Introduction Numerous researches in sport setting (e.g. Biddle, 1999; Duda, 1992, 1993; Roberts, 1993; Newton & Duda, 1999) as well as in the physical education setting (e.g. Ames, 1992; Papaioannou, 1994, 1998; Papaioannou & Goudas, 1999) have revealed the existence of two major goals, namely ego and task. These two dispositional factors differentiate between individuals in terms of their goal perspective decisions and reflect two distinct theoretical approaches to a subjective definition of success, failure and self-assessment of demonstrated competence (Lochbaum & Rober ts, 1993 ; New ton & Duda, 1999). These goa l orientat ions have been fou nd to be mutua l ly orthogonal (Newton & Duda, 1999; Roberts, 1993). There are several synonymous terms of task and ego orientations, namely, learning versus performance orientation (e.g. Christodoulidis, Papaioannou, Digelis, & Laparidis, 2001; Papaioannou, 1994, 1998), and mastery versus ability criteria of performance (Ames, 1984, in Roberts, 1993; Goudas, 1998; Theboom, De Knop, & Wiess, 1995). W hen a t a sk or lea r n i ng goa l predom i nates , a n i nd iv idu a l i s concer ned w it h how to accompl i sh a me a n i n g f u l t a s k t h at w i l l le a d to g re at er ga i n s i n p er s on a l c omp e t e nc e , fe e l s at i s fi e d w he n t he y develop new skills and ascribe high value to effort. In a task learning climate mistakes are seen as part of the learning process and competence is perceived as self-referenced (Sarrazin & Famose, 1999). The subjective experience of improvement of one’s performance over time by mastering the demands of a task is the criterion underlying the subjective success. Since more effort leads to more learning, the feeling of effortful accomplishment results in a feeling of competence. When an individual’s goal is to achieve high capacity, progress and effort are not enough. This leads to differentiation of conception (ability as capability) because the individual has to be sure that he or she is evaluating the ability and not the effort or task difficulty (Sarrazin & Famose, 19 9 9) . I n pr e d om i n a nt l y e go - or p e r for m a nc e - or i e nt e d c l i m a t e , a n i nd i v i du a l i s c onc e r n e d w it h how good he/she is in a particular task. Perceptions of demonstrated competence depend on external criteria (the performance and effort made by others) and a normative or peer-comparison process. In other words, when ego goal predominates, the criterion of evaluation is normative, and an individual feels successful and satisfied when he/she is evaluated by others as higher achiever than those in the reference group (Papaioannou & Goudas, 1999; Papaioannou, 1994) or performing equally well with less effort (Sarrazin & Famose, 1999). Furthermore, an ego-oriented individual believes that the achieved success is a consequence of her/his superior abilities, not the effort invested. Failure and negative emotions are experienced when an individual is evaluated as having lower abilities than others, which might lead to the avoidance of task or the demonstration of low e ff or t , b ot h u s e d a s a n e xc u s e for f a i lu re (Pap a io a n nou , 19 9 4) . I n a n e go - or p e r for m a nc e - oriented context, individuals perceive that poor performance and mistakes will be punished, that high-ability individuals will receive the most attention and recognition, and that competition between individuals (e.g. pupils, team members) is encouraged by the authority (e.g. coach, teacher) (Newton & Duda, 1999). According to the goal perspective theory (Nicholls, 1989, in Newton & Duda, 1999), the characteristics of both a person and situation can interact and impact the state of goal involvement, which in turn results in achievement behaviours. S o m e r e s e a r c h e s t e s t e d t h i s a s s u m p t i o n i n t e a m sport, and confirmed that situational (coach leadership behaviour) and dispositional factors (athletes’ goal orientation) explain a great amount of the variance of motivational climate (i.e. 18 Motivational climate in physical education Kinesiologia Slovenica, 10, 2, 16–25 (2004) Balaguer, Duda, Atienza, & Mayo, 2002; Barić, 2004). Therefore, many behavioural variations are possible, due to different individual perceptions of what is an appropriate goal within a pa r t ic u la r socia l contex t . I n gener a l, persona l goa l s i n fluence t he way people t h i n k, feel a nd ac t in achievement situations, such as competitive sport (Duda, 1993) and physical education classes (Papaioannou, 1994). Several researches suggest that variation in goal perspectives is influenced by dispositional differences and situational factors (e.g. Seifriz, Duda & Chi, 1992, in Duda, 1993). Field studies (e.g. Ames, 1992; Ames & Archer, 1988, in Papaioannou, 1994) that were carried out in educational set t ings showed t hat env ironmenta l goa l perspect ive or mot ivat iona l climate is determined by teachers’ and pupils’ goals, the evaluation and reward process, the structure of the tasks to be performed (competitive-individualistic, easy-challenging) and by the fact how participants relate t o e a c h o t h e r i n a p a r t i c u l a r s e t t i n g . D r a w i n g f r o m t h i s c o m p r e h e n s i o n o f c l a s s r o o m m o t i v a t i o n a l climate, Papaioannou (1994) developed a Learning and Performance Orientations in Physical Education Classes Questionnaire (LAPOPECQ) to measure pupils’ perceptions of achievement orientations in physical education. The results obtained by the original LAPOPECQ version showed that the instrument has satisfactory psychometric properties (see Papaioannou, 1994) and serves as a valuable tool for studying the effects of dispositional and situational differences on pupils’ motivation and achievement in the context of physical education. The aim of this study was therefore to translate, adapt, test and verif y the psychometric properties of Papaioannou’s Learning and Performance Orientations in Physical Education Classes Questionnaire (1994) on a sample of Slovenian primary and secondary school pupils. Method Participants 171 pupils from Slovenian primary and secondary schools participated in this research, of whom 66 were boys (39%) and 105 girls (61%). 76 participants attended the seventh grade of primary school, and 95 attended the second grade of secondary school. They were between 12 and 17 years old (primary school: M age =13.08 yrs, SD age = 0.42 yrs; secondary school: M age =16.02 yrs, SD age =0.36 yrs). All of the participating schools are in the urban areas of several cities in Slovenia. Instruments Learning and Performance Orientations in Physical Education Classes Questionnaire (LAPOPECQ; Papaioannou, 1994) was used for studying the learning and performance orientation in physical education classes. The instrument was developed on the basis of achievement motivation theories, with an emphasis on the goal perspective theory. In the present study, the solution of the questionnaire with 27 items was used. All items are responded on a five-point Likert-type scale (1 = strongly disagree, 5 = strongly agree). LAPOPECQ consists of five factors (Papaioannou, 1994). The first factor ( Te a che r- initi ate d learning orientation; 6 items) indicates a learning-oriented climate that is created by teacher’s behaviours, while the second factor (Pupils’ learning orientation; 7 items) refers to a learning- oriented environment as a result of pupils’ satisfaction with learning. The third factor (Pupils’ competitive orientation) consists of 5 items referring to a climate in which success is defined by clear normative-based criteria of evaluation (i.e. perform better than others). The fourth factor Motivational climate in physical education 19 Kinesiologia Slovenica, 10, 2, 16–25 (2004) (Outcome orientation without effort), consisting of 4 items, indicates a climate in which success is defined by clear-ability based criteria of evaluation (i.e. outcome without effort). The final factor (Pupils’ worries about mistakes; 5 items) suggests pupils’ worries about mistakes. Papaioannou (1994) found that all factors have a significant internal reliability (see Table 6). Procedure Prior to the beginning of the study, written consents were obtained from participants’ parents. The pupils were requested to think about their physical education classes and respond to 27 items of the instrument on the five-point Likert-type scale. The questionnaire was completed by pupils in a group setting in classroom and took approximately 15 minutes to complete. Factor analysis and internal consistency analysis were conducted to study the psychometric characteristics of LAPOPECQ. Results Although perceptions of motivational climate may differ by gender, factor analysis was made on the whole sample, due to the fact that the sub-sample of boys (n = 66) was small. The second reason for conducting the analysis on the whole sample regardless of pupils’ gender lies in the fact that such an analysis enables a comparison with other similar studies (i.e. Papaioannou, 1994, 1998) using the same procedure. Factor analysis A principal component factor analysis, followed by varimax rotation, was conducted on the Slovenian version of the original 27-item LAPOPECQ version. Exploratory factor analysis (GK-criterion) resulted in a 7-factor structure, explaining 61.74% of variance (Table 1). Table 1: Eigenvalues, percent of variance explained, cumulative percent of LAPOPECQ – exploratory factor analysis Factor Eigenvalue % of total variance Cumulative % of variance 1 5.448416 20.17932 20.17932 2 3.390114 12.55598 32.73530 32 . 3 2 6 5 6 58 . 6 1 6 9 1 4 1 . 3 5 2 2 0 41 . 6 2 1 5 1 66 . 0 0 5 6 1 4 7 . 3 5 7 8 2 51 . 5 3 3 7 7 25 . 6 8 0 6 4 5 3 . 0 3 8 4 5 6 1.217546 4.50943 57.54788 7 1.133316 4.19747 61.74535 20 Motivational climate in physical education Kinesiologia Slovenica, 10, 2, 16–25 (2004) Since the results did not confirm Papaioannou’s (1994) 5-factor structure, factor analysis was repeated by fixing the number of factors to 5 (see Table 2). Table 2: Principal component factor analysis of LAPOPECQ, followed by a varimax rotation Items Factor 1 TEACHER Factor 2 WORRIES Factor 3 NORMATIVE Factor 4 ABILITY Factor 5 LEARNING ITEM_1 .594317 .031436 -.029265 .165474 .105943 ITEM_5 .265479 -.279769 .147426 .284544 .333029 ITEM_6 .722692 .181889 -.074350 .015402 .183190 ITEM_10 .499387 -.191053 .138914 .002494 .319224 ITEM_11 .526162 -.216962 .231997 -.083022 .092653 ITEM_16 .461020 -.153549 .074592 .105641 .417771 ITEM_21 .656182 .244243 -.037934 -.035526 -.006403 ITEM_25 .714998 .084650 .031124 -.136094 .252569 ITEM_3 -.082212 .696179 .259376 .072364 .063904 ITEM_8 -.204263 .646831 .339525 .065636 .026782 ITEM_13 .275220 .640811 -.118719 .110239 .149555 ITEM_18 -.012417 .709538 .139653 .106500 .021776 ITEM_23 .281024 .676479 .233534 .053036 .080314 ITEM_2 .206841 .218190 .725357 .079242 .080054 ITEM_7 .038558 .218536 .731987 -.044505 .042352 ITEM_12 .009697 .320795 .683585 .059099 -.157140 ITEM_17 -.170645 -.176484 .598977 .285231 .337909 ITEM_22 .031428 .039583 .495260 .286360 .119197 ITEM_4 -.002521 -.174143 .238587 .652604 -.154971 ITEM_9 -.277982 .196297 .006919 .668232 .044956 ITEM_14 .331967 .251893 .090730 .601323 -.005654 ITEM_19 .030147 .162645 .056217 .637148 .203483 ITEM_15 .219151 .208031 -.101739 .095406 .669020 ITEM_20 .266106 .477112 -.089751 -.081905 .590836 ITEM_24 .389699 .167528 .020024 -.018349 .553547 ITEM_26 .185184 .039581 .055206 .141588 .702477 ITEM_27 -.005515 -.022672 .331439 -.103318 .741114 Legend (for Tables 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7): Factor 1 (teacher) Teacher-initiated learning orientation; Factor 2 (worries) Pupils’ worries about mistakes; Factor 3 (normative) Pupils’ competitive orientation – normative-based criteria of evaluation; Factor 4 (ability) Outcome orientation without effort – ability based criteria of evaluation; Factor 5 (learning) Pupils’ learning orientation – satisfaction with learning Motivational climate in physical education 21 Kinesiologia Slovenica, 10, 2, 16–25 (2004) Table 3: Eigenvalues, percent of variance explained, cumulative percent of LAPOPECQ – con- firmatory factor analysis Factor Eigenvalue % of total variance Cumulative % of variance 1 – teacher 5.448416 20.17932 20.17932 2 – worries 3.390114 12.55598 32.73530 3 – normative 2.326565 8.61691 41.35220 4 – ability 1.621516 6.00561 47.35782 5 – learning 1.533772 5.68064 53.03845 The results of the varimax rotation showed that these 5 factors explained 53.04% of variance of the questionnaire items (see Table 3). A thorough analysis of items showed that the above stated 5-factor solution confirmed Papaioannou’s model (1994, 1998) since 25 out of 27 items defined the same hypothetical factors as in the original questionnaire’s solution. The first factor (8 items) was defined as the learning-oriented climate created by teachers’ behaviours. The second factor (5 items) explained pupils’ worries about the mistakes in the learning process, while the third one (5 items) described a motivational climate where success is defined by clear normative-based criteria of evaluation. The fourth factor (4 items) suggested a climate where achievement is defined by clear ability-based criteria of evaluation, and the last factor (5 items) implied a learning-oriented climate resulting from pupils’ satisfaction with learning. The comparison between the obtained factor solution and the one from the original Papaioannou’ s structure (1994) showed a relatively strong accordance. The item structure of three factors, namely worries about mistakes, competitive orientation (normative-based criteria of evaluation) and outcome orientation without effort (ability-based criteria of evaluation) was the same in both versions of the questionnaire. The results showed a different structure in other two factors (factor 1 and factor 5). Two items (item 5 and item 10), which in the original version belonged to the factor describing pupils’ satisfaction with learning, were included in the factor describing teacher-initiated motivational climate in the Slovenian version of LAPOPECQ. The results of factor analysis also showed that three items (item 5, item 10, item 16 and item 24) are saturated with more than one factor (see Table 2). Due to this, further analyses were conducted. The elimination of items 5 and 24 appears to be one of the most satisfactory moves for producing the clearest and simplest factor solution. The factor loadings of 25 items after the varimax rotation are shown in Table 4. 22 Motivational climate in physical education Kinesiologia Slovenica, 10, 2, 16–25 (2004) Table 4: Principal component factor analysis of the 25-item LAPOPECQ version, followed by a varimax rotation Factor 1 TEACHER Factor 2 WORRIES Factor 3 NORMATIVE Factor 4 ABILITY Factor 5 LEARNING ITEM_1 .588294 .031018 -.019655 .201290 .115634 ITEM_6 .725946 .219272 -.087961 -.000679 .142371 ITEM_10 .522958 -.157499 .121723 -.040419 .316506 ITEM_11 .532863 -.212436 .235364 -.079097 .089318 ITEM_16 .495466 -.164849 .079411 .146646 .418344 ITEM_21 .654069 .251158 -.040190 -.036749 -.068552 ITEM_25 .735229 .098892 .021272 -.131997 .207423 ITEM_3 -.091243 .688474 .260229 .075847 .079559 ITEM_8 -.223314 .638432 .335168 .063139 .061916 ITEM_13 .262541 .673517 -.124051 .096230 .115682 ITEM_18 -.028407 .718675 .153799 .108002 -.018096 ITEM_23 .275425 .687038 .231035 .036774 .039680 ITEM_2 .195388 .221990 .727607 .079797 .065815 ITEM_7 .027544 .205046 .728245 -.018072 .050964 ITEM_12 .007466 .284091 .700199 .070855 -.155446 ITEM_17 -.152662 -.171795 .587650 .242990 .380332 ITEM_22 .025674 .043810 .499286 .264141 .103247 ITEM_4 -.012559 -.204431 .263177 .661044 -.122382 ITEM_9 -.287702 .165262 .028318 .682572 .060032 ITEM_14 .307925 .226508 .118546 .637277 -.044634 ITEM_19 .042000 .164581 .063163 .601812 .221403 ITEM_15 .270903 .212074 -.106533 .113651 .645967 ITEM_20 .291805 .482754 -.079356 -.032053 .530061 ITEM_26 .221132 .070027 .040198 .136124 .721993 ITEM_27 .048859 .007565 .304667 -.134728 .745076 T able 5: Eigenvalues, percent of variance explained, cumulative percent of the 25-item LAPOPECQ version Factor Eigenvalue % of total variance Cumulative % of variance 1 – teacher 5.027353 20.10941 20.10941 2 – worries 3.279298 13.11719 33.22660 3 – normative 2.201476 8.80590 42.03251 4 – ability 1.585791 6.34316 48.37567 5 – learning 1.490923 5.96369 54.33936 The results of the factor analysis of the 25-item LAPOPECQ version (see Tables 4 and 5) showed that all items were correlated with the single factor. The exception was item 16 which shared its correlation with two factors, namely factors 1 and 5. Due to the relatively high internal consistency of factor 1 (Cronbach’s alpha is 0.77, see Table 6 for details), item 16 was left in the final solution of the questionnaire. Motivational climate in physical education 23 Kinesiologia Slovenica, 10, 2, 16–25 (2004) Reliability The reliability of each LAPOPECQ scale was calculated using Cronbach’s alpha coefficient. The observed coefficients and average inter-item correlation of the five factors are presented in Table 6. Table 6: Reliability of LAPOPECQ scales Factor Cronbach’s alpha; Papaioannou, 1994 Cronbach’s alpha; 25-item Slovenian version Average inter-item correlation; 25-item Slovenian version 1 – teacher 0.79 0.77 0.33 2 – worries 0.67 0.78 0.41 3 – normative 0.71 0.71 0.33 4 – ability 0.65 0.60 0.27 5 – learning 0.84 0.71 0.39 Cronbach’s alpha coefficients show that four scales of the 25-item Slovenian LAPOPECQ version are highly reliable. If compared to such a high reliability, factor 4 describing motivational climate with clear-ability based criteria of evaluation appears to be the least reliable, with Cronbach’s alpha standing at 0.60. The comparison of reliability between the original Greek version of LAPOPECQ (Papaioannou, 1994) and the 25-item Slovenian version presented in this article shows that factors 1, 4, and 5 in the Slovenian version are slightly less reliable than in the original version. The translation of the questionnaire appears to increase the reliability of factor describing pupils’ worries about mistakes. In general, the results obtained in the present study confirmed the validity and reliability of LAPOPECQ. Table 7: Descriptive statistics for the five factors of 25-item Slovenian LAPOPECQ version Factor number of items NMM i n i m u mM a x i m u mS D 1 – teacher 7 160 26.04 11.00 35.00 4.87 2 – worries 51 6 11 6 . 3 07 . 0 02 5 . 0 04 . 4 7 3 – normative 5 161 14.14 5.00 25.00 4.14 4 – ability 41 6 21 1 . 4 64 . 0 02 0 . 0 03 . 2 2 5 – learning 4 158 14.38 6.00 20.00 3.14 Discussion The purpose of this study was to examine the psychometric characteristics of the Slovenian version of LAPOPECQ and to describe the research efforts toward the adaptation of a questionnaire to measure perceptions of learning and performance orientations in physical education classes. The authors’ motivation for the adaptation of this instrument stemmed from the need for such an inventory since there was no similar questionnaire in the Slovenian language for assessing motivational climate. The results of a confirmatory factor analysis of the Slovenian version of LAPOPECQ confirmed the five-factor solution of Papaioannou’s (1994) original Greek version. A clearer factor structure of the Slovenian version was achieved by eliminating two items. The Slovenian version of LAPOPECQ used in this study therefore has 25 items (compared to 27 in Papaioannou’s original 24 Motivational climate in physical education Kinesiologia Slovenica, 10, 2, 16–25 (2004) version). Taking into consideration that the Slovenian version was actually translated from the English version of LAPOPECQ (i.e. from Greek to English and than to Slovenian) the closeness of fit between factor structures of both versions is even more significant. As regards scales’ reliability, examination of Cronbach’s alpha coefficients showed that all five scales of the Slovenian version of LAPOPECQ were reliable. A relatively low reliability was seen only in the Outcome orientation without effort scale. Since this may be ascribed to the small number of items in the scale (only 4 items), any future development of the instrument should take this into consideration by adding new items. This stable five-factor solution indicates the existence of two learning- and three performance- oriented factors. Two learning-oriented factors assess teacher-initiated learning orientation and p u p i l s ’ l e a r n i n g o r i e n t a t i o n d e r i v e d f r o m s a t i s f a c t i o n w i t h l e a r n i n g . Th r e e p e r f o r m a n c e - o r i e n t e d factors measure pupils’ worries about the mistakes they make in the educational process, pupils’ competitive orientation described through normative-based criteria of evaluation and pupils’ outcome without effort orientation, deriving from ability-based criteria of evaluation. According to the goal perspective theory, learning orientation (i.e. task or mastery orientation) corresponds to a high level of intrinsic motivation (Duda, 1993; Duda, Chi, Newton, Walling, & Catley, 1995; Newton & Duda, 1999; Papaioannou, 1994, 1998). A higher value of intrinsic motivation can be associated with higher quality of performance (Goudas, 1998; Theboom, De Knop, & Wiess, 1995) and development of positive attitudes (Duda, Chi, Newton, Walling, & Catley, 1995; Papaioannou, 1994; Škof, Cecić Erpič, Zabukovec, & Boben, 2002). Since teacher plays a significant role in development of motivational climate, his/her role has to be emphasized by teaching him/her to develop such a climate. This article provides data on the adaptation and development of a questionnaire measuring pupils’ perceptions of motivational climate during physical education classes. The results showed that LAPOPECQ translated and adapted to the characteristics of physical education in the Slovenian environment is a valid and reliable instrument. It is metrically suitable for use in physical education classes in both primary and secondary schools. Undoubtedly, further improvement of this instrument is welcomed. It could be improved by addition of new items, especially to the scale consisting of 4 items only (Outcome orientation without effort). Considering the obtained results together with the results of the previous studies (i.e. Duda, 1993; Nicholls, 1989; Papaioannou, 1994, 1998, 2000) it is necessary to underline the importance of task- or mastery-oriented climate in the physical education context. Since it is related to the personal improvement, exhibition of positive adaptive motivational patterns and maintaining pupils’ motivation, its significance has to be emphasized. The present paper could therefore serve as a foundation for further investigations of the effects of dispositional and situational factors on pupils’ motivation. References Ames, C. (1992). Classrooms: Goals, structures, and student motivation. Journal of Educational P s ychol o g y , 8 4, 261–171. Balaguer, I., Duda, J. L., Atienza, F. L., & Mayo, C. (2002). Situational and dispositional goals as predictors of perceptions of individual and team improvement, satisfaction and coach ratings among elite female handball teams. Psychology of Sport and Exercise, 3 (4), 293–309. Motivational climate in physical education 25 Kinesiologia Slovenica, 10, 2, 16–25 (2004) Barić, R. (2004). Klima v športu. [Motivational climate in sport]. Unpublished master’s thesis, Ljubljana: Faculty of Arts. Biddle, J. H. S. (1999). Motivation and perceptions of control: tracing its development and plotting its future in exercise and sport psychology. Journal of Sport and Exercise Psychology, 21, 1–23. Christodoulis, T., Papaioannou, A., Digelidis, N., & Laparidis, K. (2001). Motivational climate and attitudes toward exercise after one-year intervention in senior high school students. In A. Papaioannou, M. Goudas, & Y. Theodorakis (Eds.), Proceedings of 10 th World Congress of Sport Psychology, Vol. 3 (pp. 203–205). Skiathos: Christodoulidi. Duda, J. L. (1992). Motivation in sport settings: A goal perspective approach. In G. C. Roberts (Ed.), Motivation in sport and exercise (pp. 57–91). Champaign: Human Kinetics. Duda, J. L. (1993). Goals: A social-cognitive approach to the study of achievement motivation. In R. N. Singer, M. Murphey, & L. K. Tennant (Eds.), Handbook of research in sport psychology (pp. 421–435). New York: Macmillian. Duda, J. L., Chi, L., Newton, M., Walling, M. D., & Catley, D. (1995). Task and ego orientation and intrinsic motivation in sport. International Journal of Sport Psychology, 26, 40–63. Goudas, M. (1998). Motivational climate and intrinsic motivation of young basketball players. Perceptual and Motor Skills, 86(1), 323–327. Lochbaum, M. R., & Roberts, G. C. (1993). Goal orientations and perceptions of the sport experience. Journal of Sport and Exercise Psychology, 15, 160–171. Newton, M., & Duda, J. L. (1999). The interaction of motivational climate, dispositional goal orientations, and perceived ability in predicting indices of motivation. International Journal of Sport Psychology, 30, 63–82. Nicholls, J. G. (1989). The competitive ethos and democratic education. Harvard, MA: Harvard University. Papaioannou, A. (1994). Development of a questionnaire to measure achievement orientations in physical education. Research Quarterly for Exercise and Sport, 65, 1, 11–20. Papaioannou, A. (1998). Student’s perceptions of the physical education class environment for boys and girls and the perceived motivational climate. Research Quarterly for Exercise and Sport, 69(3), 267–275. P a p a i o a n n o u , A . (2 0 0 0 ) . C r e a t i n g a m o t i v a t i o n a l c l i m a t e i n s c h o o l . I n J . Av e l a , P. V. K o m i , & J . Komulainen (Eds.) Proceedings of the 5 th European College of Sport Science (p. 82). Jyvaskyla: University of Jyvaskyla. Papaioannou, A., & Goudas, M. (1999). Motivational climate of the physical education class. In Y. Vanden Auweele, F. Bakker, S. Biddle, M. Durand, & R. Seiler (Eds.), Psychology for physical educators (pp. 51–68). Champaign: Human Kinetics. Roberts, G. C. ( 1993). Motivation in sport: Understanding and enhancing the motivation and achievement of children. In R. N. Singer, M. Murphey, & L. K. Tennant (Eds.), Handbook of research in sport psychology, (pp. 517–586). New York: Macmillan. Sarrazin, P., & Famose, J. (1999). Children’s goals and motivation in physical education. In Y. Vanden Auweele, F. Bakker, S. Biddle, M. Durand, & R. Seiler (Eds.), Psychology for physical educators (pp. 51–68). Champaign: Human Kinetics. Škof, B., Cecić Erpič, S., Zabukovec, V., & Boben, D. (2002). Pupils’ attitudes toward endurance sports activities. In D. Prot, & F. Prot (Eds.), Kinesiology – New perspectives, 3rd International scientific conference (pp. 137–140), Opatija: University of Zagreb, Faculty of Kinesiology. Theboom, M., De Knop, P., & Wiess, M. R. (1995). Motivational climate, psychological responses and motor skill development in children’s sport: A field based intervention. Journal of Sport and Exercise Psychology, 17(3), 249–311.