“You Get to…” a Qualitative Study of Perceived Influence of Physical Activity and Sport on Mental Wellbeing among Adolescent Girls ()
1. Introduction
Physical activity is well-recognized as a key risk factor for the management and prevention of mental ill-health, including anxiety and depression (Teychenne et al., 2020). Physical activity guidelines have been developed and refined over several decades (Oja & Titze, 2011). The original guidelines were published with a view to reducing the onset of cardiovascular disease-related mortality, and subsequently, were developed to encompass other prevalent chronic conditions such as diabetes and cancer (Piercy & Troiano, 2018). Recommendations for physical health detail the volume, intensity and type of activity that should be undertaken by both adults and young people but make no reference to other contextual factors that have been shown to play a contributory role in the support or development of optimal mental health (White et al., 2017). Recent research has identified increases in adolescents suffering from mental health issues with 4 in 10 reporting elevated symptoms of depression or anxiety (Murphy et al., 2020). Significant increases in symptoms of depression often occur during adolescence, an already very difficult period in life (Morgan et al., 2013). Daily life stresses are common to most adolescents (social circles, family, studies) and many are not aware of their condition which can lead to mental health issues worsening over time if not treated or acted upon (Beardslee & Knitzer, 2004; American Psychological Association, 2016). Evidence supporting the benefits of regular participation in leisure-time physical activity for adolescents has been well established (Hallal et al., 2006), indicating that healthy lifestyle habits should be promoted among young people (Cecchini et al., 2020). Alongside physical benefits, research on the psychological benefits of physical activity has increased in the past decade with evidence supporting positive impacts on depression (Biddle et al., 2019; Gordon et al., 2018), anxiety (Gordon et al., 2017) and mental wellbeing (Costigan et al., 2019). Research involving adolescents is not as frequent and results have been inconsistent (Dale et al., 2019) as objectively measured physical activity has null-to-weak relationship with mental health outcomes (Hagemann et al., 2021), although some contexts and life domains have demonstrated more stronger relationships (White et al., 2017; Panza et al., 2020). Contextual factors across the lifespan include the life domain that physical activity occurs in, autonomous motivation, peer support, social interaction, access to green space, and progressions and achievements over time (Richards et al., 2015). A clearer understanding of the bi-directional relationship between physical activity and mental health, or ill-health, may facilitate the delivery of successful interventions in the future, while also aiding the design and implementation of specific physical activity guidelines for mental health (Teychenne et al., 2020).
In the quest to understand human behaviour, self-determination theory (Deci & Ryan, 2004) has been frequently utilized by researchers. Vallerand (2001) suggests the major types of behavioural regulations have been positioned along a continuum ranging from intrinsic to extrinsic motivation and amotivation. Intrinsically motivated individuals perform activities for the interest, gratification, and pleasure that is provided by the activity. Individuals who are more extrinsically motivated have a greater disposition for external rewards. From higher to lower levels of self-determination, it can be classified in four different types (Vallerand, 2001): 1) integrated: perform an activity because it is consistent with the individual’s standard of living; 2) identified: perform an activity showing inner perceptions of causality; 3) introjected: perform an activity to avoid feelings of culpability and strengthen personal ego; and 4) external: perform an activity to obtain a compensation or avoid a penalty. The lack of motivation to perform an activity is known as amotivation. Optimal motivated behaviour and psychological wellbeing are dependent on the three key tenets of self-determination theory (Vlachopoulos et al., 2011) which are: 1) autonomy: seeing one’s behaviour as self-endorsed; 2) competence: feelings of operative interaction with the context; and 3) relatedness: feelings of effective associations with others (Niemec & Ryan, 2009). Among adolescents, intrinsic motivation is positively associated with academic achievement, school engagement, self-esteem, confidence, subjective wellbeing, and increased satisfaction with school (Ryan & Deci, 2020). In terms of physical activity, research has shown how intrinsic motivation is positively associated with adaptive outcomes including enjoyment and physical activity intentions (Vasconcellos et al., 2019), and increased levels of physical activity (Lonsdale et al., 2019). Extrinsic motivation, however, is positively associated with maladaptive outcomes including boredom and negative affect (Vasconcellos et al., 2019). The positive effects of autonomy support and self-regulation on physical activity have also been found on a variety of mental health problems such as depression and depressive symptoms (Cecchini et al., 2017; Cecchini-Estrada et al., 2015). Further in-depth investigations are required to explore the various types of motivation that impact the relationship between physical activity and wellbeing in adolescents.
Previous research in Irish adolescents has found that those who engage in team sport and 2 or more sports have higher levels of mental wellbeing and report lower symptoms of depression and anxiety (Murphy et al., 2020; Murphy et al., 2021). Similar research in European adolescents suggests that team sport offers a protective effect against symptoms of anxiety and depression (McMahon et al., 2017). The main goal of this study was to qualitatively examine the associations between physical activity, participation in sport, and self-determined motivation on mental health outcomes in adolescent females.
2. Methods
2.1. Methodoligical Approach and Epistemological Perspective
Qualitative methods are important in exploring the potential mechanisms that underlie the relationship between physical activity and wellbeing in adolescents (Mutrie, 1997) and are particularly useful when trying to understand a relationship that is impacted by different contextual factors (Faulkner & Biddle, 2004). Therefore, this study was conducted using qualitative methods to explore the key factors that may underpin the relationship between physical activity and wellbeing. A realist epistemological perspective was employed as realism purports that investigating an event (physical activity) as well as the context and mechanisms associated with that event lead to an enhanced understanding of the outcomes experienced (Pawson & Tilley, 1997).
2.2. Participants
In order to explore the relationship between physical activity and wellbeing in Irish adolescents, convenience purposive sampling led to the recruitment of 10 participants from a pilot school-based physical activity intervention. The intervention was informed by self-determination theory and consisted of games-based physical activities during lunchtime and was targeted at 1st year students. All 10 participants attended the 10 week intervention, were female, aged between 12 and 14 years, currently involved in 1 or more team sports and attended an all-girls catholic voluntary secondary school in the South East of Ireland. Information packs containing a participant information sheet and consent/assent forms were distributed and returned having been signed by parents/guardians prior to the focus groups taking place.
2.3. Procedures
Focus groups were used to explore the factors that influence the impact of physical activity on wellbeing as they gave the participants an opportunity to share and compare their experiences of physical activity, allowed the research team to gather information on adolescents’ collective views and have been used previously for exploring the relationship between physical activity and wellbeing in adolescents (Breen, 2006; White et al., 2018).
Two focus groups were conducted with five participants in each group. Participants were grouped together based on their classes and comprised a mixture of physical activity sports participation levels. The first author conducted both focus group interviews. A semi-structured interview guide was developed by the research team and informed by previous literature (Gavin et al., 2016) and was approved in advance by the DCU ethics committee. Questions focused on what aspects of physical activity and sport the participants enjoyed and did not enjoy, how physical activity impacted their social skills and overall wellbeing. The questions asked during the focus groups were purposely kept broad to capture the settings and types of physical activity and sport that were meaningful from the perspective of the participants.
2.4. Data Analysis
All focus groups were audio-recorded and transcribed verbatim by the lead researcher. The transcripts were imported into NVivo 12 and analysed using a hybrid process of inductive (data-driven) and deductive (theoretical) coding adapted predominantly from Fereday & Muir-Cochrane (2006) with influence from Braun & Clarke (2006), Boyatzis (1998) and Crabtree & Miller (1999) in order to encapsulate participants’ shared views of physical activity and wellbeing to get an overall understanding of potential underlying mechanisms. The analysis was conducted by the first author who became familiar with the data by reading and re-reading transcripts. Codes were conducted “a priori”, based on prior research or theoretical perspectives, or created on preliminary scanning of the text with some initial codes refined or modified during the analysis process (Crabtree & Miller, 1999). Quotes that were considered to represent a similar meaning or pattern were clustered together into potential themes and sub-themes. Throughout the process of deductively developing themes and sub-themes it was noted that themes were broadly reflective of the tenets of self-determination theory (i.e., Autonomy; Competence; Relatedness) (Deci & Ryan, 2004) which has been used in previous research to illustrate the influence different factors have on physical activity and wellbeing (White et al., 2018) and participants were recruited from a self-determination theory-informed intervention. Themes were mapped to tenets of self-determination theory as appropriate. It must be noted that although participants did not explicitly use the words “autonomy” or “competence” in their responses; however, based on tenets of self-determination theory, the authors derived latent codes mirroring autonomy, competence or relatedness from quotes relating to these (Marks & Yardley, 2004).
Thematic data analysis was conducted by the lead author to explain participants’ perceptions of the relationship between physical activity and wellbeing. Nine sub-themes were identified as can be seen in Table 1 and Figure 1. These were then categorized into three overarching themes, guided by tenets of self-determination theory: Autonomy; Competence; and Relatedness. Two sub-themes overlapped between themes: “Fun or Enjoyment” overlapped between Autonomy and Competence; and “Engagement or Flow” overlapped between Competence and Relatedness and can be seen in Table 2.
3. Findings & Discussion
This paper explores how young people’s experiences of physical activity and sport may interact with their mental wellbeing. Key findings from the focus groups will be presented as quotes depending on the theme or sub-theme they best represent. Throughout the results section, two reporting styles will be used to share findings (Krueger, 1998), providing summary description with illustrative quotes and in some instances summary description with illustrative quotes followed by interpretation.
3.1. Autonomy
3.1.1. Opportunity
An initial frequency count of most commonly used words showed that “get” was the most frequent. This was predominantly used to describe opportunities to participate in, and improve at various forms of physical activity or sports such as
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Figure 1. Themes and sub-themes informed by tenets of self-determination theory.
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Table 1. Single factor themes and sub-themes informed by tenets of self-determination theory.
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Table 2. Multi factor themes and sub-themes informed by tenets of self-determination theory.
“just getting to play the sport more” [FG1] or “we’d get to learn new skills” [FG1]. Some participants saw it as an opportunity to try new experiences such as a new activity/sport with one girl commenting that; “To stay fit and Kilkenny don’t play football so I thought it would be a good chance to see if I like it or not” [FG2]. Another said that she took part “Because, kinda…different. Try to do something else” [FG2]. Others felt it was an opportunity to improve at the sports they already play: “I liked getting to play all the matches. It was good to see the drills we did being put into practice” [FG1]. Previous qualitative investigations identified physical activity behaviours that adolescents associated with positive affect were largely undertaken for autonomous reasons, such as enjoyment (Intrinsic motivation) and the valued benefits (identified regulation) (White et al., 2018). Perceiving physical activity as an opportunity helps increase the personal relevance to adolescents (Coulter et al., 2020). The participants noted how they felt physical activity was an opportunity to be active, get fit, improve or interact with others. They also mentioned the importance of choice within activities: “I don’t mind training in the rain but sometimes I’d like if they asked us what we’d like to do at training. That way we could do stuff that helps our mental positivity more.” [FG2]. Autonomy and choice of activities have previously been demonstrated as having positive associations with intrinsic motivation, are more enjoyable and lead to increased and more sustained participation in physical activity (White et al., 2020). Others liked the fact they got to meet new people: “I think meeting new people cos we got to mix with other classes and we didn’t know what they were like or what they did” [FG2]. Collective physical activity is more meaningful and can make explicit connections between current physical activity experiences, and future aspects of daily living outside of the school or sport setting when personally relevant (Azzarito & Ennis, 2003; Enright & O’Sullivan, 2010) thereby increasing intrinsic motivation (Deci & Ryan, 2004).
3.1.2. Outdoors
Participants stated that they preferred being outdoors when given the choice: “A lot more people might want to do it when it’s outside. A lot more people like it outside” [FG1]. The physiological benefits of physical activity have been well established in adolescents (Hallal et al., 2006) with evidence growing around the mental health benefits (Biddle et al., 2019). Additional physiological and mental health benefits have been found when physical activity is performed outdoors as people look to develop a greater connection with nature when exercising (Gladwell et al., 2013). Participants also had an awareness of the perceived health benefits of being outside:
“You’re inside all day anyway but it’s great to get outside with other people cos you wouldn’t go outside otherwise. And you’re being active out there. Especially in the autumn and winter cos it’s dark in the morning and when you go home so lunch is the only time we get to go outside” [FG2].
With one participant even noting the mental health benefits when stating she likes to go outside: “To clear your head.” [FG2]. A review of studies examining physical activity completed outdoors revealed that exercising in natural environments was associated with greater feelings of revitalization and positive engagement, decreases in tension, confusion, anger, and depression, and increased energy (Thompson-Coon et al., 2011). Participants in outdoor activity also reported greater enjoyment and satisfaction, and declared a greater intent to engage in the activity in the future (Thompson-Coon et al., 2011).
3.2. Competence
3.2.1. Journey to Competence
Further to the above stated points about opportunities for improvement, participants went on to explain that experiencing improvements and achievements in sport generally makes them feel good about themselves and boosts their self-confidence, often coming from a feeling of accomplishment with one girl stating: “Yeh cos you’d be thinking that yes I did that. I did it well and I was ok at it. Like you’ve kind of accomplished something.” [FG2]. This suggests the “journey to competence” plays an important in the relationship between autonomously motivated physical activity and affective wellbeing which is similar to previous qualitative investigations where positive affect and physical activity was associated with feelings of achievement and progress (White et al., 2018). An optimal level of challenge was also noted as important with greater sense of achievement being felt when the challenge was more difficult but still attainable:
“Oh yeh, yeh, yeh. Cos if you work for something and get there after that then it’s way better. Like if you put effort into football then you make the county team or go on trips with your team it’s way better cos you’ve kind of achieved or earned those things” [FG1].
Meaningful experiences in physical activity have previously been attributed to young people’s perceptions of their own high motor competence (Gray et al., 2008), therefore suggesting improvements, accomplishments and learning all contribute to greater enjoyment of physical activity experiences which aligns with Scanlan & Lewthwaite’s (1986) model of sport enjoyment based on the two continua of intrinsic-extrinsic and achievement-non-achievement. The sense of accomplishment in being recognized as a good player or of improving is highlighted by one participant:
“Like when you achieve something cos of your own effort you feel better than anything else. Like if you made the county team and other girls at home didn’t you get a sense of earning it and of success in yourself” [FG1].
Self-determination theory (Deci & Ryan, 2004) suggests autonomous behaviours are likely to be associated with greater mental health benefits as individuals who participate in activities of their own volition do so to satisfy their psychological needs of autonomy, competence and relatedness.
3.2.2. Getting Fit
Getting fitter is closely related, and even a key part of, increasing competence in a chosen physical activity or sport although he participants in this study noted the importance of increases or maintained fitness in its’ own right as two girls referred to the benefits of sport as “being fit”. Adolescents’ attitudes towards the health benefits of physical activity have differed based on previous levels of activity as inactive adolescents have highlighted “not getting fat” or weight management as the key benefits (Belton et al., 2014) while the participants in this study noted the potential negative consequences alongside the positive aspects suggesting a more balanced view of the importance of exercise and fitness;
“Because you can’t be lazy and be sat down cos then you’ll just be overweight and have bad cholesterol and a bad heart. When you could have the chance to go outside and be active and then you’ll ask why didn’t I go out and you’ll feel all bad about it” [FG2].
This is in contrast with previous findings which suggested young females are more interested in the short-term benefits of being active than the longer term benefits (Sleap & Wormald, 2001; Biddle et al., 1998) suggesting that either those who are already active are more aware of the longer term benefits or those who are aware of the longer term benefits are more likely to remain involved in physical activity.
3.3. Relatedness
3.3.1. Facilitator of Connection
A previous quantitative investigation found that participants who completed some of their physical activity with other people were less likely to experience symptoms of depression when compared to individuals who completed all of their physical activity alone (Teychenne et al., 2010). This has been backed up by qualitative research in adolescents, and appears to be most beneficial when a sense of belonging is experienced (White et al., 2018). One tenet of self-determination theory, relatedness, was mentioned as a key factor in enhancing the positive experiences mentioned above such as when increasing competence along with friends or peers: “Yeh, because you make friends for life that you’ve been playing with all the time. You’d just be happier cos you have them as well as playing the sport” [FG1].
Although engaging in physical activity or sport with friends was deemed important, participants stated how they found physical activity to be an excellent facilitator for engaging with friends and meeting new ones: “If you play a few sports then you’ve a wider variety of friends and of interests so you’re not just focused on that one sport or that one thing. It kinda stops you worrying about it.” [FG2]. Participants also mentioned how experiences from playing sport together can lead to much stronger friendships and relationships, potentially from having more in common:
“I think it’s easier to talk to people when you’re on a team because you’re just playing the sport and if you’re playing the games it’s obviously something you have in common that you enjoy together and if not you wouldn’t be doing it. So like, it’s an easier way to talk to people cos you’re already in a conversation and stuff” [FG2].
Relatedness appears to be a key contributor to the positive affect experienced during and after participating in physical activity (Baumeister & Leary, 1995). Although challenging situations were also mentioned as having a significant impact on the strength of relationships with one girl stating:
“Cos everyone is so sad in the dressing room and you’re all kinda sharing it. You’re with them about 3 times a week so you already know each other well so it’s easier to say the right thing or even nothing if you don’t want to” [FG1].
The challenging nature of sporting activities and sense of togetherness that is experienced by teammates are likely contributors to the sense of belonging that adolescents experience when participating in team sports, often compounded by both positive and negative results in the sport:
“Like your teammates are supportive for each other. You’ve already bonded over like simple or everyday stuff so the losing together makes it stronger. You have all the stuff to talk about too like funny stuff that happened in training or that and that helps cheer you up” [FG2].
Merely participating in physical activity with others is unlikely to be beneficial on its own, instead, the satisfaction of the basic psychological need for relatedness appears to influence whether physical activity experiences are associated with positive affect, and therefore are an important mechanism (White et al., 2018).
3.3.2. Family Influence
Building connections with friends through physical activity and sport was mentioned many times but the influence of family for getting involved in sport was deemed important by a few participants. Parents play a key role in adolescents’ physical activity motivation and participation (Whitehead & Biddle, 2008) with active parents more likely to initiate greater physical activity involvement than inactive parents (Robertson-Wilson et al., 2003). Consistent with previous work, our findings suggest that parental encouragement not only plays a role in how active an adolescent will be (Biddle et al., 2005), but also what particular activity they are most likely to participate in: “I think the way **** says camogie is a family thing that’s like me too. No one in my family does soccer so none of us play or have interest in it” [FG1]. Family influences were also deemed to be important to stay involved in sports even when they don’t perceive themselves to be good at it, particularly at the outset: “I prefer hurling but that’s only cos it’s a family thing. I wasn’t very good at the start but kept going cos I knew it was important at home” [FG1]. As parents are most likely to encourage their children to be physically active from a young age, by the time they reach teenage years, being active has become habitual and often forms part of their overall identity (Rhodes et al., 2016) contributing to an overall greater sense of purpose each time they engage in activity (Yemiscigil & Vlaev, 2021).
3.3.3. Polarising Views of Individual Sports
Previous research has shown that adolescents involved in a greater number of sports and in team sport have higher mental wellbeing than those in singular or individual sports (Murphy et al., 2020) although the reasons behind this are currently unknown with a dearth of literature looking at differences in personality traits between individual and team sport. The relationship between personality and participation in sport is likely bidirectional (Nia & Besharat, 2010) with participants suggesting that participating in individual sports suggesting that: “It kinda brings you more in either direction” [FG2]. Adolescents participating in individual sports may possibly experience greater extremes in terms of mental wellbeing with one participant suggesting:
“Sometimes you can have more time to think about it in individual sports and time to think about yourself when you’re practicing and all. But then you’ve no one to talk to at the same time. While in camogie or in team sport you don’t feel like everyone’s watching you. When you’re playing something there’s like 15 people but then when there’s only 1 there’s like a lot more pressure on them” [FG2].
Previous investigations examining personality traits and participation in team sport (Laborde et al., 2016) suggest that Trust, one of the components of agreeableness, as an interpersonal factor helps the participant so that they can rely on others more easily and develop the group activities and relationships. Team sports provide a suitable ground for achieving this characteristic as agreeableness based on trust prepares the individual for team sprots (Nia & Besharat, 2010). The trust developed when engaging in team sport was mentioned by one participant who stated: “Like the girls who play team sports are easier to get on with cos they just know how to make friends with someone” [FG1]. Other participants felt similar and that adolescents who only engaged in individual sport were unable to develop the same social skills: “They’re just focused on them…Like they couldn’t play a match cos they wouldn’t always be on the ball” [FG1] with others suggesting they struggled to share the attention: “When I do ballet there are a good few that only do dance and they’re way more self-involved than most people” [FG1]. In contrast to some of the potential negative aspects, some felt that participating in individual sports can lead to facing more pressure:
“I think there is a lot of pressure on them. Like say you messed up doing something in camogie then there will be someone else there that will back you up on it but in like horse riding or individual sports then all the pressure is on you. So if you mess up you’re kinda gone like” [FG1].
Although another participant responded that in turn it may develop a greater internal drive or self-motivation: “But that kinda makes them more driven and more independent to achieve what they want” [FG1]. This is in line with previous findings suggesting that individual athletes scored higher than team sport athletes in personality-trait-like individual differences such as perseverance, positivity, and self-esteem (Laborde et al., 2016). These findings may be taken with caution, however, as adolescents most likely to persist in individual sports may already have higher levels of perseverance and therefore are likely to stay with sport in the longer term as opposed to it being developed through the sport itself. The impact of participation in team and individual sport on mental wellbeing and personality traits warrants further investigation.
3.4. Multi-Factor: Competence & Autonomy
Fun or Enjoyment
The main benefit of physical activity highlighted by the majority of young people is fun or enjoyment, whether they be active or inactive (Coulter et al., 2020) and serves as an integral part of young people’s experiences in collective physical activity and falls under the broader themes of both “Competence” and “Autonomy”. The majority of participants described physical activity as enjoyable but for a variety of reasons that included both the reasons for participating and the extent to which they improved or developed proficiency: “When you have a feeling that you’re getting good then you enjoy it a bit more. Like if I’m getting better then I like doing the drills and playing the games a bit more” [FG1] or in simpler terms: “You enjoy it cos you’ve been playing it for longer so you’re better at it” [FG2]. Improvements in the activity or sport seemed to increase enjoyment. When asked if they enjoyed it first then started to get good or became good then started to enjoy it more participants responded with a combination of both:
“They’re both at the same time. When you have a feeling that you’re getting good then you enjoy it a bit more. Like if I’m getting better then I like doing the drills and playing the games a bit more” [FG1].
The importance of enjoyment is echoed in research into young people’s participation in competitive sport which suggests the degree to which young people drop out is almost always found to be one of their primary reasons for participating or dropping out (Gill et al., 1983; Gould et al., 1985). The motivation to practice an activity appears to be linked to their level of competence, both in terms of the enjoyment derived from practice but also to the level of effort put in. Having something to work towards and improve upon was also highlighted as important for greater enjoyment: “I think enjoying it is more important cos if you don’t enjoy it then you will just give up and not get better anyway. Like if you enjoy it then you’ll try harder and get better quicker” [FG1]. For fun to be considered part of a meaningful experience it should not reflect an unstructured or undisciplined approach (Quennerstedt, 2013), but provides meaning in a manner that is enjoyable to the participant through improvements, progression and an appropriate level of challenge as one participant stated: “Like I know you need to practice each skill every so often but not the same ones all the time. You want to get better at all kinds of skills and stuff not just the same ones” [FG2]. This has similar conceptual overlap to Achievement Goal Theory (Ames, 1992) whereby the pursuit of a goal the adolescent identifies for themselves brings enjoyment. These findings provide some support for the mastery hypothesis which suggests that participating in physical activity enhances feelings of success and confidence that benefit mental health when the feeling of mastery is carried into other areas of life (Paluska & Schwenk, 2000).
3.5. Multi-Factor: Competence & Relatedness
Engagement in the Activity Leading to Flow or Mindfulness
Engagement in physical activity has previously been identified by adolescents as an opportunity for distraction from everyday stressors and for mindfulness (White et al., 2018). The formation and maintenance of social relationships coupled with academic pressures are major stressors in the lives of adolescents. Physical activity serves as an opportunity to take a “mental break” from some of these stressors: “It gives you a mental break. It takes your mind off tests and all that. You’re not thinking about the work you’re doing in the next class or worrying about any of that stuff” [FG1]. Both stress relief and mindfulness were mentioned by participants, especially when engaging in physical activity on their own:
“Sometimes when you’re on your own it kind of gives you time to think like when you’re running around the pitch on your own it’s kind of nice as well to get a break. It’s just a nice mixture to be with your friends but on your own as well” [FG2].
Participants sometimes described participation in physical activity as an opportunity for mindfulness or to experience states resembling flow: “And when you’re playing a sport you just kind of concentrate on sports, you’re not worrying about tests or anything” [FG1]. These “flow-like” states come from a deep engagement in the activity. It has been argued that motivation to perform or complete a task is highest when the difficulty of said task is matched by the individual’s personal abilities and skills (Nakamura & Csikszentmihalyi, 2014). This meeting of optimal challenge, skill and ability led to a state of “flow”, or supreme enjoyment and engagement in the task. Suboptimal pairings of challenge and ability can lead to boredom (high ability, low challenge) or anxiety (low ability, high challenge). The participants in this study noted autonomously regulated reasons for participating in and improving at their chosen activities alongside feelings of distraction. Autonomy supportive behaviours should be promoted and encouraged in the future, not only to increase physical activity but also to enable adolescents to develop deeper feelings of intrinsic motivation and positively impact their wellbeing (Cheon et al., 2012).
4. Conclusion
Although the focus groups provided a great deal of rich data, the study was not without its limitations. As with any qualitative research of this nature, it is acknowledged that the findings are specific to the participants in this study and cannot necessarily be extrapolated to the population as a whole. Although the participants seemed typical of younger adolescent females in Ireland, they all self-identified as active and involved in team sports, thereby already having a positive bias towards higher levels of physical activity and engagement in sport. It is reasonable to expect that their collective opinions were generally representative of other active adolescent females although future investigations should seek to include voices from inactive adolescents, those not involved in team sport and adolescents with reduced activity levels so as to avoid a “survivorship bias”. Our findings, in line with previous research, conclude that physical activity in and of itself are not directly associated with higher levels of mental wellbeing. The various aspects that contribute to the context within which physical activity is experienced play a major role in the potential mental wellbeing benefits that can be derived. In line with self-determination theory, physical activity experiences should include an aspect of choice or autonomy; room for progression, improvements or opportunities to develop a level of competence; and include opportunities for social interaction. It appears that autonomously motivated physical activity experiences provide the greatest levels of satisfaction for adolescents’ psychological needs and therefore, they are the most effective methods of enhancing mental wellbeing through physical activity. We recommend that coaches, teachers and parents should support future physical activity experiences that include an element of choice along with opportunities to engage in social interaction in conjunction with opportunities for progression and achievement, as these appear to provide the best environment to foster positive mental wellbeing in adolescents.