Relationships between flow state and motivation in junior elite tennis players: Differences by gender

Abstract

This study examined the relationships between differing types of motivation and the flow state and possible gender differences. A sample of 94 junior elite tennis players (44 boys and 50 girls), ages 11 to 14 years (12.05 ± 1.2) completed the French Flow State Scale-2 (F FSS-2) and the Sport Motivation Scale (SMS) questionnaires. Results reported a moderate link between intrinsic motivation and flow state (r = 0.44, p < 0.05). Amotivation was negatively related to all dimensions of flow state except for transformation of time (r = -.02, p <0.05). An independent-sample t-test analysis indicated that girls had stronger intrinsic motivation than boys to know (t = 1.95; p <.05; d = .59), and to accomplish (t = 2.14; p <.04; d = .64) and also had better extrinsic motivation identified-regulation (t = 3.71; p <.01; d = 1.11). No meaningful differences were found between girls and boys in their general flow state (t = .18; p <.86; d = .04). In conclusion, our findings suggest that intrinsic motivation can contribute positively to improving the flow state in young tennis players.