Running head: PARTICIPATION IN TRACK AND FIELD SPORTS The interaction of goal orientation and perceived competence in predicting sustained participation in competitive sports: A longitudinal study of track and field youth athletes

Past research on goal orientation has suggested that a task orientation more often than the ego orientation protects the athlete from disappointments and a lack of motivation, especially when ego orientation is combined with low perceived ability. Accordingly, emphasis on task orientation and high perceived competence should lead to a stronger persistence when an athlete’s performance is exceeded by others in competitive situations. The participants for the longitudinal study (2002-05) were Finnish junior level track and field athletes (N= 1747). The data was collected using a multi-section selfreport questionnaire that was mailed once a year to all the FA licensed track and field athletes born in 1987. A total of 802 athletes responded to the initial questionnaire and mailed it back. The main finding was that the self-reported task orientation and perceived competence predicted athlete’s persistence in competitive track and field sports. The prediction was correct in 70.1% of cases. The results of present study support the view that goal orientation is related to persistence in competitive sports. In contrast to the past literature, it appeared that ego orientation did not seem to play any role in predicting withdrawal from track and field sports. Gender was found to moderate the effect of task orientation in the way that task orientation was more closely related to persistence among boys than among girls. In all, the results of the present study suggest that the investigation of goal orientation together with perceived competence may provide us with additional information concerning a youth athlete’s persistence for training even in the face of failures and disappointments.