The aim of the research in this thesis was to describe the motivations and health practices of participants in the Victoria Canadian Breast Cancer Foundation Run for the Cure, a mass physical activity charity event, and follow them forward approximately two andeight months post-event. Physical activity events are now established as part of nonprofits' repertoire of fundraising tools. These types of events can serve as a venue for ‘moving people to trial’ as they attract large numbers and foster mid-intensity participation in a non-competitive and fun environment. Understanding participants’ motives for and experiences in fundraising events can help to enhance the event for both the organization and the participant. Participants in this study were recruited through the Canadian Breast Cancer Foundation’s database of registrants in the 2012 Victoria Run for the Cure. Sixty-four participants completed an online survey gathering demographic, motivation, and health information. Subsequently, twenty-four of these individuals agreed to undergo fitness assessments at two and six months post the event, complete physical activity and healthy eating motivation questionnaires and be interviewed. At T1 participants were not meeting physical activity guidelines and heavier than the average resident in the region. Scores from fitness levels were maintained from two months to eight months post-event, but increased levels of intrinsic motivation for physical activity (Z = .047, p < 0.05), and decreased levels of identified motivation for healthy eating (Z = .036, p < .05) were found. When looking at interview data, factors that largely guided initial event participation involved altruism, reciprocity, and self esteem. The fostering of autonomy and competence and providing a sense of belonging as a result of participation, helped to maintain commitment for both event participation and physical activity after the event. This research supports the notion that ‘fun runs’, provide an ideal environment to provide a context for health behaviour change at the population level, when SDT constructs and intrinsic and identified regulation are supported, especially for those not currently meeting health guidelines. The study offers practical and feasible strategies for the CBCF and other similar organizations to enhance its mandate, and to promote health and prevent disease. / Graduate / 0350 / 0523 / kemoncks@uvic.ca

The purpose of this research was to implement and evaluate a whole-school health model (Health Promoting Secondary Schools [HPSS]), grounded in self-determination theory (SDT). The approach used a "For Youth with Youth" planning strategy designed to change school environments (culture, policy and practices) in order to help high school students become more physically active and eat more healthful diets. Three interrelated research projects were conducted to address the purpose of this study. A concurrent mixed-methods design was used to: (a) gain an understanding of the experiences of teachers and the Action Team as they planned and implemented school-based healthy living strategies (Project 1); (b) evaluate the impact on and relationship between SDT constructs and students’ motivation to engage in health-related behaviours (Project 2); and (c) evaluate the motivation of students in physical education classes grounded in SDT and its impact on their enrolment in grade 11 elective physical education (Project 3). In Project 1, 23 teachers and 37 Action Team members participated in focus group interviews. School observation field notes and Action Team meeting minutes were collected throughout the intervention process. Analysis of the data revealed that several factors were associated with participants’ experiences and motivational processes. These factors included: (a) Competing Responsibilities, Technical Difficulties, and Lack of Computer Access (b) Resources, Reminders, Workshops, and Collaboration (c) Choice-Based Design Impacts Participants’ Experiences; (d) Teacher Control Impacts Student Engagement (e) Teacher Job Action Inhibited Implementation of HPSS Action Plans. The findings from this study can facilitate future school-based projects by providing insights into student and teacher perspectives on the planning and implementation of a whole-school health model. In Project 2, 379 grade 10 students in ten participant schools (5 intervention schools; 5 control schools) completed self-report questionnaires pre and post intervention to evaluate the impact on students’ motivation to engage in health-related behaviours. Results showed students attending HPSS intervention schools reported significantly lower amotivation scores for healthy eating compared to students in usual practice schools. No significant differences were found between conditions on motivation towards physical activity. The findings indicate that a choice-based whole-school health approach may be an effective approach for decreasing amotivation towards healthy eating behaviours. In Project 3, a sample of 373 grade 10 students completed self-report questionnaires to assess their perceptions of autonomy, relatedness, and competence towards grade 10 Physical Education. Enrolment rates were collected from participant schools to determine the impact of the HPSS intervention on student enrolment in grade elective physical education. Multilevel analysis showed no significant differences between conditions post intervention on overall psychological need satisfaction or individual SDT constructs. For enrolment in elective physical education, chi-square analyses showed a significant difference in proportion of female students in HPSS intervention schools enrolled in grade 11 elective physical education. Findings show support for a whole-school health model to improve female student enrolment in elective physical education programs. / Graduate

Denna studie syftar till att undersöka huruvida arbetsmotivationen skiljer sig mellan generation Y och tidigare generationer i den svenska IT-branschen. Studien vilar på en teoretisk grund bestående av tre välkända teorier inom arbetsmotivation; Herzbergs tvåfaktorteori, Self-Determination Theory samt Job Characteristics Model.   För att kunna besvara studiens forskningsfråga ”Hur kan belöningssystem utformas för att ta hänsyn till fler anställda från generation Y i den svenska IT-branschen?” genomfördes en semistrukturerad intervju med en HR-chef samt en enkätundersökning bland anställda på IT-företaget Evry.   Resultatet av studien visar att det finns vissa skillnader i arbetsmotivationen mellan generation Y och tidigare generationer vilket kan motivera till förändringar i hur man arbetar med belöningar när en allt större del av arbetskraften utgörs av generation Y. En viktig skillnad som framkom är att medarbetare från generation Y uppskattar feedback mer än äldre medarbetare, oavsett varifrån i organisationen feedbacken kommer ifrån. Studien fann även att monetära belöningar kan ha en stark negativ inverkan på arbetsmotivationen, men att de under vissa omständigheter kan vara positiva och ibland även nödvändiga. En slutsats blir att det ofta krävs en blandning av både monetära och icke-monetära för få fram det mest motiverande belöningssystemet.

Syftet med studien var att identifiera vilka primära strategier coacher använder sig av för att hjälpa en allvarligt skadad idrottare. Hur en skada upplevs och hanteras ur en coachs perspektiv är ett outforskat område. Podlog och Dionigis (2010) är en av få studier där man undersökt världselit coachers strategier. Författarna i föreliggande studie valde att använda sig av liknande tillvägagångsätt. Nio semistrukturerade intervjuer genomfördes med coacher som hade aktiva idrottare på en lägre nivå än den högsta världseliten, samt hade erfarenheter av allvarligt skadade idrottare. Sju män och två kvinnor deltog i studien, både från individuella idrotter och lagidrotter. Det identifierades fem primära strategier: (1) målsättning, (2) socialt stöd, (3) förmedling till medicinsk personal, (4) anpassad träning och (5) individanpassat stöd. Dessa strategier kopplas i en diskussionsdel till självbestämmande teorins tre aspekter, målsättning och anpassad träning kopplades till kompetens, socialt stöd och förmedling till medicinsk personal kopplades till samhörighet, individanpassat stöd, förmedling till medicinsk personal samt målsättning till autonomi. Slutligen ges även förslag till framtida forskning, metodkritik samt implikationer. / The purpose of this study was to identify the primary strategies coaches use to help seriously injured athletes. How an injury is perceived and managed from a coach's perspective is an unexplored area. Podlog and Dionigi's (2010) is one of few studies that have investigated world elite coacher’s strategies. The authors of present study chose to use similar approaches. Nine semi-structured interviews were conducted with coaches active at a lower level compared to world elite, and experiences of severely injured athletes. Seven men and two women participated from both individual and team sports. Five primary strategies were identified: (1) goal setting, (2) social support, (3) intermediary to medical professionals, (4) adapted training and (5) personalized support. These strategies are addressed to the three aspects of the self-determination theory in the discussion part. Goal setting and adapted training were addressed to competence and adapted training linked to skills. Social support and intermediary to medical professionals were addressed to relatedness. Personalized support, intermediary to medical professionals and goals setting were addressed to autonomy. Finally suggestions for future research, methodology critique and implications are provided.

Syftet med studien var att undersöka om anställdas arbetsmotivation var beroende av hur många timmar de reste i tjänsten under en vanlig arbetsvecka. Studien genomfördes med hjälp av två grupper anställda inom det statliga bolaget Vattenfall. Mätinstrumentet som användes i studien var Basic Need Satisfaction at work scale som mäter arbetsmotivation i tre grundläggande faktorer; autonomi, kompetens och samhörighet. Totalt deltog 123 respondenter i undersökningen. Resultatet visade att det i kompetens och samhörighet förekom signifikanta skillnader mellan de två grupperna, där de som reser mycket skattade upplevelsen av kompetens och samhörighet högre än i gruppen som reser lite. Vidare visade resultatet att det inte förelåg någon signifikant skillnad mellan gruppernas skattning av autonomi. / The purpose of the study was to exam if employee’s work motivation depended on how many hours they travel during an ordinary work week. The investigation contained two different groups of employee’s in a Swedish public company. A total of 123 respondents participated in the study. The instruments used in this study were Basic Need Satisfaction at work scale, which measures work motivation based on three basic factors; autonomy, competence and relatedness. The results showed that there were significant differences between the two groups, where the group of employee’s that travelled more experienced more satisfactions with competence and relatedness, than the group that travelled less. Further the results showed no significant differences between the two groups relating to autonomy.

Previous research has indicated that exercising with other people improves interest and engagement in physical activity (e.g., Christensen, Schmidt, Budtz-Jorgensen, & Avlund, 2006; Estabrooks & Carron, 1999). However, the degree of socializing with other people engaged in by exercisers has not been manipulated in previous studies. In the present study, the amount of socializing during exercise was manipulated in order to evaluate the effect of social connection on motivation to exercise. Two perspectives on the role of socializing in exercising were considered and discussed – Social Facilitation (Zajonc, 1965) and Self-Determination Theory (SDT; Deci & Ryan, 2000). In order to test the importance of social contact during exercise, previously inactive women between the ages of 18-30 were randomly assigned to exercise for 12 sessions in one of three conditions. In the “social partner condition”, two participants exercised together and also discussed personal topics. In the “non-social partner condition”, two participants exercised together, but did not discuss personal topics. Lastly, in the “exercise alone condition”, participants exercised alone. In general, it was hypothesized that the social partner condition would lead to the greatest improvements in satisfaction of the psychological need for relatedness, subjective vitality, motivation to exercise, amount of physical activity, fitness level, affect, interest, and effort in exercise. Non-social partners were expected to experience some benefits from exercising with a partner, but not to the same extent as those in the social partner condition. Participants who exercised alone were expected to experience the fewest improvements. The partner relationships were also examined more closely, with the expectation that pairings that were more interpersonally complementary (that is, more similar on affiliation, and reciprocal on dominance) would positively affect outcomes. Further, partners were expected to become more similar in their exercise behaviour and motivation due to their repeated interactions over the course of the study. A one-month follow-up session assessed whether motivation and exercise behaviour observed at the end of the study changed or were sustained over time. The hypotheses were partially supported. Overall, exercise contributed to improved vitality, fitness, and affect, with few differences amongst the conditions. Participants in both partner conditions reported greater relatedness, or social connection, after a month of exercising together, than the exercise alone condition participants. Some interesting motivational patterns emerged at the end of the study and at a one-month follow-up, with some indication that the social partner condition most greatly benefited motivation. Interpersonal complementarity positively impacted competence, relatedness, and fitness, but surprisingly had a negative impact on vitality. Partners did not become more similar to one another over the course of the study, suggesting a lack of mutual influence. The findings are discussed within the context of Self-Determination Theory and Social Facilitation. These findings contribute to a growing body of literature that indicates that the social aspects of physical activity are essential for physical and mental wellbeing. Further research is required to evaluate how social factors can be utilized to promote greater enjoyment of and adherence to physical activity.

国立情報学研究所で電子化したコンテンツを使用している。

国立情報学研究所で電子化したコンテンツを使用している。

国立情報学研究所で電子化したコンテンツを使用している。

Syftet med studien är att undersöka huruvida det är mer eller mindre motiverande för anställda inom mjukvaruindustrin att jobba enligt agila utvecklingsmetoder än enligt traditionella utvecklingsmetoder. Undersökningen har gjorts med teoretisk utgångspunkt från motivationsskapande variabler ur de kontemporära motivationsteorierna Self Determination Theory samt Job Characteristic model. Som en ansats till att besvara frågeställningen har en kvalitativ fallstudie genomförts på företaget Kambi Sport Solutions AB. Kambi Sport Solutions AB har under de senaste åren genomfört en organisationsförändring där traditionella projektledningsmetoder ersatts av agila projektledningsmetoder. Studiens empiri visar med stöd ur motivationsteori att övergången till agila metoder signifikant påverkat individens motivation positivt. Framförallt som en följd av en högre grad av självbestämmande, kunskapsvariation, identitet i och betydelse av arbetsuppgiften, autonomi samt feedback.