Intrinsic/extrinsic factors and social support as a motivation for physical activity among students

Abstract

Motivation is a determining factor for adherence to and continuation of physical activity and can arise from aspects inherent to the individual or their environment. This study analyzed the association between intrinsic and extrinsic factors and social support as motivation for physical activity among students at a federal educational institution in Northeastern Brazil. This cross-sectional study involved 89 individuals, which included an open-ended questionnaire addressing demographic and physical activity profiles, as well as motivational factors for practice. In the crude inferential analysis, Fisher's exact test was used to identify the relationships between physical activity modalities and motivational factors for physical activity, considering a descriptive level of p<0.20. In the adjusted multivariate model, Poisson regression with robust variance was used, with estimates of the Prevalence Ratio (PR), considering a p<0.05 and a 95% confidence interval (CI). The majority were: men (68; 76.4%), adolescents/youth people aged 10 to 24 years (84; 94.4%), with weekly training frequency ≥ 3 times, practitioners of collective sports (75; 84.3%), motivated by intrinsic factors (74; 83.1%) and who obtained physical benefits (53; 59.6%). In the adjusted analysis, the following remained associated: individual sports and intrinsic factor (PR=3.95; CI=1.20-13.00), collective sports with intrinsic (PR =0.74; CI=0.62-0.88) and extrinsic factors (PR=0.68; CI=0.50-0.92), and mixed practices with extrinsic factors (PR=3.23; CI=1.41-7.37). It was concluded that the three motivational aspects analyzed are related to the practice of activity, with variations depending on the type of activity performed. Furthermore, differences in this relationship appear to exist according to population characteristics and context.