Perceived Motivational Climate in Sport Questionnaire-2

What it measures

Measures athlete perceptions of the motivational climate created by their coach across two dimensions. A Task-Involving climate emphasises effort, personal improvement, learning, and cooperation — athletes feel successful when they improve and help teammates. An Ego-Involving climate emphasises winning, social comparison, and normative ability — athletes feel successful only when they outperform others and are punished for mistakes. Motivational climate is one of the strongest predictors of athlete wellbeing, intrinsic motivation, burnout, and dropout. Coaches who create task-involving climates produce athletes with more adaptive motivational profiles, greater enjoyment, and lower anxiety regardless of ability level.

Response format

Likert (1–5, strongly disagree to strongly agree)

Representative items

• The coach encourages athletes to help each other learn. (Task/Cooperative)
• The coach makes it clear who the best athletes are. (Ego/Rivalry)
• The coach only praises athletes when they outperform their teammates. (Ego/Unequal Recognition)
• Athletes are encouraged to work on weaknesses. (Task/Improvement)
• Athletes are punished when they make mistakes. (Ego/Mistakes)

Usage notes & scoring

Two primary subscale scores (Task-Involving and Ego-Involving) and six facet subscores. Task-Involving climate is the stronger predictor of intrinsic motivation, enjoyment, and persistence. Ego-Involving climate predicts performance anxiety, burnout, and dropout intention. Widely used in coaching science research and in evaluating motivational climate intervention programmes.

Recommended companion scales

Citation

Newton, M.L., Duda, J.L., & Yin, Z. (2000). Examination of the psychometric properties of the Perceived Motivational Climate in Sport Questionnaire-2 in a sample of female athletes. Journal of Sports Sciences, 18(4), 275–290.

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