Young Korean athletes' goal orientation and sources of enjoyment

Feeling of enjoyment plays a critical role in sport participation and adherence. The purposes of this study were to (a) identify specific sources of enjoyment in the context of Korean youth sport and (b) examine the conceptual link between goal orientation and the sources of enjoyment in youth sport. A total of 334 middle school athletes (244 boys, 90 girls; ages 12 to 18 years), representing 17 schools in Seoul, participated. They responded to the Korean version of the Task and Ego Orientation Questionnaire in Sport and an open-ended item designed to identify sources of enjoyment. Content analysis of the responses resulted in nine enjoyment categories, including winning and competition, social recognition and rewards, health and fitness, and perceived competence. Chi squared analyses provided initial evidence for the conceptual link between goal orientation and sources of enjoyment. The athletes scoring high on task orientation more frequently reported self-referenced sources of enjoyment, e.g., health and fitness, psychological benefit, while the athletes high on ego orientation more frequently identified social recognition and rewards as their enjoyment sources. These results were discussed within the frame of goal orientation theory and cross-cultural perspectives.