Social comparison in physical education: Impact of frames of reference, motives to compare, and self-determined motivation

Physical education (PE) provides an important achievement setting for researchers to investigate social comparison processes, however, our understanding of how these processes function, and their consequences, remains limited in this setting. The present study aimed to determine the role of two frames of reference (the class and a chosen individual), motives for comparison, and motivational regulations in predicting physical self-concept (PSC), self-efficacy, and positive/negative affect in PE. Four hundred and ninety-one adolescents (M_age = 14.75, SD = 0.90 years, nested within 28 PE classes and nine teachers) completed a multi-section inventory assessing the key constructs. Multilevel modeling analysis showed that students’ perceptions of ability compared to the class as a whole were pertinent in determining all outcomes whereas comparisons with an individual were less influential. As for the effects of motives for comparison, both self-efficacy and positive affect were positively predicted by self-evaluation and self-improvement. In terms of motivational regulations, findings suggested that more autonomous forms of motivation positively predicted PSC, self-efficacy and positive affect, and were inversely related with negative affect. The results also endorsed the utility of studying intrapersonal moderators of social comparisons in PE, and provide important implications for professional practice.