The influence of goals, commitment, self-efficacy and self-satisfaction on motor performance

The study examined how goals combine with other factors in determining performance in a sport setting. More specifically, the effects of goal setting, commitment, self-efficacy, trait-efficacy, ability, and serf-satisfaction on tennis performance were examined. Subjects (N=48) performed four trials of a specific service task. Before the third and fourth trials subjects set personal goals. The psychological variables, self-efficacy, self-satisfaction and commitment, were also assessed prior to each trial. Results showed that ability, self-efficacy, goal setting, and goal commitment were predictors of performance at the various stages of the experiment. Analysis of two LISREL VI models (one for each trial) indicated that personal goal setting was affected by level of ability, as well as by perceived self-efficacy and satisfaction. Self-efficacy and goal commitment were a direct as well as indirect determinants of performance. Based on the findings in the proposed model, self-efficacy, goal commitment and personal goal setting appear to be significant determinants of performance in sport setting.