Motivating factors of National Senior Games state participants

The purpose of this study was to identify motivating factors affecting senior adults who competed in the 2015 National Senior Games Association (NSGA) state games. Three hundred and ninety-three individuals aged 50-94 years participated in the study by completing an online survey. The survey included demographic, psychographic information and the Sport Motivation Scale-6 to determine specific motivation levels based on gender and the state of participation. Scores for the SMS-6 questionnaire were on a 7-point Likert scale separated by intrinsic, extrinsic, and amotivation subscales.

Results revealed that word of mouth marketing is the primary way individuals learn about the NSGA events, with the majority of respondents participating because they like to compete and challenge their abilities. Women reported a higher mean score for identified regulation (F = 7.1, p = .008) when evaluating motivation based on gender. A significant main effect of state was found for the motivation levels of external regulation (F = 3.5, p = .008), introjected regulation (F = 3.2, p = .013), and integrated regulation (F = 3.0, p = .019).