Gender Differences in Beliefs About the Influence of Ability and Effort in Sport and Physical Activity

The purpose of this study was to explore gender differences in reasoning about the relationships between natural ability, effort/practice, and final skill level/performance across 16 physical activities at both elite and recreational levels. The participants were 153 college students enrolled in 6 physical activity classes. They completed 2 questionnaires. The results indicated that in physical activity domains, male students tended to rate natural ability as more influential for successful skill level or performance than did female students, but the beliefs seemed to vary for activities that are gender-linked. For all the participants, natural ability was viewed as more important at the elite level than at the recreational level. A strategy for practitioners and coaches to use foster beliefs in the efficacy of effort must be developed by challenging the conception of sports as gender-typed and promoting the concept of sports for all.