Online and Offline Friendship Among Italian Adolescent Girls

Background: There is still a question of whether online friendship predicts changes in face-to-face friendship (Reduction Hypothesis) or face-to-face friendship predicts changes in online friendship (Compensation Hypothesis) during adolescence.Objective: The purpose of this study was to compare these two hypotheses to determine which comes first: online friendship or offline friendship.Method: Eighty adolescent girls between the ages of 14 and 19 years (mean, 16.07 years; standard deviation, 1.28 years) on a non-traditional school track completed self-report questionnaires. Two wave longitudinal models were tested with the use of cross-lagged analysis to compare the hypotheses.Results: Analysis showed that negative face-to-face friendship quality predicted online friendship but that the opposite was not true.Conclusions: The study’s findings underlined the compensation role of online friendship for girls with poor or unsatisfactory offline social worlds. The implications of this information and suggestions for clinicians and professionals to use to enhance adolescent social skills and to promote appropriate use of the Internet will be discussed

Preliminary validation of the Italian version of the original sport motivation scale

Candela, F., Zucchetti, G., & Villosio, C. (2014). Preliminary validation of the Italian version of the original Sport Motivation Scale. J. Hum. Sport Exerc., 9(1), pp.136-147. This study aims at develop and validate a preliminary Italian version of the original Sport Motivation Scale. The original scale was translated into Italian following transcultural procedures. The scale was administered to 228 athletes (55% females, n = 125, M age= 25, SD= 13) recruited in an Italian Sports Medicine Center. Confirmatory factor, internal consistency and correlation analysis among subscales were performed. Gender differences and associations between SMS subscales and psychological variables (coach leadership style, sport enjoyment, self-confidence in sport, attitude toward doping behaviors) were investigated. The analysis showed encouraging results about the validity and reliability of the Italian version of the SMS scale. Key words: MOTIVATION, SPORT MOTIVATION SCALE, ITALIAN VALIDATION

italian early adolescent females intrinsic motivation in sport an explorative study of psychological and sociorelational correlates

Abstract Using self-determination theory (SDT), this study simultaneously investigated the relationships between intrinsic motivation, psychological factors (sport enjoyment, social self-efficacy), and sociorelational factors (perceived coaching behaviors) by subsequently testing whether psychological factors mediate the relationships between social-relational factors and intrinsic motivation. One hundred and twentyseven early adolescent females from several teams of the Italian Volleyball Society completed a self-report questionnaire. Results showed that female athletes' intrinsic motivation was associated with a) sport enjoyment and b) perceived coaching behaviors (e.g., training and instruction, social support). Second, results showed that training-and-instruction coaches' leadership style affected intrinsic motivation via the females' enjoyment in sport. This study provided further insights into unknown associations among psychological, sociorelational factors and intrinsic motivation, highlighting the innovative role of sport enjoyment as a key factor for sustaining intrinsic motivation. Original and useful behavioral suggestions will be given to the coaches in order to sustain female athletes' sport enjoyment and their intrinsic motivation