ABSTRACT
A route to helping an athlete understand their motivation and status within their comfort zone is to use Self-Determination Theory. Self-Determination Theory has been labelled a meta-theory of motivation, emotion and personality which really focuses on the quality of the motivation as well as the supporting factors that push an athlete to pursue their goals. A further element directing the bravery of an athlete to take risks is based on how they attribute and explain their successes or failures. Intrinsic motivation comes when an athlete loves their sport; engaging in it for the satisfaction of developing their knowledge, achieving success or new skills and simply the physical sensation of participating. An athlete who has an external locus of causality and an external locus of control may blame a poor result on their competitors having bought with them new, much stronger players.
