The mediating effects of motivation on the relations between occupational stress and physical activity among underresourced afterschool program staff

Objective Guided by Self-Determination Theory, this study aimed to examine the potential mediating effects of autonomous and controlled motivations on physical activity (PA) experiences of afterschool program (ASP) staff with occupational stress. Method A total of 58 ASP staff provided full data. Staff occupational stress and self-determination motivations for PA were assessed. Participants' daily moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) was measured using accelerometer wear. A path analysis was used to address the research purpose. Results Occupational stress negatively and indirectly predicted daily MVPA which was mediated by controlled motivation (beta = - 4.15, p <.05). Autonomous motivation directly and positively predicted daily MVPA across all types and levels of ASP staff occupational stress (beta = 9.93, p =.01). Conclusions Autonomous motivation is a powerful predictor of staff PA levels despite the degree to which they experience stress. In contrast, controlled motivations are more vulnerable to occupational stress, and can lead to lower MVPA.