Perception of constraints and strength of motivation: Their relationship to recreational sport participation in Greece

This study, based on Crawford,Jackson and Godbey's (1991) hierarchial model of leisure constraints, aimed to: (a) investigate the influence of constraints dimensions on recreational sport participation; (b) empirically test the ''balance'' proposition, by investigating the relationships between perception of constraints dimensions and strength of motivation for participation. The data were collected via a self-administered household questionnaire survey in an urban area in Greece. The results indicated that: (1) the constraints dimensions offered a significant contribution towards the prediction of participants and nonparticipants; (2) the individual/psychological lack of interest, lack of knowledge and time dimensions were the best predictors for distinguishing between participants and non-participants; (3) the strength of motivation was found to be negatively related to the perception of constraints, supporting the ''balance'' proposition.