Abstract
The purpose of this study was to examine the formation model of sports commitment that influences sports participation and persistency by investigating the dynamics of relationships between the sports individual and social orientations, athletic identity, and sports commitment. The participants were 803 student athletes (487 collegiate athletes and 316 high school student athletes) and they completed questionnaires (Sports Individual and Social Orientation Scale, Athletic Identity Measurement Scale, Sport Commitment Scale) . In the results of Structural Equation Model (SEM) , the hypothesized model demonstrated goodness of fit and validity of the original formation model of sports commitment. In addition, the results indicated that there was significant relationship only between sport social orientation, athletic identity, and sports commitment. In other words, social orientation formatted identity as an athlete, and athletic identity affected sports commitment. Therefore, this study concluded that it might be important to foster student athletes’ sports social orientation (for example by gaining the trust of coaches and teammates) by their coach or manager for competitive sports participation and persistency.
