Motivation behind running among older adult runners.

Abstract

Background: Recreational running has greatly increased over the last decade, and diferent research has tried to understand the motivation that leads these amateur athletes to run. However, most research has focused on adult athletes, while the motivation behind older adult athletes has been overlooked. Methods: The aim of this research was to analyse the motivational aspects of amateur runners aged over 50 years, and to consider the infuence that years of practice, type of participation and some socio-demographical variables have on these older adults’ motivation behind running. 244 older adult amateur athletes in total completed an online survey with the 56 items contained in the motivation of marathoners scales (MOMS), 108 of whom were female (44%), and 136 were male runners (56%). Athletes were asked about their years’ running experience (<1 year, 1–5 years, 6–10 years,>10 years), their participation in running events (recreationally, half marathon, marathon, ultramarathon) and age (ranges 50–60, more than 60 years), gender (male, female), family life (whether in a relationship or not), and whether they had children (yes, no). Results: The results showed statistical diferences in the nine MOMS dimensions in terms of years’ running experi‑ ence and participation in diferent running events. Moreover, older adult runners’ gender and age subsequently showed statistical diferences with fve and six motivational factors respectively, while athletes that did not have chil‑ dren were more likely to run regarding competition and showing recognition. Family life did not show any statistical association with any of the dimensions on the scale in this population, while regression analyses showed that, mainly, years’ running experience and participation were positively predicted, together with most motivational dimensions, while having children was negatively predicted in some of them. Conclusions: This study showed that older adult runners’ reasons for participating difer from those obtained in pre‑ vious studies, especially regarding training experience and participation in events. Therefore, the older adult popula‑ tion should be specifcally addressed.