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2026-03-31
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How to Cite
Building team cohesion and stimulating sports motivation: Social-psychological pathways and practical guidelines for enhancing student engagement and athletic competence in university basketball courses guided by OBE philosophy
Qingli Pan
College of Arts, Sciences, and Education, Trinity University of Asia, Philippines; China Guangxi Yulin Education East Road East 1303 (Yulin Normal University)
Adelina A. Sebastian
College of Arts, Sciences, and Education, Trinity University of Asia, Philippines
DOI: https://doi.org/10.59429/esp.v11i3.4573
Keywords: outcome-based education; team cohesion; sports motivation; student engagement; competitive ability; basketball course; social-psychological pathway; person-environment fit; psychological climate
Abstract
This study examines how team cohesion and sports motivation shape student engagement and competitive ability in university basketball courses operating under Outcome-Based Education (OBE). Drawing on a qualitative research design grounded in open-source data integration, we systematically synthesized publicly available educational datasets, published empirical studies, and open-access sports education records. No primary data collection, fieldwork, or questionnaire administration was conducted. The analytical framework positions OBE as a structured environmental intervention, through which team cohesion functions as the team-level psychological foundation, sports motivation operates as the intrinsic driving force, student engagement serves as the behavioral mediator, and competitive ability constitutes the targeted outcome. Findings derived from integrated analysis of open-source materials reveal five patterns. First, team cohesion scores in intervention-documented cases increased substantially (pretest 5.23 → posttest 7.82), with environmental support playing a consistent moderating role. Second, satisfaction of autonomy, competence, and relatedness needs promoted intrinsic motivation, achievement motivation, and social motivation—defined here as encompassing belonging, social identity, and interpersonal harmony—through differentiated pathways. Third, cognitive, affective, and behavioral engagement demonstrated stepped collaborative development, with the high-coordination profile achieving optimal learning outcomes. Fourth, all four dimensions of competitive ability developed comprehensively across reviewed cases, with technical skills showing the largest increase (54.5%) and stratified analysis indicating a convergence effect. Fifth, structural equation modeling drawn from published studies confirmed the complete chain: team cohesion → sports motivation → student engagement → competitive ability, with sports motivation and student engagement serving dual mediating roles (CFI=0.97, RMSEA=0.046). These findings illuminate the social-psychological mechanisms underlying basketball teaching improvement under OBE and offer theoretically grounded practical guidance for physical education reform.
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