A Cross-National Comparison of Physical Fitness, Physical Activity, and Motivational Climate Among Adolescent Girls in Iran and Hungary

This study compared physical fitness, physical activity, and motivational climate among adolescent girls in Iran and Hungary within the frameworks of self-determination theory and achievement goal theory. A cross-sectional study was performed among 539 girl students aged 13–15 years (mean age = 13.93; SD = 0.82 years). Data were analysed using factorial ANOVA, independent t-tests, confirmatory factor analysis, and structural equation modelling. Hungarian students demonstrated higher performance in most physical fitness tests and had higher body mass index values (p = 0.002). Physical activity levels differed only at age 14 (p = 0.019, r = −0.18), with no significant differences at other ages. Iranian students reported higher perceptions of motivational climate dimensions. The measurement model showed good fit (χ2(143) = 1.81; CFI = 0.99; TLI = 0.99; SRMR = 0.03; RMSEA = 0.039), and structural equation modelling indicated that only task-involving climate was positively associated with physical activity (β = 0.325, p = 0.003), while other motivational dimensions were not significant. The findings demonstrated that although physical fitness and motivational climate dimensions differed across both countries, physical activity levels remained relatively similar among groups. This implies that intrinsic motivational climate may be related to physical activity participation. However, differences in physical activity levels in each country could be attributed to other variables such as education, culture, socioeconomic status, environment, among others. Task-involving climate emerged as the only dimension of motivational climate associated significantly with physical activity, suggesting a potential association between task-involving climate and active lifestyles among adolescent girls.