Wanting To Is Not the Whole Story

Maya Really Does Want to Swim

Maya loves swimming. If someone asks whether she wants to go to the pool on Saturday, the answer is easy: yes. Saturday arrives, but Maya does not swim. It would be tempting to say she was not motivated enough. Then you learn that the pool is across town, the bus trip takes a long time, and nobody at home is available to drive her. That changes the explanation. Maya's reason for wanting to swim did not disappear. Something around her made participating difficult. This is an important clue. What we do is affected by our motivation, but motivation is not the only thing involved. Sometimes a person wants to participate and still faces something that gets in the way. Sometimes a change around them makes participation much easier.

Try it: Before you knew about the transportation problem, what might you have assumed about Maya? What do you know now that changes your explanation?

The Same Activity Can Feel Different

Think about a student joining a lunchtime basketball game. On one day, they slept badly and feel tired before the game even starts. On another, they have plenty of energy, but two classmates laugh when they miss an easy shot. Later that week, someone passes them the ball again, they make a shot, and suddenly joining the next game feels less risky. The activity stayed the same, but the experience did not. Energy from sleep is a biological influence. Other people's reactions are social influences. Feeling embarrassed or excited involves emotional influences. Thoughts such as “I can do this” or “I am terrible at this” are cognitive influences. These influences often overlap. One missed shot is just one missed shot, but what happens around it can change how someone feels about joining again.

Some Things Are Bigger Than One Moment

Other influences are built into everyday life. A family might hike, skate or dance together because those activities are familiar and important to them. Another student may know almost nothing about those activities but regularly walks with relatives or plays games at a community centre. These are examples of cultural influences because traditions, values and familiar ways of being active help shape what feels normal or meaningful. Community influences include things such as nearby spaces, programs, cost and transportation. A free program three blocks away creates a different opportunity from an expensive program across town. None of these facts tells us exactly what a student will choose. They do show why “They just don't want to” is often a poor explanation when somebody is not participating.

Change One Thing

Go back to Maya. Keep her interest in swimming exactly the same, but change one thing. A neighbour offers to take Maya and their own child to the pool. What might happen to her participation now? Next, try a different change. The ride is available, but Maya discovers that the only session she can attend is expensive. Change it again. The session is affordable, but Maya feels uncomfortable because she knows nobody there. Each version gives you different information. Biological, social, emotional, cognitive, cultural and community factors influence motivation and participation, and several may be operating at once. The important question is not simply, “Did Maya go swimming?” Ask what was influencing her, what reasons she had for going, and what changed. Wanting to participate and being able or willing to participate are connected, but they are not the same thing.

© 2026 All rights reserved.