Abstract

This study investigated (a) teachers’ self-reported use and perceptions (fun for students, effectiveness in promoting students’ learning, potentiality for motivating students to learn) of Mosston’s Spectrum of teaching styles in physical education, (b) the impact of teachers’ perceptions on the same use of the styles, (b) the role of teachers’ self-efficacy beliefs in their self-reported use and perceptions of the teaching styles, and in the impact of perceptions on the use of the styles, and (d) the effect of teaching level on teaching styles. The sample comprised 160 primary and secondary education physical education teachers, of both genders, representing a variety of Greek school settings. The results showed that (a) teachers differed in the use and perceptions of the different teaching styles (reproductive styles were favorite), (b) the perceptions that teachers had of the educational characteristics of the reproductive styles influenced their experience of the use of them, while such effects were intriguing with respect to productive styles, (c) self-efficacy beliefs were positively related to use and perceptions (particularly, effectiveness in promoting students’ learning) of the teaching styles, and mediated the effect of perceptions on the use of some of the styles, and (d) teaching level influenced teaching styles with elementary teachers being in favor of reproductive teaching styles.