1. Coping strategies regulating emotion in sport participation
Pons*, J., Viladrich*, C., Ramis*, Y., and Polman**, R.
*Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona **Bournemouth University
INTRODUCTION
Sport participation in adolescence has been identified as a stressful experience. Sport participation may generate emotions like pre-competitive anxiety and potentially lead to sport dropout. Cognitive Motivational Relational Theory of Emotion (CMRT; Lazarus, 1999) is frame that considers emotions, coping strategies and outcomes as a whole emotional process.
Although emotional process has been largely explored in sport (Nicholls & Polman, 2007), few studies have highlighted its influence on sport participation. CMRT postulates that emotions will influence the selection of those strategies to cope with. Previous studies suggest the relation between pre-competitive anxiety and coping strategies (e.g., Dias et al., 2012). Thus the aim of this study was to evaluate the influence of anxiety and coping strategies on sport participation from CMRT perspective.
Cognitive-Motivational-Relational Theory of Emotion
COPING STRATEGIES
ANXIETY
OUTCOMES
METHOD
Participants
In this study participate 500 team-sport male (63.2%) and female (36.8%) athletes of ages between 13 and 21 (Mage = 16.42, SD = 1.54). Participants practiced basketball (49.8%), soccer (19.4%), volleyball (14.6%), handball (11.2%), roller hockey (3.4%) and water-polo (1.6%).
Questionnaires
Sport Anxiety Scale-2 (SAS-2; Smith, Smoll, Cumming, & Grossbard, 2006).
Inventaire des Stratégies de Coping en Compétition Sportive (ISCCS; Gaudreau & Blondin, 2002). Effort expenditure factor was only constituted by one item due to the differences between Original and Spanish versions of the ISCCS.
Sport Commitment Questionnaire (SCQ; Scanlan et al., 1993).
Data Analysis
Preliminary data analysis showed 0,3% of missing data. Weighted Least Squares Mean and Variance Adjusted (WLSMV) was used to deal with ceiling and floor effects and standard errors were corrected for multilevel design effects due to team clustering. CFA showed excellent fit, so we proceed to compute partial and total mediation SEM. All analyses were made with Mplus 7.0. The best fitting model is presented.
.440
Effort Expenditure
Somatic anxiety
-.817
.309
.178
R2 = .191
R2 = .490
.483
.319
Thought control
Enjoyment
-.619
Concentration disruption
.130
.774
-.621
R2 = .718
.184
Commitment
.104
R2 = .160
Worry
Venting of emotions
CFI = .962
TLI = .957
RMSEA (CI95) = .033 ( )
Sig < .01: values > .130
Sig < .05: values ≤ .130
positive path
negative path
.337
R2 = .481
.698
Resignation
CONCLUSIONS
Results provide evidence in favor of CMRT postulates. Coping strategies partially mediate the relationship between pre-competitive anxiety and sport enjoyment and participation.
Effort expenditure and thought control strategies appear to promote enjoyment, meanwhile resignation decrease enjoyment.
Pre-competitive anxiety factors differentially predict the use of coping strategies.
Somatic anxiety positively predicted those strategies positively associated with enjoyment.
Concentration disruption positively predicted resignation and venting of emotions. On the other hand, concentration disruption negatively predicted effort expenditure and thought control.
Worry had significant direct and mediated contributions to enjoyment and commitment, suggesting to have a positive role in sport participation.
References
Dias, C., Cruz, J. F., & Fonseca, A. M. (2012). The relationship between multidimensional competitive anxiety, cognitive threat appraisal, and coping strategies: A multi-sport study. International Journal of Sport and Exercise Psychology, 10, 52–65.
Gaudreau, P., & Blondin, J. P. (2002). Development of a questionnaire for the assessment of coping strategies employed by athletes in competitive sport settings. Psychology of Sport and Exercise, 3, 1–34.
Lazarus, R. S. (1999). Stress and emotion. A new synthesis. New York: Springer.
Nicholls, A. R., & Polman, R. C. (2007). Coping in sport: A systematic review. Journal of Sports Sciences, 25, 11–31.
Scanlan, T. K., Carpenter, P. J., Schmidt, G. W., Simons, J. P., & Keeler, B. (1993). An introduction to the sport commitment model. Journal of Sport & Exercise Psychology, 15, 1–15.
Smith, R. E., Smoll, F. L., Cumming, S. P., & Grossbard, J. R. (2006). Measurement of multidimensional sport performance anxiety in children and adults: The Sport Anxiety Scale-2. Journal of Sport & Exercise Psychology, 28, 479–501.
This research was supported by grant FPU13/00738 from the Ministerio de Educación, Cultura y Deporte (Spain)
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