Attitudes toward sport psychology consulting of adult athletes from the United States, United Kingdom, and Germany (original) (raw)
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Although investigations have consistently demonstrated the effectiveness of sport psychology interventions, these methods have been underutilized by athletes. In this study, 124 athletes completed the athletes’ Attitudes Toward Seeking Sport Psychology Consultation Questionnaire (ATSSPCQ) and were subsequently randomly assigned to receive one of the two semistructured interview formats. One interview focused on discussing the athlete’s experiences in sports, and the other focused on delineating sport psychology and its potential benefits to the athlete. Upon being interviewed, athletes were readministered the ATSSPCQ. Discussing sport psychology and its personal benefits was more effective in enhancing athletes’ perception of need for sport psychology than discussing sport experiences. However, neither interview format enhanced athletes’perceptions of openness to discuss personal issues with a sport psychology consultant and tolerance of stigma associated with sport psychology consu...
The Sport Psychologist, 1997
A 50-item questionnaire measuring athletes’ attitudes toward seeking a sport psychology consultant (ATSSPCQ) was initially developed and then administered to 48 African American and 177 Caucasian student-athletes at a NCAA Division I university. Principal components factor analyses were conducted to extract initial factors and then varimax orthogonal rotation was performed. The analyses produced three dimensions of athlete attitude that accounted for 35% of the variance: stigma tolerance, confidence in a SPC/recognition of need, and interpersonal openness/willingness to try a SPC. A MANOVA and follow-up discriminant function analyses were then performed to identify the factors that maximized differences between gender and race. Significant differences in stigma tolerance were found for both gender and race. SPCs were stigmatized more by male athletes than by female athletes and more by African American athletes than by Caucasian athletes. No other significant effects were obtained.
New Zealand Athletes' Attitudes Towards Seeking Sport Psychology Consultation
The aim of this study was to use the Sport Psychology Attitudes-Revised (SPA-R) questionnaire to develop an understanding of the attitudes elite New Zealand athletes (N = 112) hold towards sport psychology so that services can be tailored to accommodate these views. The influence of athlete characteristics such as nationality, gender, age, level of competition achieved, and previous use of sport psychology on attitudes was explored. Further, the SPA-R was used as a measure of attitudes within the Theory of Reasoned Action (TRA; and Theory Planned Behaviour (TPB; , and integrated with subjective norm and perceived behavioural control to investigate the influence of these variables on predicting athletes' intention to use sport psychology. Results suggested that New Zealand athletes generally held positive attitudes regarding sport psychology, with gender and previous experience of sport psychology significantly influencing attitudes. Regression analyses indicated that the TPB was a better model than the TRA for predicting intention, and the variables predicted 39.7% of variance in intention to use sport psychology. The only SPA-R subscale that contributed significantly was confidence in sport psychology, and perceived behavioural control and subjective norm also contributed significantly. These findings suggest the SPA-R appears to have limited value in predicting intentions, although the TPB could provide a useful theoretical framework to direct interventions aimed at increasing athletes' intention to use sport psychology.
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International Journal of Sport and Exercise Psychology, 2013
The purpose of this study was to investigate what athletes perceived to be essential for effective sport psychology consulting and to examine athletes' perceptions of the key components of an effective sport psychology consulting relationship. Nine elite athletes participated in individual semi-structured interviews (6 males and 3 females, mean age = 32.7 years, SD = 11.05, mean competitive experience = 17.9 years, SD = 9.0) from a variety of sports (e.g. cricket, rugby, swimming, triathlon, dressage, and wheelchair rugby). Inductive content analysis indicated that three categories were essential for sport psychology consulting effectiveness; (a) sport psychology consultants (SPCs) were friendly but not a friend; (b) SPC consulting experience; and (c) athlete-centered consulting. Four categories emerged regarding effective consulting relationships: (a) flexibility; (b) open, honest, and respectful; (c) contributions from both the athlete and SPC; and (d) athlete as an active participant in the consulting relationship.
International Journal of Sports Science & Coaching, 2011
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Behavior Modification, 2004
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Determination of Malaysian Athletes’ Attitude Towards Seeking Sport Psychology Services
Proceedings of International Sports Science Conference, Kota Bharu, Kelantan, Malaysia, 25-28th June 2012., 2013
Despite the increased attention given to sport psychology and its benefits to sport performance, some athletes and coaches remain hesitant to use sport psychology services. There are many possible reasons for athletes not taking advantage of sport psychology services. This study was conducted to determine the attitudes of Malaysian junior athletes towards seeking sport psychology services. The influence of athletes' demographic characteristic such as gender on attitudes was explored. Malaysian junior athletes (N = 122; male = 72 and female = 50) who are currently participating or had participated in the state and junior sport events participated in this study. Participants completed a set of questionnaire that consisted of 2 parts; (a) Demographic and (b) Sport Psychology-Revised (SPA-R) questionnaire. SPA-R was used as a measure of attitudes within Theory of Planned Behavior (Ajzen & Fishbein, 1980). Athletes in this study reported a generally positive attitude towards sport psychology services, and were not likely to be resistant to sport psychology services. They reported high levels of confidence in sport psychology, which indicated that they believed that sport psychology consultation and mental training might be useful and beneficial. Gender did not significantly influence athletes' attitude towards seeking sport psychology assistance. The results also suggested that the athletes' in the present study believed that psychological interventions have more potential gains than losses as evidenced by high score in Confidence in Sport Psychology subscale. Practitioners need a greater understanding of athletes' attitudes towards sport psychology so they can improve their services to best meet the needs of athletes.