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Differences in pre-competitive anxiety between the athletes in the category of young handball players in relation to their performance.


Papastergiou, L., Proios, Milt., Yiannakos, Ath., Galazoulas, Ch.
Aristotle University of Thessaloniki


Corresponding author:
Christos Galazoulas Phd

Department of Physical Education and Sports Science,
Aristotle University of Thessaloniki,
Thessaloniki, Greece.
Tel. +302310 9922481
 e-mail: galaz@phed.auth.gr



Summary
The purpose of this study was to investigate athletes' pre-competitive anxiety in the category of young male/female handball athletes, and the possible differences in relation to their performance (winner, loser and draw). In this study, 264 athletes participated (males, n = 125; females, n = 139), age 13-16 years (M = 15.83, SD = .92). The participants completed the Competitive State Anxiety Inventory-2 (CSAI-2) of Martens, Burton, Vealey, Bump, and Smith (1990), modified for the Greek population by Stavrou, Kakkos, Zervas, and Psychountaki (1998).The results of the survey revealed statistically significant differences regarding the self-confidence in relation to the direction of the cognitive and somatic anxiety. The results of this study showed the pre-competitive anxiety can affect the performance of young handball players

Introduction

Sport can be characterized as an environment where physical activities can be developed. Participation in athletic activities is accompanied with an increasing anxiety. This leads to young or beginner players not performing according to their potentialities (Hardy, Jones, & Gould, 1996; Orlick & Partington, 1988). The anxiety refers to situations of emotional arousal and intensity.


The personal perception of anxiety is usually assessed by self-report questionnaires. One specialized sport related questionnaire is that of the Competitive State Anxiety Inventory-2 (CSAI-2). The CSAI-2 is used to assess somatic, cognitive anxiety, and self-confidence (Martens, Burton, Vealey, Bump, & Smith, 1990). Cognitive anxiety is defined as the concern, the perception of unpleasant feelings related to the athletic performance and the inability to concentrate (Borkovec, 1976). The term somatic anxiety refers to physiological and emotional factors resulting from the activation of the autonomic nervous system (ANS) and the experiencing of unpleasant emotions, manifested by increased heart rate, extra muscle tension, tightness in the stomach, sweaty palms, etc. (Morris et al., 1981
; Martens, Vealey, & Burton, 1990). Self-confidence is a realistic expectation of athletes that can succeed, it is the belief in themselves and in their strengths (Martens, 1987).


By using the CSAI-2, Burton (1988) proved that cognitive anxiety has a negative linear relationship with performance. Klein (1990) by using the technique of meta-analysis concluded that the negative relationship of anxiety and performance is: a) stronger in female athletes than in male athletes, b) stronger in young athletes than in older athletes, c) stronger in low- level athletes and d) stronger in team than in individual sports. On the other hand self-confidence shows a positive linear relationship, while the relationship between somatic anxiety and performance has the shape of an inverted U. However, the above findings of Burton (1988), were not fully confirmed by further
researches that followed (Craft, Magyar, Becker, & Feltz, 2003; Woodman & Hardy, 2003).


The purpose of this study was to investigate athletes' pre competitive anxiety in the category of young handball athletes, and possible differences in relation to their performance (winner, loser and draw).


Methology
 
Sample
The sample consisted of 264 athletes (male,
n = 125; female, n = 139). Their age ranged from 13-16 years (M = 15.83, SD = .92). All participated in the National Handball Championship 2008-09.

Process

In order to carry out the research, permission was first asked from the organizing committee of the league. The consent of the coaches of teams participating in the league was also given. The questionnaires were completed voluntarily half an hour before the start of the game.

Measurement

For data collection the questionnaire of competitive state anxiety inventory (CSAI-2; Martens, Burton, Vealey, Bump, & Smith, 1990) was used, which was modified for the Greek population by Kakkos, Zervas, and Psychountaki (1998). This questionnaire measures cognitive anxiety (5 items), somatic anxiety (5 items) and self-confidence (5 items), it also measures the direction and intensity of the above symptoms (15 items) .The participants were also asked how they usually feel before the match. The answers were given on a 4- point Likert-type scale from 1 (not at all) to 4 (very much) referring to the extent the symptoms appeared. The extent to which each answer, on a scale of intensity, was evaluated as facilitative or inhibitory for the performance was also recorded in a 7-point scale.

Statistical Analysis

The statistical package SPSS 10.1 was used for the statistical analysis of the data. Descriptive statistical analysis was used to find means and standard deviations of all players to test differences between dependent and independent variables used in multivariate analysis.

Results

The descriptive statistics and Cronbach's alpha coefficients are presented in Table 1. Generally, male and female athletes reported that they had high scores in cognitive anxiety, moderate in somatic anxiety and high in self-confidence. Regarding the direction of the intensity symptoms, the results showed that the direction of cognitive and somatic anxiety does not affect the performance, whereas the direction of self-confidence plays a facilitative role during the performance.

Table 1.

Descriptive statistic and alpha coefficients


Variables Anxiety


M


SD


Cronbach’s alpha

1. Cognitive

2.55

.68

.83

2. Somatic

2.02

.67

.81

3. Self-confidence

2.78

.66

.91

4. Direction cognitive

3.56

.89

.80

5. Direction somatic

3.88

.78

.86

6. Direction self-confid.

4.92

1,11

.91


Differences between pre-competitive anxiety and performance.
A multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA) was conducted in order to examine the effect of performance on the dimensions of pre-competitive anxiety (Tabachnick & Fidell, 1996). A one-way multivariate analysis of variance was performed by using six scales of anxiety (cognitive, somatic, self-confidence, direction of cognitive, direction of somatic, direction of self-confidence) as dependent variables and performance as an independent variable. The results revealed a significant multivariate effect of performance (Wilks' lambda = .778,
F (6, 12) = 5.7, p <.001).


Sequentialies univariate analysis showed that performance was significantly varied in cognitive anxiety F (2, 264) = 23.79, p <.001, somatic anxiety F (2, 264) = 6.33, p <.001, and self-confidence F (2, 264 ) = 7,97, p <.001. Similar significant differences were found in the direction of cognitive anxiety F (2, 264) = 11.14, p <.001, somatic anxiety F (2, 264) = 10.64, p <.001 and self-confidence F (2, 264) = 8.60, p <.001.


Tukey's multiple comparison procedure was used to identify the group mean differences (Table 2). The findings showed an important statistical difference between winners and losers; winners have lower scores of cognitive anxiety in contrast to losers and draw who showed a higher score. Similarly, in somatic anxiety winners seem to have statistically significant low scores in comparison to losers and draw. As for the self-confidence of the male/ female players, there is also a statistically significant difference between winners and losers, where winners have higher scores. Also regarding the directions of cognitive, somatic anxiety and self-confidence, winners in comparison to losers and draw showed a statistically significant difference. The direction of self-confidence has a facilitative effect on winners’ performance during the match. In contrast, loser and draw have high scores of cognitive and somatic anxiety which, as a result impedes their performance.

Table 2. Descriptive statistic variables of Anxiety concerning with performance

Variables

Anxiety

Performance

N

M

SD

Significant

Cognitive

1. Winner

115

2.25

.61

1 & 2 p < .001


2. Loser

83

2.84

.67

1 & 3 p < .001


3. Draw

66

2.70

.62

2 & 3 p < .05

Somatic

1. Winner

115

1.86

.58

1 & 2 p < .001


2. Loser

83

2.17

.68

1 & 3 p < .001


3. Draw

66

2.14

.77

2 & 3 p < .05

Self confidence

1. Winner

115

2.96

.67

1 & 2 p < .001


2. Loser

83

2.67

.68

1 & 3 p < .001


3. Draw

66

2.60

.63

2 & 3 p < .05

Dir. cognitive

1. Winner

115

3.84

.87

1 & 2 p < .001


2. Loser

83

3.28

.88

1 & 3 p < .001


3. Draw

66

3.44

.84

2 & 3 p < .05

Dir. somatic

1. Winner

115

4.12

.74

1 & 2 p < .001


2. Loser

83

3.64

.78

1 & 3 p < .001


3. Draw

66

3.77

.79

2 & 3 p < .05

Dir. Self confidence

1. Winner

115

5.24

1.07

1 & 2 p < .001


2. Loser

83

4.69

1.12

1 & 3 p < .001


3. Draw

66

4.66

1.07

2 & 3 p < .05


Discussion

The purpose of this study was to assess the pre-competitive anxiety of male/female athletes before the start of the match concerning their performance (winners-losers-draw)

As far as the results from the use of the questionnaire of CSAI-2 are concerned, the athletes of the sample showed satisfactory averages of self-confidence in a 4-point scale, also in a 7-point scale, the direction of self-confidence seems to play a facilitative role on their performance during the match. According to the results both cognitive and somatic anxieties were in relatively moderate level, and their direction does not seem to have any impact on performance, or at least to impede the performance of athletes. Kais and Raudsepp (2005), having examined the relationship between the intensity and direction of pre-competitive anxiety of twelve basketball athletes and twelve volleyball athletes, found similar moderate levels of cognitive and somatic anxiety, high levels of self-confidence and only the intensity of cognitive anxiety could be interpreted as facilitative factor to the performance of athletes. Swain and Jones (1993), mentioned that cognitive and somatic anxiety increased significantly for both men and women as the match was about to begin. Adversely, Klein (1990), argued that the negative relationship between anxiety and performance is: a) stronger in female athletes than in male athletes, b) stronger in young male/female athletes than in older ages, c) stronger in low-level male/female athletes and d) stronger in team sport than in individual one.

Regarding the results of the survey in relation to the winners and losers, winners have lower scores on cognitive anxiety than the losers and draw. Also, the direction of cognitive anxiety seems to have a facilitative effect on winners in contrast to losers and draw, where it impedes their performance. The results of this study contradict the study of Cox (1994), which was conducted among basketball players and its results suggest that cognitive anxiety, even if at low levels, affects performance negatively. However, the present results are similar to those of a Covassin and Pero survey (2004), conducted among 24 college tennis players. They found that winners had significantly lower scores of cognitive and somatic anxiety and high self-esteem in relation to losers. Moreover, they found that athletes who had high self-esteem tended to stay more calm and relaxed under pressure conditions, without being influenced by negative emotions.


In the results of this research regarding self-confidence it was found that winners had higher scores on self-confidence, compared to losers and draw. Similarly, in the direction of self-confidence winners in the match had relatively high scores, where self-confidence seems to have a facilitative effect on the performance in comparison to losers who appear to be unaffected. Perry and Williams (1998), in their research examined the intensity of anxiety and self-confidence acting as a facilitator or a constraint on performance. The sample consisted of 3 groups of tennis players. Specifically, those groups were divided into three levels, high (winners), medium (draw) and low (losers). CSAI-2 was used as a measuring instrument. As far as somatic anxiety is concerned they found no statistically significant difference, but the low level sample showed low scores of cognitive anxiety and players of high level had high self-esteem scores with a facilitative direction during their performance. Similarly, Jones and Hanton (2001), in their
research with a sample of 190 swimmers, supported that for those who had higher averages of self confidence, the direction showed it acted as a facilitator on their performance during the match. Moreover, other similar studies such as those of Jones and Hardy (1990), and Hemery (1986), stressed the importance of self-confidence in elite athletes. Similar results are found by Reilly, Williams, Nevill and Franks (2000) in a research with a sample of 31 athletes age of 15 to 16 years so as to set talent in football. In particular, the elite athletes showed high levels of self-confidence, concentration, and perceived anxiety as a positive factor.


The results of the present study also showed that the winners had less somatic anxiety than losers and draw. Likewise, the direction of somatic anxiety for winners had a facilitative effect compared with the losers and draw. These results are supported by the survey of Filaire, Alix, Ferrand and Verger (2008), who examined the physiopsychologic profile of 16 tennis players (8 men, 8 women) during their first tournament. CSAI-2 was used as a measuring instrument, including the intensity and the direction of their abilities. The results showed a statistically significant difference between women who had higher somatic anxiety scores and men who had higher scores in self-confidence. The winners were found to have statistically lower levels of cognitive anxiety and higher self-confidence scores than losers, who had statistically higher somatic anxiety which impeded their performance. Similarly, a survey of Jones, Hanton and Swain (1994) examined the directions of symptoms of anxiety and of their performance. The sample consisted of 97 high level swimming athletes (elite) and 114 lower level swimming athletes (non-elite). No statistically significant difference between the two groups regarding the intensity of cognitive and somatic anxiety was found. However, elite athletes expressed that they consider anxiety as a facilitative factor for their performance. Further analysis showed that performance of non-elite athletes was impeded by their anxiety.

In conclusion, in order to improve the performance of athletes, psychological support to young handball players during the training process should be taken seriously into consideration. A study of athletes' competitive emotional state before and during the game is crucial for the performance; there should be special psychological programs which can contribute to the high efficiency of athletes.


Further research is needed to be done so as to generalize the results regarding Greek handball.

References

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Hardy, L., Jones, G., & Gould, D. (1996). Understanding psychological preparation for sport: Theory and practice of elite performers. Chichester: John Wiley & Sons.

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Jones, G., Hanton, S., & Swain, A.B.J. (1994). Intensity and interpretation of anxiety symptoms in elite and non-elite sports performers. Personality and Individual Differences, 17, 657–663.

Klein, D. (1990). Anxiety and sport performance: A meta-analysis. Anxiety Research, 2, 113-131.

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Martens, R., Vealey, R., & Burton, D. (1990). Competitive anxiety in sport. Champaign, IL: Human Kinetics.

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Zervas Y., Ekkekakis P., Psychoudaki M., Kakkos V. (1993). Adaptation to Profile of Mood States (Schacham,1983). Unpublished paper. Department of Physical Education & Sport Sciences. University of Athens.




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