Beyond Optimal Performance: Mental Toughness Profiles and Developmental Success in Adolescent Cricketers

Abstract

The purposes of the current study were to identify mental toughness profiles in adolescent cricketers and examine differences between these profiles on developmental assets and negative emotional states. A sample of 226 community cricketers (125 New Zealanders and 101 Australians; male n = 210) aged between 10 and 18 years (M(age) = 14.41 years; SD = 2.11) completed a multisection, online survey containing measures of mental toughness, developmental assets, and negative emotional states. The results of hierarchical (Ward's method) and nonhierarchical (k means) cluster analyses revealed three mental toughness profiles characterized by low, moderate, and high levels of all five mental toughness assets (i.e., affective intelligence, desire to achieve, self-belief, attentional control, resilience). Those cricketers with high levels of mental toughness reported possession of more developmental assets and lower levels of negative emotional states when compared with cricketers with the moderate levels of mental toughness. No statistically significant differences existed between the moderate and low levels of mental toughness profiles. These findings provided preliminary evidence to suggest that mental toughness might be viewed not only from the traditional view of optimal performance but also from a stance that may represent a contextually salient representation of thriving in youth sport settings.

Are Adolescents With High Mental Toughness Levels More Resilient Against Stress?

“…The present study extends prior toughness research by assessing mental toughness in a broad sample of non-clinical adolescents, although not exclusively athletes. Our findings are in line with Gucciardi and Jones (2012) who showed with a sample of adolescent cricketers that elevated levels of mental toughness were associated with more developmental assets (including support, empowerment, boundaries and expectations, commitment to learning, positive values, social competencies and positive identity) and lower levels of negative emotional states. Thus, our findings are in accordance with Gucciardi's and Jones' conclusion that 'mental toughness might be viewed not only from the traditional view of optimal performance' (p. 16) but also from a resilience perspective outside of sport.…”

“…1 This study adds to the current literature on mental toughness in the sense that few data exist regarding the relationship between mental toughness and psychological well-being (e.g. Clough et al, 2002;Gucciardi & Jones, 2012;Nicholls, Polman, Levy, & Backhouse, 2009), especially in populations that include athletes and non-athletes, and that mental toughness is tackled from a stress-resilience perspective (Luthar, Cicchetti, & Becker, 2000;Masten, 2004). The latter point seems important for several reasons.…”

The Concept of Mental Toughness: Tests of Dimensionality, Nomological Network, and Traitness

“…These findings are in direct contrast to the commonly accepted multidimensional view of MT. Recent research (Gucciardi & Jones ) and guiding theory (Hobfoll, ) offer a platform upon which to understand the considerable empirical overlap between the MT facets; specifically, it is said that having higher levels of one personal resource is associated with higher levels of other resources (Stajkovic, ). Collectively, our findings suggested that the interpretations regarding the dimensionality of MT that scholars have made of performers’ perceptions of this construct from qualitative research may not be entirely accurate, including our own early work, and therefore require reconsideration and examination in future research.…”

“…Second, an inherent feature of this conceptualization is that MT resides within an individual and—although providing a foundation for performance consistency—is imperfectly translated into behavior or action. A third assumption is that MT should be viewed as a continuous concept whereby individuals may be more or less mentally tough, rather than mentally tough or not, or as comprising different profiles of MT (e.g., high in self‐efficacy and optimism but low in perseverance); that is, individuals will typically score similarly on each of the key dimensions (Gucciardi & Jones, ). This view of MT is also consistent with resource‐based perspectives of human adaptation, coping, and well‐being (Hobfoll, ) in which it is said that having higher levels of one personal resource, such as self‐efficacy, is typically associated with higher levels of other resources, such as optimism, resilience, and hope (Stajkovic, ).…”

Lay perceptions of mental toughness: Understanding conceptual similarities and differences between lay and sporting contexts

“…Although sport has been a predominant focus, empirical research suggests that the benefits of mental toughness extend to a variety of non-sporting populations (Crust, 2007;Gerber et al, 2012;Gerber, Kalak et al, 2013;Gucciardi & Jones, 2012;Gucciardi, Hanton, Gordon, Mallett, & Temby, 2015;St. Clair-Thompson, Bugler, Robinson, Clough, McGeown & Perry, 2015).…”