Multidimensional Comparison of Anxiety Direction and Burnout over Time

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to assess if athletes who perceived their trait anxiety to be debilitative to performance also experienced higher burnout over a competitive season. Volunteers were 53 NCAA Division I and II male (n = 14) and female (n = 39) athletes, ages 18 to 23 years. Participants completed a trait version of the Competitive State Anxiety Inventory-2D once and the Athlete Burnout Questionnaire three times during the season. A 2 (anxiety direction group) x 3 (time of season) multivariate analysis of variance indicated no significant interaction and no main effect for time of season. A significant main effect for anxiety direction group did emerge, with the Facilitative group reporting significantly lower Burnout scores overall on the Reduced Sense of Accomplishment scale than the Debilitative group. There were no differences found on the other two subscales, Emotional/Physical Exhaustion and Devaluation.

Anxiety and Attention Shifting in Professional Baseball Players

“…This is not a surprising result, and similar findings have been reported in a number of research studies [19, 38]. Wiggins et al [38] reported that basketball players who experienced lower anxiety were less discouraged and less stressed during competition, compared to basketball players who reported higher anxiety. Our previous research noted that elite baseball and soccer player groups showed less state anxiety, compared to general player groups [19].…”

Performance Enhancement with Low Stress and Anxiety Modulated by Cognitive Flexibility

“…These are not surprising results and have been reported in many studies 30,31. Hardy30 reported that stress would debilitate the function of psychological skills (goal-setting, imagery, self-talk, and relaxation skills) which were thought to enhance the performance of athletes.…”

Anxiety and burnout in young athletes: The mediating role of cognitive appraisal

“…5,6,[29][30][31] Conversely, some negative psychology constructs, such as anxiety and chronic stress, are related to an increase in the tendency of athlete burnout. 25,32,33 Taking into consideration this intensification of interest in burnout in sports, it becomes important to determine whether this negative experience is also related to the way athletes evaluate their activity. In our study, we highlight the construct of cognitive appraisal as a possible mediator between trait anxiety and burnout.…”

“…Thus, Hypothesis 1 stated that trait anxiety is positively related to burnout, threat perception is positively related to burnout, and challenge perception is negatively related to burnout. There is some empirical evidence that sustains this hypothesis, suggesting that higher levels of anxiety are related to psychological problems in athletes, 27,[32][33][34] and that higher levels of trait anxiety predispose athletes to the risk of burnout. 25,35,36 This hypothesis is also supported by the conceptual models presented before, which suggested the central role of cognitive appraisal in the athletes' feelings of burnout, 4 and the differential effects of challenge and threat states in performance and adaptation to stress in sports.…”