european college of sport science

Friday, June 26th, 2009
during the competitive season, and after the main goal for the season (e.g. the World Championship). Preliminary analyses revealed that
there were fluctuations in motivation during the season while perception of competence remained relatively stable. Results and conclusion
will be discussed and suggestions regarding motivational issues will be presented.
References:
- Deci EL & Ryan RM (1985). Intrinsic motivation and self-determination in human behaviour. New York: Plenum Press.
- Nicholls JG (1989). The competitive ethos and democratic education. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.
ARE ATHLETES BURNING OUT WITH PASSION?
GUSTAFSSON, H., HASSMÉN, P., HASSMÉN, N.
KARLSTAD UNIVERSITY & SWEDISH WINTER SPORT RESEARCH CENTER, MID SWEDEN UNIVERSITY
Introduction: Feeling passionate about sport may help athletes cope with the demands of excessive training needed for a number of
years to become successful at the elite level. Passion is thereby seen as a strong motivational force towards an attractive activity, possibly
to the extent that it becomes an integral part of the athlete’s identity (Vallerand et al., 2003). The concept of passion has been divided into
two forms: harmonious and obsessive. Although feeling passionate about sport seems important from a motivational perspective, it may
increase the risk for burnout, which is a negative consequence blamed partly on too much training and inadequate recovery (Gustafsson
et al., 2008). The question voiced in this study is whether the risk for burnout is equally between harmoniously and obsessively passionate
athletes.
Methods: Participants were 94 female and 164 male competitive athletes from 21 sports. Passion was measured with the Passion scale
(Vallerand et al. 2003) and burnout with the Athlete Burnout Questionnaire (Raedeke & Smith, 2001). A one-way MANOVA was performed
to investigate potential differences between athletes categorized according to type of passion (i.e., Harmonious vs. Obsessive) in the level
of burnout.
Results: A significant main multivariate effect was found: F(7, 250) = 4.85, p < .0001. Follow-up analyses, using a Bonferroni adjusted
alpha level of .007, showed significantly higher burnout scores in the Obsessive passion group than in the Harmonious group: Emotional/physical
exhaustion, F(1, 256) = 9.90, p = .002; Reduced sense of accomplishment, F(1, 256) = 18.39, p < .001; and Devaluation of
sport participation, F(1, 256) = 14.12, p < .001.
Discussion: These findings strengthen the assumption that even though passion may indeed be a vital part of elite sport; athletes scoring
high on obsessive passion may be at greater risk for developing burnout than more harmoniously passionate athletes. One possible
explanation is that obsessive passion induces a more rigid form of persistence (Vallerand et al., 2003). Interpreted positively, persistence
may increase the athletes’ chance of reaching their full potential during the competitive season, but rigid persistence can increase the risk
for negative outcomes such as the overtraining syndrome and burnout.
References
Gustafsson H, Hassmén P, Kenttä G, & Johansson M. (2008). A qualitative analysis of burnout in elite Swedish athletes. Psychology of
Sport & Exercise, 9, 800-816.
Raedeke TD, & Smith A L (2001). Development and preliminary validation of an athlete burnout measure. Journal of Sport and Exercise
Psychology, 23, 281-306.
Vallerand RJ, Blanchard M, Mageau GA, Koestner R, Ratelle C, Léonard M, Gagné M, & Marsolais J. (2003). Les passions de l’âme: On
the obsessive and harmonious passion. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 85, 756-767.
CAN TEENAGE FEMALE ATHLETES LIGHT UP IN A HIGH COMPETITIVE SPORT CONTEXT WITHOUT BURNING OUT?
GUILLET, E., GAUTHEUR, S.
UNIVERSITÉ CLAUDE BERNARD LYON 1
Introduction: Female athletes have reported higher levels of competitive state anxiety and train anxiety (Mellalieu, Hanton & Fletcher,
2006) and it has been suggested that they are more susceptible to burnout than their male counterparts (Abrahamson, 1997). Gender
differences seem an important psychological parameter as they are likely to influence the quality of the sport experience of high level
athletes. The purpose of the current study was to examine whether differences in the anxiety and self-confidence of female and male
athletes influence the quality of their sport experience. Based on previous research findings it was hypothesized that female athletes
would report higher anxiety and lower self-confidence than male athletes and consequently would also experience lower vitality and
higher burnout symptoms.
Method: A sample of 790 French handball players (418 males and 372 females) participated in this study. They trained an average of
11.29 hours a week (SD = 3.6). Their average age was 15.82 years (SD = .97). These athletes completed a questionnaire in April 2007 (T1),
November 2007 (T2) and April 2008 (T3), during which we measured: (a) anxiety and self-confidence (EEAC; Cury, Sarrazin, Pérès & Famose,
1999), (b) subjective vitality (SSV; Ryan & Frederick, 1997), and (c) athlete burnout (ABQ; Raedeke & Smith, 2001).
Results: One-way MANOVAs and post hoc tests Newman Keuls were conducted to examine the differences between boys and girls on (1)
anxiety, self-confidence, and vitality; and (2) on the three dimensions of burnout. Findings indicated that (1) females had higher scores of
cognitive anxiety and lower scores of self confidence and vitality at T1 (Wilks’ &#955; = .90, F (4, 451) = 11.71, p < .001), at T2 (Wilks’ &#955;
= .87, F (4, 460) = 17.41, p < .001) and at T3 (Wilks’ &#955; = .85, F (4, 361) = 15.01, p < .001). Females also had higher scores of somatic
anxiety at T1 (Wilks’ &#955; = .90, F (4, 451) = 11.71, p < .001). (2) Males had higher scores of exhaustion at T1 (Wilks’ &#955; = .98, F (3, 451)
= 3.71, p < .05). Females had higher scores of reduced accomplishment at T2 (Wilks’ &#955; = .96, F (3, 460) = 6.76, p < .001) and at T3
(Wilks’ &#955; = .94, F (3, 361) = 7.27, p < .001).
Discussion: Based on the current findings, young elite female handball players felt more anxious and reported lower accomplishment,
while males were more self-confident. However, male athletes reported higher physical and emotional exhaustion in April 2007. Current
findings can’t allow us to affirm that females experience higher levels of burnout in a high competitive context. Further investigations are
needed.
References
Mellalieu, S. D., Hanton, S., & Fletcher, D. (2006). A competitive anxiety review: recent directions in sport psychology research. In S. Hanton
& S. D. Mellalieu (Eds). Litterature reviews in sport psychology. Nova science.
Raedeke, T. D. (1997). Is athlete burnout more than just stress? A sport commitment perspective. Journal of Sport and Exercise Psychology,
19, 396-417.
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