Sport Psychological Skill Factors and Scale Development for Taekwondo Athletes.

Jung-Hoon Nam,Eun-Hyung Cho,Eung-Joon Kim

doi:10.3390/ijerph19063433

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to identify the sport psychological skills of Taekwondo athletes and to develop a scale measuring such skills. We collected preliminary data using an open-ended online survey targeting Taekwondo athletes from nine countries (South Korea, China, Malaysia, United States, Spain, France, Brazil, United Kingdom, and Taiwan) who participated in international competitions between 2019 and 2020. We extracted participants’ sport psychological skills from 75 survey responses, guided by expert meetings and a thorough literature review. We verified our Taekwondo psychological skill scale’s construct validity using 840 survey responses. We utilized V coefficients, parallel analysis, an exploratory structural equation model, maximum likelihood, confirmatory factor analysis, and multi-group confirmatory factor analysis for data analysis. We identified six core sport psychological skills: “goal setting,” “confidence,” “imagery,” “self-talk,” “fighting spirit,” and “concentration.” Our final measure, which demonstrated evidence of reliability and validity, comprises 18 items spanning 6 factors, with each item rated on a 3-point Likert scale.

Highlights

Athletes’ performance relies as much on mental strength as on physical strength and athletic skills
Self-talk, emotional regulation, imagery, goal setting, routine, selfconfidence, and concentration as sport psychological skills based on the literature review
The six major sport psychological skills demonstrated by Taekwondo athletes in training and competition situations include goal setting, confidence, imagery, self-talk, fighting spirit, and concentration

Summary

Introduction

Athletes’ performance relies as much on mental strength as on physical strength and athletic skills. This means that psychological skills are crucial for optimal athletic performance [1]. According to a study by Orlick and Partington [2], the psychological readiness of Canadian national athletes competing in the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics majorly influenced the number of medals won. In other words, their psychological training process—including goal setting, psychological preparation for the actual competition, and coping strategies for uncertain situations—was highly effective. Researchers report that athletes with clear goals actively cope with anxiety and have excellent concentration, mental preparation, and ability to immerse themselves in the competition as well as to relax

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