COACHES’ ATTITUDE TOWARDS SPORT PSYCHOLOGY AND ATHLETES’ SPORTS ANXIETY: ITS IMPLICATIONS TOWARDS AN ENHANCE IMPLEMENTATIONS

Author Name: 1. Argie Q. Naga, 2.Noel L. Dominado. Ed.D

Volume/Issue: 04/06

Country: U.S Virgin Islands, Philippines

DOI NO.: 08.2020-25662434 DOI Link: https://doi-ds.org/doilink/11.2023-26935633/UIJIR

Affiliation:

1. John H. Woodson Middle School, 3-7 Peppertree Terrace, Christiansted, St. Croix, U.S Virgin Islands, 00820. nagaargie@gmail.com
2. Division of Pampanga, Philippines, Senior High School in Magalang Stand Alone 2 San Pedro 2, Magalang, Pampanga 2011, christmasdominado@yahoo.com

ABSTRACT

This study evaluated the coaches’ attitudes towards sports psychology and athletes’ anxiety. It also examined its implications for enhancing Don Bosco Academy's Sports Psychology program in Tarlac and Pampanga during the school year 2020-2021. Coaches were employed and registered in the Don Bosco Athletic Association. While athletes were enrolled in Don Bosco Schools and had experience in amateur competitions such as inter-school competitions and alike. Respondents were 36 coaches and 109 athletes. The validated Sport Psychology Attitude-Revised Coaches (SPARC-2) was used to assess coaches' attitudes toward Sport Psychology, and the validated Sport Anxiety Scale was used to assess athletes' competitive trait anxiety before and during competition. The Sequential Explanatory Approach was used in this study. In the quantitative data analysis of the results, the mean, frequency, standard deviation, and Pearson correlation were used. Outliers were then identified and used as variables in the qualitative process. For the qualitative part, there were 19 athletes and 3 coaches as respondents. In order to collect qualitative data, an open-ended interview was used. Findings revealed that coaches have a low level of stigma, moderate confidence in sports psychology coaching, willing to use sports psychology services, and tend to work with a sports psychology consultant of similar gender and work experience. Also, it revealed that athletes encountered physical stresses in their bodies, worry, and focus disruption before and during the game- all of these symptoms brought about by anxiety. This study also revealed that there is no relationship between coaches' attitudes toward sports psychology and athletes' sports anxiety. On the contrary, athletes perceived that coaches' attitudes is related to their anxiety (before and during the competitions). Due to the positive result of the research and motivated by the lack of anxiety management programs in schools in Pampanga, this study recommended a program that was formulated and based on the Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) model by Steven C. Hayes (2005) to provide reasonable practices and approach on anxiety regulation of the athletes which can be easily learned by the coaches.

Key words: Athletes’ Anxiety, Coaches’ Attitudes, Sports Psychology