A comparative look at aggression and self-esteem among turkish versus international super and premier league soccer players playing in Turkey

Abstract

This study comparatively examines aggression and self-esteem among Turkish versus international (foreign) male super and premier league soccer players playing for the Turkish Football Federation. A sample population of one hundred twelve (112) out of all possible athletes of the above description has been featured in this study. Both Coopersmith’s Self-Esteem Inventory (1974) (adapted into Turkish by Turan & Tufan (1987)), as well as an aggression inventory developed by İpek İlter Kiper[1]—and which include reactive-expressive, reactive-inexpressive, and proactive-relational aggression — were used as data collection tools. T-tests, alongside single direction variance analysis were used for data analysis. Accordingly, meaningful correlations were found among super versus premier league soccer players when it came both to inexpressive and expressive aggression as well as self-esteem. However, no meaningful correlation had appeared to emerge upon comparing the point scores between international versus Turkish soccer players for all three sub-types of aggression, for aggression on whole, and for self-esteem. On the contrary, a sound correlation was found between expressive aggression and the marital status of all of the players in question. Two further meaningful correlations had been identified with respect to self-esteem and the age of all of the players, as well as with respect to expressive aggression and players’ education levels. In contrast, no meaningful correlation had emerged out of the total point scores for all three subtypes of aggression, for aggression on whole, and for self-esteem on whole versus players’ hand and foot dexterities. Nevertheless, one final correlation had been established between players’ sense of expressive aggression versus what position they played on.