Optimism and Burnout in Competitive Sport

Abstract

The aim of this study was to analyze the relationship between optimism and burnout in the context of ath-letic competition. The sample was composed of 227 athletes that competed in wrestling at Spain's na-tional level. For the assessment of constructs, the Spanish version by Otero et al. (1998) of the Life Ori-entation Test (LOT-R) was utilized, as well as the Inventario de Burnout para Deportistas (IBD), which was an adaptation for athletic populations by Garcés de Los Fayos (1999) of the Maslach Burnout Inven-tory (MBI) (Maslach & Jackson, 1981). The results demonstrate a relationship between optimism and the three dimensions of burnout, in which the athletes who are more optimistic demonstrate less emotional exhaustion, less depersonalization, and a greater perception of personal accomplishment in their athletic performance.