Social appearance anxiety and rosenberg self-esteem scores in young physical disabled athletes

Abstract

Introduction: The social appearance anxiety is defined as tension and anxiety experienced by people when they are assessed by others in terms of their physical appearance and self-esteem is defined as feelings of one’s personal self-worth, reflecting person’s evaluation of his or her own worth. Aim: This study was conducted to investigate the differences in social appearance anxiety and self-esteem scores in physical disabled athletes and non-disabled athletes. Materials and Methods: One hundred and forty-eight physical disabled athletes and 60 non-disabled athletes participated in the study. The Turkish versions of the Social Appearance Anxiety Scale and Rosenberg Self-Esteem scale was used to assess the points associated with social appearance anxiety and self-esteem. Results: Disabled athletes had higher self-esteem and social appearance anxiety scores compared to non-disabled athletes. Also, disabled athletes having medal had decreased self-esteem and social appearance anxiety scores compared to disabled athletes not having medal. These results suggest that physical activity can improve mental health in especially successful athletes. Also, the self-esteem scores had positive correlation with the social appearance anxiety score in total sample, as well as in disabled athletes and non-disabled athletes. Conclusion: The higher self-esteem and social appearance anxiety scores in disabled athletes may be related to the higher depression, anxiety and psychological stress in athletes compared to non-athletes. These results suggest that physical activity can improve mental health in only top successful athletes.