Effects of Received Social Support on Athletes' psychological well-being

Abstract

Although the importance of social support has been broadly recognised within the sportsˆeldsportsˆeld, its mechanism has not yet been fully examined in terms of identifying eŠective dimensions, providers and timings. The current study's aim was to investigate the received support experienced by university student athletes respectively from coaches and teammates over the course of a week, and examine its relationship with self-conˆdence and feelings of adaptation. Two hundred thirty-one university student athletes completed questionnaires including the Japanese version of the Athlete Received Support Questionnaire (the ARSQ-J). The results indicated that received support might in‰uence recipients' self-conˆdence both positively and negatively, depending on its dimensions and providers. Esteem support both from coaches and teammates were eŠective for self-conˆdence. Tangible support had a positive impact if provided from teammates, but a negative impact if provided by coaches. With regard to the feelings of adaptation, it was indicated that tangible support both from coaches and teammates were negatively correlated with the outcome. In conclusion, its dimension and provider of support can determine the eŠectiveness of social support. Further clariˆcation of received support in a sport context by examining its dimensions, providers and contexts will contribute to the identiˆcation of eŠective support, which may be useful in supporting athletes.