Results. The athletes in the research show relatively high values for task orientation, motivation climate, mastery orientation and its components

The athletes in the research show relatively high values for task orientation, motivation climate, mastery orientation and its components, self-confidence, cognitive engagement coping strategies. Average values have been observed for ego goal orientation, performance-oriented motivation climate and its components, cognitive anxiety, and emotional engagement strategies for coping. Low values have been observed for somatic anxiety, cognitive and emotional disengagement strategies for coping. The mean values of the research variables have been presented in Table 1, 2.

Table 1

Average values of the variables in the research according to gender

Legend: 1 – task goal orientation; 2 – ego goal orientation; 3 – mastery-oriented motivation climate; 4 – cooperative learning; 5 – role significance; 6 – effort/improvement; 7 – performance motivational climate; 8 – unequal recognition; 9 – punishment for mistakes; 10 – rivalry; 11 – cognitive anxiety; 12 – somatic anxiety; 13 – self-confidence; 14 – achievements; 15 - teamwork orientation; 16 - energy release; 17 – affiliation; 18 - skills improvement; 19 - emotions and challenges; 20 – fitness orientation.

Table 2

Average values of the factors in the research according to gender

Legend: factor 1 – cognitive engagement; factor 2 – emotional engagement; factor 3 – cognitive and emotional disengagement.

Stepwise regression analysis has been applied in keeping with the aim of the research and regression models have been checked for groups of athletes according to gender.

The generalized factors of cognitive engagement, emotional engagement and cognitive and emotional disengagement have been analyzed in succession as dependent variables. The influence of the two types of accepted motivation climate with their six components, the seven types participation motives in sport, as well as the two types of goal orientation and the components of competitive anxiety have been analyzed as independent variables.

The generalized factors of cognitive engagement, emotional engagement and cognitive and emotional disengagement have been analyzed in succession as dependent variables. The influence of the two types of accepted motivation climate with their six components, the seven types participation motives in sport, as well as the two types of goal orientation and the components of competitive anxiety have been analyzed as independent variables.

The preference for cognitive engaged strategies for coping in the women’s group is positively determined by the motives directed towards improving the skills, by investing efforts and improvement, as a component of the motivation climate oriented to mastery and by self-confidence (Table 3).

Table 3

Influence of investigated variables on the use of different coping strategies depending on the gender

*P < 0,05; **P < 0,01; ***P < 0,001.

The task goal orientation and once again efforts and improvement stimulate the preference for such type of copings in the men’s group. The orientation in the team towards cooperative learning which is part of the perception for motivation climate directed to mastery leads to the avoidance of such strategies.

The orientation towards emotionally engaged strategies for coping in the men’s group is determined to the largest extent by the motives for taking up sports related to the desire to experience emotions and challenges and to releasing energy as well as by the ego orientation. The high level of self-confidence is negatively related to this type of copings while the cognitive anxiety as a component of the pre-competitive anxiety strengthens the usage of strategies providing emotional support and allowing to ventilate the accumulated pressure both for men and women. The task goal orientation together with the unequal recognition to the team members also direct to the emotional abreaction to the accumulated stress and anxiety.

The next step analyses the influence of the researched variables on the used copings included in the third generalized factor cognitive and emotional disengagement. The motives for participation in sports directed towards releasing energy stimulate their application in both groups of researched people, in the men’s group their influence being more strongly expressed compared to the women’s group. The perception for performance motivation climate determines positively, and the task goal orientation – negatively the preferences for disengagement strategies for coping among women. In the men’s group the ego goal orientation significantly influences the orientation to theses copings, followed by the cognitive anxiety as well as by the application of punishment for mistakes in the team as a subcomponent of the performance motivation climate.

The obtained results support the hypothesis for the influence of situational and dispositional determinants such as the adopted motivation climate related to the influence of social environment, task orientation to achievement, motives for participation in sports and competitive anxiety upon the usage of different types of copings which supports the data from other researches (Domuschieva – Rogleva, 2008). Certain differences are established between the two groups of contestants differentiated according to their sex, in terms of the determinants of preferred strategies for coping with stress and anxiety typical for sport activity.

Studying and revealing motivation and situational determinants of strategies for coping with stress are a basis for solving numerous practical problems in the field of sports. The obtained results are an important direction for sport psychologists and coaches in their efforts to increase the contestants’ self-confidence for coping with the challenges of stress and anxiety and to achieve maximum realization.

REFERENCES

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