Mental Toughness Characteristics of Male University Athletes in Relation to Contextual Factors
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Date
2022
Authors
Rintaugu, Elijah
Mwangi, Francis
Andanje, Nancy
Tian, Xiaojie
Fuku, Noriyuki
Kidokoro, Tetsuhiro
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Sciendo
Abstract
Mental toughness is a psychological construct related to successful performance in academics, management, and
sports among other sectors. However, studies on the determinants of mental toughness with respect to different human
endeavours have remained inconclusive. This study explored mental toughness characteristics of male university
athletes in selected sports in relation to contextual factors of athletes’ age, playing experience, year of study, and the
type of sport. The Mental Toughness Questionnaire (MTQ48) was used to collect data from male university athletes (n
= 140). Results of this study showed significant difference in the following components of MT: lower scores in challenge
(p = .015), emotional control (p = .005), and life control (p = .002) among athletes with shorter playing experience, and
higher scores in life control (p < .001), emotional control (p = .021), and confidence in abilities (p = .009) in handball as
compared to soccer players. Soccer players had significantly higher scores in the challenge component (p = .038) of
mental toughness as compared to handball players. It was concluded that playing experience and the type of sport
influenced characteristics of mental toughness among university athletes. Coaches, trainers, and sports psychologists
need to consider these contextual factors to optimize mental toughness of athletes. Future studies should explore how
specific contextual factors influence training environments and outcomes, as well as how stakeholders can leverage on
the relationships between playing experience, the type of sport and mental toughness to augment athletes’ mental
toughness and sports performance.
Description
Article
Keywords
challenge, commitment, confidence, emotional control, life control
Citation
Rintaugu, E., Mwangi, F., Andanje, N., Tian, X., Fuku, N., & Kidokoro, T. (2022). Mental Toughness Characteristics of Male University Athletes in Relation to Contextual Factors. Journal of Human Kinetics, 81(1), 243-251.