نوع مقاله : مطالعه پژوهشی اصیل
نویسندگان
1 گروه مدیریت ورزشی، واحد قروه، دانشگاه آزاد اسلامی، قروه، ایران
2 گروه ریاضی، واحد قروه، دانشگاه آزاد اسلامی، قروه، ایران
3 گروه ادبیات، واحد قروه، دانشگاه آزاد اسلامی، قروه، ایران
چکیده
کلیدواژه‌ها
موضوعات
عنوان مقاله [English]
نویسندگان [English]
Background and Purpose
Success in sport is a phenomenon that brings joy not only to the athlete but also to the general public and sports fans. This has heightened the importance of sporting achievements, reflected in the advancement of public mental well-being policies. One specific aspect of these policies is the argument that investing in international sporting success and the pride derived from it leads to enhanced mental well-being (Mahtab et al., 2020). Currently, the discussion on the public value of sports in civilizations is a hot topic among policymakers, social networks, businesses, educational centers, etc., focusing on its impact on mental health, mental well-being, and the welfare of various segments of society (Mahtab et al., 2022). Sporting success is not exclusive to healthy individuals; those with disabilities can also achieve significant sporting success, positively impacting their psychological functioning (Cardenas, 2021). Reports indicate that globally, one in every 17 people has some form of disability (Cox & Hill, 2018). Despite the normalization of disabilities, individuals with disabilities often struggle with negative self-perceptions, reinforcing discrimination, bias, rights violations, loss of independence, and greater social deprivation (Vilchynski et al., 2020). For instance, individuals with disabilities face challenges in accessing higher education (Watson et al., 2017), employment (Johnson et al., 2022), healthcare (Polykandrioti et al., 2020), and physical activities (Lee et al., 2022). These individuals often perceive themselves as useless in the eyes of others, exacerbating their negative thoughts about leading a purposeful and normal life (Lawrenson, 2022). Given these psychological challenges, examining the factors influencing attitudes toward individuals with disabilities becomes crucial.
Cerebral palsy (CP), a neurodevelopmental disorder abbreviated as CP in this study, occurs due to brain damage in the early stages of development (Krieger, 2006). Many experts argue that, in addition to physical abilities, certain psychomotor factors are equally important for success in various sports. One critical variable affecting sporting success is sports self-regulation. According to Bandura's theory, self-regulation involves the application of self-directing abilities, self-control, and autonomy. Low sports self-regulation makes beginners and inactive individuals less inclined to engage in structured physical activities. Various studies on psychological self-regulation have shown that self-regulation affects immune function, the effectiveness of sports activities on cognitive emotion regulation strategies, perceived psychological stress, and the mental resilience of disabled individuals.
Perceived social support is another variable related to sports self-regulation. Evidence suggests that perceived social support can facilitate adaptation to stress, self-regulation of stress, emotion regulation, outcome expectations, and the development of psychological skills such as self-talk, focus, and arousal regulation (Carvalho, 2022). However, perfectionism is a stable tendency to strive for unattainable and flawless standards, accompanied by critical self-evaluation of performance (Mohammadzadeh et al., 2022). Social perfectionism is a characteristic of individuals who believe that others expect perfect and flawless performance from them (Hewitt et al., 2017). While other studies describe perfectionism as a maladaptive trait that hinders rather than helps athletic performance.
Individuals with CP often experience muscle weakness and poor aerobic fitness, which can affect their ability to perform activities such as standing, walking, running, and participating in daily life (Smith et al., 2021). Health professionals often prescribe exercise to improve motor function in individuals with CP. However, there has been no comprehensive evaluation of the effectiveness of sports interventions on perceived social support and perfectionism in individuals with CP. Research indicates that self-regulation capabilities in individuals with CP are lower than in their healthy peers, necessitating sports interventions to strengthen these abilities. A lack of optimal motor capabilities in these individuals can limit their ability to perform daily and essential activities. Despite most previous research reporting that athletic activity improves the perfectionism traits and regulatory role of individuals with CP, it is expected that the results of the present study will provide a suitable guide for identifying appropriate exercises and sports interventions to further improve the motor capabilities of individuals with mental disabilities.
Material and Methods
This study is applied in nature, as it aims to enhance the performance and sporting success of athletes. Methodologically, it is a correlational study of a descriptive type, as it seeks to develop a causal model of athletic success using a structural equation modeling approach. The statistical population of this study included all individuals with CP in Sanandaj who participated in sports activities. Based on existing statistics from sports facilities and the Welfare Organization, the population size of these young athletes was 3,780 individuals. A simple random sampling method was used, and, a sample size of 305 individuals was selected for the study using Cochran's formula.
Four scales were used to collect data: sports perfectionism, sports self-regulation, perceived social support, and perceived athletic success. Data analysis was conducted in two sections: descriptive and inferential statistics. The descriptive section utilized central tendency and dispersion indices, while the inferential section employed structural equation modeling with AMOS software.
Results
Table 1 displays the model results, with comparative and incremental fit indices of 0.89 and 0.87, respectively. The root mean square error of approximation (RMSEA) was 0.083, and the root mean square residual (RMR) was 0.076. The CMIN/DF value was 2.064. Overall, these five indices suggest that the model is appropriate and the modified model is acceptable.
Conclusion
Regular participation in sports serves as a powerful tool for enabling individuals with disabilities to lead fulfilling lives, going beyond mere entertainment to provide therapeutic and preventive benefits against the consequences of disability. Sports help combat negative attitudes, disability-related depression, isolation, and other issues, making individuals with disabilities more resilient and reducing or eliminating these adverse effects.
The structural equation results of this study, focused on developing a model of athletic success, revealed that sports perfectionism and perceived social support directly and indirectly impact athletic success through self-regulation. Self-regulation also directly influences athletic success and acts as a mediating factor in the relationships between sports perfectionism, perceived social support, and athletic success. Sporting achievements are crucial for enhancing happiness and quality of life across all age groups, making them a key focus for researchers. Athletic success and various sports accomplishments are primarily driven by athletes' perception of success. The study findings indicated that perceived sports success is influenced by sports perfectionism, with a positive correlation between positive perfectionism and athletic success, and a negative correlation between negative perfectionism and athletic success. However, only positive perfectionism significantly predicts changes in athletic success. This relationship can be explained by the fact that positive perfectionism leads to realistic satisfaction with behavior and a drive to achieve success. Additionally, perceived social support plays a significant role in predicting athletic success, with higher levels of perceived social support associated with greater athletic success. Another essential factor in enhancing athletic success identified in this study is sports self-regulation. The results suggest that self-regulation not only directly increases athletic success but also plays a crucial mediating role in improving athletic success through perceived social support and sports perfectionism. Overall, various researchers argue that self-regulation has a positive and significant relationship with sporting success and advancement.
FundingThe present study received no financial support from any institution or organization.
Compliance with ethical guidelines
The research plan was prepared based on the Declaration of Helsinki and was approved by the Islamic Azad University Ethics Committee and the Human Research Review Board with No. IR.IAU.SDJ.REC.1401.071.
Authors' contributions
First and Fourth author: Data collection and data analysis; Second and Third author: conceptualization and presentation of the idea, authorship of the introduction, discussion and methodology, and data analysis. All authors contributed equally to the writing and revision of the article.
Conflicts of Interest
The authors declared no conflict of interest.
Acknowledgments
We sincerely thank and appreciate all the people who participated in this research.
کلیدواژه‌ها [English]
https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1547-5069.2004.04016.x
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