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The relationship of basic need satisfaction, motivational climate and personality to well-being and stress patterns among elite athletes: An explorative study

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Abstract

This study investigated whether need satisfaction, need dissatisfaction, motivational climate, perfectionism and self-esteem relate to athletes’ discrete profiles of hedonic and eudaimonic well-being and perceived stress. Participants were 103 elite active orienteers (49 men and 54 women; mean age = 22.3 ± 4.4) who clustered into three distinctive well-being and stress patterns: Cluster 1 (lower well-being/higher stress; n = 26), Cluster 2 (higher well-being/lower stress; n = 39), and Cluster 3 (moderate well-being/moderate stress; n = 36). Cluster 1 and 2 constituted distinct well-being/stress profiles and differed significantly (p < .01) in mastery-oriented climate, need satisfaction, need dissatisfaction, perfectionistic concerns and self-esteem scores. A discriminant analysis showed these five variables to correctly assign 88 % of Cluster 1 and 2 participants into their respective groups, although mastery-oriented climate was revealed as a less influential indicator (function loading <.40). The substantial function loading of need dissatisfaction supports the importance of assessing both need satisfaction and dissatisfaction as they contribute uniquely to well-being.

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Acknowledgement

This study was supported by Grants from the Swedish National Centre for Sports Research.

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  1. The Swedish School of Sport and Health Sciences, P.O. 5626, 114 86, Stockholm, Sweden

    Carolina Lundqvist

  2. Indiana University-Bloomington, Bloomington, IN, USA

    John S. Raglin

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  1. Carolina Lundqvist
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Correspondence to Carolina Lundqvist.

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Lundqvist, C., Raglin, J.S. The relationship of basic need satisfaction, motivational climate and personality to well-being and stress patterns among elite athletes: An explorative study. Motiv Emot 39, 237–246 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11031-014-9444-z

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