EXPLORING WOMEN ATHLETES’ SELF-COMPASSION, SPORT PERFORMANCE PERCEPTIONS, AND WELL-BEING ACROSS THE COMPETITIVE SEASON: A MIXED METHODS APPROACH

Abstract

Self-compassion is an adaptive self-attitude that can directly help people during difficult and challenging times (Neff, 2003a, 2003b, 2011). Within sport, self-compassion has been noted as a resource for women athletes when facing challenges and emotionally difficult experiences, while promoting psychological well-being (e.g., Ferguson, Kowalski, Mack, & Sabiston, 2014, 2015; Mosewich, Ferguson, McHugh, & Kowalski, 2019). Challenges women face in sport related to performance perceptions, body-related well-being, and eudaimonic well-being are often associated with self-criticism, evaluation, focus on competition outcomes, and social comparison (e.g., Gordon & LeBeouf, 2015), which have the potential to detract from athletes’ experiences. However, the role of self-compassion in women athletes’ sport performance perceptions and well-being over a competitive season has not been explored. To address these gaps in the literature, the purpose of this sequential explanatory mixed methods (Creswell & Plano Clark, 2018) program was to explore and describe the role of self-compassion in women athletes’ sport performance perceptions, eudaimonic well-being, and body-related well-being over a competitive sport season. The first study in this research program was a quantitative pre-post competition design. The purpose of Study 1 was to explore if self-compassion is related to, and explains unique variance beyond self-criticism on, young women athletes’ sport performance perceptions before and after a regular season competition. Study 1 included 82 women athletes who completed two survey packages within 5 days of a regular season competition (one pre- and one post-competition). The results highlighted that self-compassion was positively related to sport performance perceptions (rs = .21, p < .05 and .29, p < .01) and contributed between 3.4% and 8.1% unique variance in performance perceptions beyond self-criticism. Further, self-criticism was negatively related to one sport performance perception measure (r = -.24, p < .05). Expanding on Study 1, Study 2 was a quantitative longitudinal multilevel measurement burst design, and the purpose was to examine women athletes’ self-compassion, sport performance perceptions, eudaimonic well-being, and body-related well-being at multiple time points across a regular competitive sport season. Study 2 included 120 women athletes who completed a series of questionnaire packages distributed across their regular competitive season. Study hypotheses were examined through correlation, regression, latent growth curve model, and multilevel model analyses. Self-compassion was positively correlated with measures of sport performance perceptions (rs = .17 to .87, ps = .07 to < .001) and measures of well-being (rs = .16 to .82, ps = .05 to < .001). Self-compassion contributed unique variance beyond self-criticism in measures of sport performance perceptions (R2s = .04 to .68, ps = .09 to < .001) and measures of well-being (R2s = .03 to .67, ps = .09 to < .001). Further, self-compassion and some well-being measures, including meaning, vitality, and body appreciation were stable over time (not significant slope), while global sport performance perceptions, and well-being measures, including autonomy and relatedness, mastery, intuitive eating, and self-criticism varied over time (significant slope; slopes ranged from -.19 to .04, ps = .07 to < .001). Study 3 was a qualitative pre-post competition design and the purpose was to explore and describe the role of self-compassion in women athletes’ sport performance perceptions and well-being within the context of an athlete-identified important competitive event. This collective case study included nine women athletes who completed pre- and post-competition interviews (up to 5 days before/after). The data was represented through a holistic case description and themes. The holistic case description highlights the temporal and contextual processes through the Preparing, Competing, and Reflecting stages of the athlete-identified important competitive events. The overarching theme Continuing to Excel in Sport and the two sub-themes (a) Re-framing Criticism and (b) A Determined Approach together describe how the athletes benefited from self-compassionate perspectives in their important competitive events. The results highlight that women athletes utilize self-compassion to promote their sport performance perceptions and well-being in a variety of contexts and ways to excel in sport. Together the studies highlight that (a) self-compassion is related to sport performance perceptions, eudaimonic well-being, and body-related well-being, (b) self-compassion contributes unique variance beyond self-criticism in athletes’ sport performance perceptions, eudaimonic well-being, and body-related well-being, (c) self-compassion plays a facilitating and protective role in women athletes’ sport performance perceptions, eudaimonic well-being, and body-related well-being, (d) that self-compassion is stable across the regular competitive season, and (e) that women athletes describe self-compassion as both protective and facilitative in competitive contexts.