The objective of this research was to examine and determine the degree of the specific stress
coping strategies used by athletes; to determine if there are any differences in the prevalence
of the specific strategies used for coping with stressful situations between more successful
athletes, less successful athletes and non-athletes; and to determine whether at all, and to
what extent, the prevalence of using different stress coping strategies is related to the notions
of emotional competence, self-efficacy, dominant time perspective, achievement motivation
and personality traits. Furthermore, one of the research objectives was to examine whether
success in sports, not going in for sports, the type of sport one goes in for and the gender of
the athlete play any moderator role in the correlation between emotional intelligence, selfefficacy,
dominant time perspective, achievement motivation and personality traits, on one
hand, and using different stress coping strategies, on the other ha...nd.
One general and seven specific hypotheses were defined based on these objectives. The
hypotheses were verified on different examinee subsamples. The overall number of the
examinees who took part in this research was 509 (340 athletes, 171 of whom belong to the
subsample of more successful athletes, 169 to less successful athletes and 169 to the
subsample of non-athletes).
The research variables were adequately operationalised. The statistical techniques used for
analysing the data were: the Pearson correlation coefficient, the t-test for independent
samples, linear and hierarchical regression analysis (moderated multiple regression analysis).
The most significant results obtained by this research are as follows:
More successful athletes reveal statistical significance in the usage of problem-focused
coping strategies in relation to less successful athletes; and an identical relation is revealed
between athletes and non-athletes. Athletes in team sports are more prone to use avoidant
coping strategies, just as women do in relation to men. Emotional intelligence, achievement
motivation, self-efficacy, personality traits, conscientiousness and openness, are in a
statistically significant and positive correlation to problem-focused strategies.
Regarding the moderator effects that success in sport, type of sport, (not)going in for sports
and gender have on the correlation between specific stress coping strategies and sociopsychological
factors, the following conclusions may be reached: A) Success moderates the
correlation between the emotion-focused strategy and self-efficacy, the correlation between
the avoidant coping strategy and governing emotions, and the correlation between distraction
as a coping strategy and governing emotions. B) Going in for sports moderates the correlation
between avoidance and extraversions. C) The type of sport moderates the correlation between
the problem-focused strategy and extraversion, between emotionality and social diversion,
extraversion and social diversion. D) Gender moderates the correlation between
conscientiousness and the problem-focused strategy, and the correlation between self-efficacy
and the problem-focused strategy.
