The influence of the level of resilience on the stability of sports results in amateur and professional athletes

Abstract

Abstract: The article shows the relationship between the level of resilience and the stability of sports results in amateur and professional athletes. Theoretical approaches to the study of psychological resilience in the context of sports are analyzed and the results of an empirical study conducted among athletes of different levels of training are presented. It has been established that a high level of resilience correlates with more stable results regardless of the level of sports qualification, but the nature of the impact differs between amateurs and professionals. Resilience is a key psychological factor that determines an athlete's ability to overcome stressful situations, maintain motivation, and achieve stable results in sports. The article aims to to assess the impact of the level of resilience on the stability of sports results in amateur and professional athletes. Methods. The study used psychodiagnostic, mathematical-statistical and empirical methods. The Connor–Davidson Resilience Scale (CD-RISC, 10 items) was used to assess the level of resilience, which allows determining the athlete's ability to adapt to stressful situations. The stability of sports results was assessed by the coefficient of variation (V%) of performance indicators during the nine-month training and competition cycle. Statistical data processing was carried out using Student's t-test (to compare groups of professional and amateur athletes) and Pearson correlation analysis (to determine the strength and direction of the relationship between the level of resilience and the stability of results). The level of statistical significance was taken at p < 0.05. Results. It was found that professional athletes are characterized by a significantly higher level of resilience (M = 31.8 ± 3.9) compared to amateur athletes (M = 25.6 ± 4.2), p < 0.001. Professional athletes also have a lower coefficient of variation of results (7.9 ± 2.5 versus 12.4 ± 3.8), which indicates a higher stability of their sports activities. Correlation analysis revealed a pronounced inverse relationship between the level of resilience and fluctuations in sports results (r = -0.63, p < 0.01), which confirms the influence of psychological resilience on the stability of achievements. Conclusions. The results of the study confirm that resilience is an important psychological factor in the stability of sports results. A high level of psychological resilience contributes to effective adaptation to competitive stress, maintaining productivity and increasing the reliability of athletes' performances. Developing resilience should be an integrated component of psychological training programs for athletes, especially in sports that involve a high level of psycho-emotional stress. Keywords: resilience, stability of sports results, amateur athletes, professional athletes.