Development and preliminary validation of the sports competition rumination scale (SCRS)

Abstract

This article presents the development and the preliminary validation of the Sports Competition Rumination Scale (SCRS). The SCRS is designed to measure ruminative thoughts referring to competition-related problems in athletes. It is an adapted version of an existing rumination scale in which we have changed the context for sport-specific purposes. The SCRS consists of eight items, which capture key characteristics of rumination (e.g., repetitiveness, intrusiveness) in the competitive context. In two studies, we investigated its construct validity in terms of its factorial validity and its position within a nomological network. Data collected from 355 athletes (N_Study1 = 157, N_Study2 = 198) revealed a good factorial validity for the scale across samples. The SCRS showed a good internal consistency. Moreover, moderate relations to established rumination measures from clinical and general psychology supported its position in the nomological network. In addition, the SCRS showed low to moderate relations to different general as well as sports-specific anxiety measures. The present study provides an important preliminary evidence for a useful, reliable, and ecological measure of rumination about competition-related problems.

Lay summary: Repetitive and intrusive thoughts (rumination) are a prominent topic in psychology due to the strong relation to depression, individuals’ well-being, and various performance parameters. However, little research has focused on rumination in the context of sports. Here we describe the development of a sports-specific rumination measure for the competitive context.

IMPLICATIONS FOR PRACTICE

• The SCRS is a questionnaire to tap repetitive, intrusive thoughts related to competitions.

• The SCRS is a reliable and easy-to-complete measure, which helps to track performance-limiting thoughts.

Data availability statement

The data of this study are available from the corresponding author, upon reasonable request.

Notes

1 Model-fit before modification: Yuan-Bentler correction was 1.24, Y-B χ²(20) = 77.74, p < .001, CFI = .918, TLI = .885 and RMSEA = .13 (90% CI [.10, .17]), SRMR = .05.