Multidimensional Assessment of Preparation for Sport Competition (MAPSC): Psychometric Properties and Initial Validation Among Korean Student-Athletes in Combat Sport

ABSTRACT

In combat sports, competition preparation is crucial, but research on this topic has been limited due to a lack of measurement tools. This study aimed to develop and validate the Multidimensional Assessment of Preparation for Sport Competition (MAPSC). In the first step, 61 athletes and 39 coaches collaborated to conceptualize and develop preliminary items, resulting in five domains (psychological, physical, emotional, environmental, and informational preparation) and the creation of 52 preliminary items. The second step collected data from 608 student-athletes and utilized exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis to test internal validity. The MAPSC was structured to include five-factors and 25 items. Finally, the correlations between MAPSC, self-management, and sport confidence, as well as differences in MAPSC based on winning experience in national competitions, were tested. In conclusion, MAPSC has been developed and confirmed as a valid measurement for assessing competition preparation strategies in combat sport. Coaches and athletes can use this tool to prepare for competitions systematically and strategically.

KEYWORDS:

• Pre-competition
• sport rituals
• performance
• routine
• measurement

Conflicts of Interest

Each author signed a form for disclosure of potential conflicts of interest. No authors reported any financial or other conflicts of interest in relation to the work described.

Institutional review board statement

The study was conducted in accordance with the Declaration of Helsinki, and the protocol was approved by the Institutional Review Board (IRB) of University (IRB No. WS-2023-25).

Informed consent statement

All participants gave their informed consent for inclusion before they participated in the study.

Data availability statement

Due to the nature of the research, due to ethical supporting data is not available.

Author contributions

Junsu Bae and Younkyun Sim contributed to the study conception and design. Material preparation, data collection and analysis were performed by Junsu Bae, Eunchul Seo, Geonwoo Seo, and Yunbae Nam. The first draft of the manuscript was written by Junsu Bae and Younkyun Sim commented on previous versions of the manuscript. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.

Correction Statement

This article has been corrected with minor changes. These changes do not impact the academic content of the article.

Additional information

Funding

The authors did not receive support from any organization for the submitted work.