RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN COMPETITIVE ANXIETY AND PERFORMANCE IN UNIVERSITY RUGBY PLAYERS

Abstract

Sports involve both psychological and technical aspects. In this modern era, psychological preparation of an individual or a team is as important as teaching and implementing skills and techniques in the game. Teams and individuals are generally physically prepared to play and win, but the psychological pressure a sportsperson faces before or during competition is rarely discussed or properly addressed. Very little psychological training is provided to athletes. In India, very few efforts have been made to psychologically prepare sportspersons. In the present study, an effort has been made to examine the psychological variable of anxiety, especially competitive anxiety, and its effects on the performance of university rugby players of Panjab University, Chandigarh. A total of 20 individuals were selected as subjects for the study, with an equal number of male and female participants. The subjects were chosen through a non-probability sampling technique from inter-university rugby players. For study administration, the SCAT and RSPT tests were used, and data were collected via questionnaires. After the analysis, it was found that competitive anxiety was slightly higher among female players as compared to male players. As a result, a performance difference was observed, with male players outperforming female players. Furthermore, the study suggests that there is a significant relationship between competitive anxiety and performance among Panjab University rugby players.