Measurement of Multidimensional Sport Performance Anxiety in Children and Adults: The Sport Anxiety Scale-2

TLDR

The original Sport Anxiety Scale’s 3‑factor structure could not be replicated in children and produced conflicting loadings in adults, prompting the need for a revised measure. This study aimed to develop and validate the Sport Anxiety Scale‑2 (SAS‑2), a multidimensional measure of cognitive and somatic trait anxiety for sport performance. The SAS‑2 was created by writing new items at grade‑4 readability that are suitable for both children and adults, and then testing the scale through exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses. Factor analyses confirmed the original SAS structure across ages, yielding reliable 5‑item subscales for Somatic Anxiety, Worry, and Concentration Disruption; the SAS‑2 showed stronger factorial and construct validity, predicted pre‑competition state anxiety, and was sensitive to anxiety‑reduction interventions.

Abstract

This article describes the development and validation of the Sport Anxiety Scale-2 (SAS-2), a multidimensional measure of cognitive and somatic trait anxiety in sport performance settings. Scale development was stimulated by findings that the 3-factor structure of the original Sport Anxiety Scale (SAS; Smith, Smoll, & Schutz, 1990) could not be reproduced in child samples and that several items on the scale produced conflicting factor loadings in adult samples. Alternative items having readability levels of grade 4 or below were therefore written to create a new version suitable for both children and adults. Exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses replicated the original SAS factor structure at all age levels, yielding separate 5-item subscales for Somatic Anxiety, Worry, and Concentration Disruption in samples as young as 9 to 10 years of age. The SAS-2 has stronger factorial validity than the original scale did, and construct validity research indicates that scores relate to other psychological measures as expected. The scale reliably predicts precompetition state anxiety scores and proved sensitive to anxiety-reduction interventions directed at youth sport coaches and parents.