Examining an Adapted Version of Ryff’s Scales of Psychological Well-Being in Sport

Abstract

Background:‪In the sport literature, the majority of studies have failed to distinguish between general well-being and well-being specific to the sport context. This is partly because of a lack of sport specific measurement tools. The purpose of the present study was to adapt an existing eudaimonic well-being global instrument (i.e., Scales of Psychological Well-Being) for the sport context. Material and methods:‪The study included two phases. A panel of nine experts assessed the content relevance of each of the modified items of three scales of the SPWB in Phase 1 and a set of 19 items was retained with modifications. Four hundred athletes (Mage= 25.07, SD= 7.34), participating in a variety of sports participated in Phase 2 and a three-factor model was examined using confirmatory factor analysis. Results:‪The results revealed poor model fit and high inter-factor correlations (above .9). Thus, a two-factor model and one-factor model were also tested with results revealing again poor fit to the data. Conclusions:‪The data from the modified items failed to confirm that the global measure of Scales of Psychological Well-Being can be adapted for the sport context. The need for the development of a sport-specific instrument is discussed.