Connemann, Aaron (2025) Winners’ Mental State: The Influence of Self-Efficacy and Mood on Performance and Their Interaction in Adolescent Football Players. Bachelor thesis, Psychology.
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Abstract
Self-efficacy and mood have been identified as important factors of sports performance. However, existing research has mainly focused on adult athletes, ignoring that adolescence is a crucial time that determines whether someone becomes a professional athlete. Further, self-efficacy might be able to buffer the negative effects of a bad mood on performance, but the empirical examination of this link is limited. Therefore, this study examined the effect of self-efficacy and mood on perceived performance in elite adolescent football players and whether self-efficacy moderates the negative impacts of low mood on performance. The sample studied consisted of 41 male adolescent football players playing at a club ranked in the Dutch Eredivisie, the highest football league in the Netherlands. Those 41 players accounted for 11591 daily observations gathered over two consecutive seasons, as part of the players’ daily routine. Self-efficacy and mood were assessed in the morning before the first training or matchday, while performance was measured at midday following either the second training or match. All variables were captured using single-item questionnaires. A multiple regression analysis was performed, which revealed that both self-efficacy (β = .191, p < .001) and mood (β = .053, p < .001) are significant predictors of perceived performance. However, the expected buffering effect of self-efficacy on the mood-performance link was not supported (β = .014, p =.154), suggesting that self-efficacy alone cannot protect a player’s performance from the negative impact of being in a bad mood. These results highlight the importance of addressing both self-efficacy and mood in strategies intending to increase performance and point to valuable opportunities for targeted interventions and support, which are further discussed. Keywords: Self-efficacy, Mood, Performance, Football, Sports, Adolescents
| Item Type: | Thesis (Bachelor) |
|---|---|
| Supervisor name: | Neumann, N.D. |
| Degree programme: | Psychology |
| Differentiation route: | None [Bachelor Psychology] |
| Date Deposited: | 09 Jul 2025 09:01 |
| Last Modified: | 09 Jul 2025 09:01 |
| URI: | http://gmwpublic.studenttheses.ub.rug.nl/id/eprint/5389 |
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