Sensitivity to Sensoriprocessing, Self-Discrepancy, and Emotional Reactivity of Collegiate Athletes

Abstract

This study investigated how differences between athletes who scored low and high on sensoriprocessing sensitivity apply self-discrepancies and emotional reactions to competitive sporting events. Two hypotheses were proposed: The High Sensitivity group ( n = 33) would score higher for anxiety, guilt, and shame, and lower on pride and report more stress attributed to self-discrepancies than the Low Sensitivity group ( n = 32) following competitive sports events. Collegiate varsity athletes were administered the High Sensitivity Scale prior to competition and completed the Selves Questionnaire and the Goal Congruent and Incongruent Emotion Scale immediately after competition. Scores for the High Sensitivity Scale were used to separate athletes into high and low sensitivity groups. A multivariate analysis of variance and subsequent univariate analyses indicated that the High Sensitivity group reported higher scores on anxiety, shame, and stress than the Low Sensitivity group. This was interpreted as reflecting differences between both ideal and ought self-discrepancies.