Attachment and well-being: the mediating effects of psychological needs satisfaction within the coacheathlete and parente athlete relational contexts.

Luke Felton, Sophia Jowett

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

57 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

Objectives: Grounded in attachment theory and self determination theory, this study aimed to examine whether basic needs satisfaction is a mechanism by which athletes’ insecure attachment styles are associated with levels of well-being. Method: Athletes (N ¼ 430) from a range of sports and competition levels completed a multi-section questionnaire to assess the main variables of the study. Results: Bootstrap mediation analysis revealed that athletes’ perceptions of satisfaction of basic psychological needs generally mediated the association between their attachment styles and well-being. Moreover, the indirect effect of athletes’ experience of the satisfaction of basic needs on well-being was greater within the parental relational context than within the coaching relational context. Conclusions: Overall, the findings from the study highlight that the integration of attachment and selfdetermination theories can promote understanding of relational process in sport.
Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)57-65
JournalPsychology of Sport and Exercise
Volume14
Issue number1
Publication statusPublished - Jan 2013

Keywords

  • attachment
  • well-being
  • basic psychological needs
  • parents
  • coaches

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