Mood Profiling of International Athletes in Argentina Dr. Patricia Wightman MD National Center of High Performance Athletics (CeNARD) Buenos Aires Argentina

Co-authors Dr. Peter Terry Nellie Giscafre Centro Nacional de Alto Rendimiento Deportivo (CeNARD)

Method

Sample Total = 1,100 athletes from CENARD Sex: male = 63.2%, female = 36.8% Ages: range = yr, M = 19.6 ± 5.3 yr. Range of sports (N = 18) tennis = 224, basketball = 217, kayak = 148, rowing = 146, hockey = 90, handball = 57, fencing = 41, shooting = 36, volleyball = 30, sailing = 27, others = 84

Procedure Spanish version of POMS used, based on Perez % Mari (1991) 65 items, six subscales (tension, depression, anger, vigor, fatigue, confusion) Past week response set used Data collected over a 15-year period ( ) Data collected in consulting office, training venue or competition venue

Analyses Comparison of mood responses by age, gender and type of sport Tables of normative data specific to Argentine athletes Comparison of Argentine norms with previous norms Table for interpretation of mood profiles Relationships between mood profiles and performance

Results

Table 1. Relationships between mood responses and age among Argentine international athletes (N = 1,100) Age r p Tension.001 N.S. Depression -.02 N.S. Anger.07 N.S. Vigor.008 N.S. Fatigue.03 N.S. Confusion -.01 N.S. N.S. = not significant

Table 2. MANOVA of POMS scores by gender among Argentine international athletes (N = 1,100) Male (n = 695) Female (n = 405) M SD M SD F (1,1098) Tension * Depression Anger Vigor Fatigue Confusion * p <.001, d =.24 Wilks’ =.97, p <.001, eta-squared =.03

Table 3. MANOVA of POMS scores by type of sport among Argentine international athletes (N = 1,100) Team (n = 555) Individual (n = 545) M SD M SD F (1,1098) Tension * Depression Anger Vigor Fatigue * Confusion * p <.001, d =.24 Wilks’ =.96, p <.001, eta-squared =.04

Summary No relationship between mood responses and age Male athletes report higher tension than female athletes Team athletes report higher tension and fatigue than individual athletes

Figure 1. Mean POMS profile for Argentine international athletes (N = 1,100) plotted against athlete norms (N = 2,086; Terry & Lane, 2000) and student norms (N = 856; McNair et al, 1992)

Table 4. Comparison of POMS scores between Argentine international athletes and athlete norms (Terry & Lane, 2000) Argentina (N = 1,100) Athlete norms (N = 2,086) M SD M SD d Tension * Depression * Anger * Vigor * Fatigue * Confusion * * p <.001

Summary Argentine athletes typically report iceberg profiles compared to student norms (McNair et al., 1992) Argentine athletes report higher tension, depression, anger, vigor and confusion, and lower fatigue than published athlete norms (Terry & Lane, 2000)

Mood and Performance The Double Iceberg

Athlete Screening Green, Amber and Red Light POMS

Table 5. Interpretation of POMS scores among Argentine international athletes ANGCONDEPFATTENVIG Green = 0-50%; Amber = 51-95%; Red = % (Vig: Green = %; Amber = 5-50%; Red =0-4%)

Conclusions Argentine norms differ from existing norms Mood responses among Argentine international athletes vary by gender and type of sport but are unrelated to age Mood profiles can be dichotomised into green, amber and red categories for screening purposes Double iceberg profiles are associated with successful performance for many athletes

Thank you for your attention Gracias AASP