Abstract:

The aim of this study was to test the validity and reliability of the Turkish version of the Psychological Need States in Sport Scale (PNSS-S). This scale assesses satisfaction and frustration of athletes ‘needs for autonomy, competence, and relatedness. Following the back translation process, a total of 589 athletes (317 men and 272 women) participated in the present study (Mage=19.34±4.70. Personal information form, Psychological Need States in Sports Scale, Sport Motivation Scale-II, Basic Needs Satisfaction in Sports Scale and Athlete Burnout Questionnaire were used as the data collection tools. For construct validity, confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) was performed using R statistical software package (lavaan package). Pearson product moment correlation coefficient along with average variance extracted (AVE) and composite reliability (CR) values were used to examine the convergent and divergent validities. Cronbach's alpha and composite reliability coefficients were calculated to evaluate the reliability. According to the CFA result, 29 items and 6 dimensions that make up the original English version of the scale have the same structure in the Turkish version and the model fit indices were at an acceptable level (χ2/df=2.99, RMSEA=.068, SRMR=.065 and CFI=.918). In addition, partial measurement invariance was supported across gender, age and sport type. According to the analyses performed for convergent and divergent validity, the scores obtained from the sub-dimensions of the Psychological Need States in Sports Scale showed negative and positive significant relationships with the currently used valid and reliable measurement tools. AVE, composite reliability and Cronbach's alpha coefficients of the sub-dimensions were also within acceptable limits. All the findings revealed the construct validity, convergent and divergent validity, reliability and measurement invariance of the Turkish version of Psychological Need States in Sports Scale. Based on the findings, it can be concluded that the scale can be used to evaluate satisfaction and frustration of athletes’ basic psychological needs.

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