Abstract:

This study presents a new, integrative model of sports talent. Following the theoretical part of the study a football-talent research is presented, in which a theoretical framework is provided by this new theory of sports talent. This research examines the role of psychological factors in football talent development. The sample was N=425 football-players of the First Division Men’s Junior and Adolescent Football Championships of the Hungarian Football League, and their coaches (N=21). The applied instruments were: Sporting Background Questionnaire, The Tennessee Self-Concept Scale (TSCS – Hungarian version), Psychological Immune Competence Inventory (PICI), Athletic Coping Skills Inventory (ACSI), Advanced Progressive Matrices (APM), Co-Player Questionnaire, and Coach Questionnaire. As a result, significant differences were found between talented and control groups in the case of 27 variables out of 48 (6 scales of the SBQ, 5 scales of the ACSI-28, 9 scales of the PISI, 5 subscales and the Total self-concept scale of the TSCS, and in APM). More talented players showed more favourable values in each of the 27 intra-, and interpersonal dimensions. According to our results, the development of psychological factors (e.g. concentration, lack of anxiety, self-confidence, coping skills, and social skills) within an integrative approach can enhance personal efficiency in developing football giftedness.

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