Self-Confidence and Aggression: A Comparative Study Between Throwers and Jumpers

Abstract

This study examined the levels of aggression and self-confidence among athletes who throw and jump. Sixty athletes from Hemvati Nandan Bahuguna Garhwal University, 30 of whom were throwers and 30 of whom were jumpers, were chosen for the study. They ranged in age from 18 to 25. The Self-Confidence Inventory (Basavanna, 1975) was used to gauge the athletes' self-confidence, and the Buss and Perry Aggression Questionnaire (BPAQ, 1992) was used to gauge their aggression. The data were analysed using independent t-tests and descriptive statistics, with a significance level of 0.05. The findings showed that throwers and jumpers did not significantly differ in their levels of self-confidence. Jumpers scored slightly higher on the self-confidence scale, but the difference was not statistically significant (t = 1.86, p = 0.07). Aggression levels, however, differed significantly, with throwers being more aggressive than jumpers (t = 3.42, p = 0.01). In contrast to the more technical and regulated demands of jumping events, this finding implies that throwing events' physical demands and competitive nature encourage higher levels of aggression. It was found that although both groups have similar degrees of self-confidence, throwers often show more aggression because of the inherent nature of their particular sports. These findings can guide the creation of sport-specific psychological training courses, especially in controlling aggression for throwers and boosting self-confidence in both groups.