Effect of Sports Perfectionism and Personality Factors in Shaping Attitude Towards Physical Education of School-Going Adolescents

Abstract

Perspective – By giving adolescents, a positive outlet for their enthusiasm, physical education also improves their mental health, motor skills, and physical fitness. By encouraging socializing, it helps boys and girls form bonds, cooperate, and grow in empathy. Teens who are interested in sports are more likely to participate enthusiastically because they see physical education as a means of improvement, socialization, and leisure. Incorporating sports into physical education also helps teenagers manage stress and build self-confidence, which helps them deal with obstacles. Physical education fosters a lifetime enthusiasm for active lifestyles, lowers sedentary behaviour, and promotes holistic development, so the advantages go beyond health. Adolescents who match physical education with their interests and personality types develop vital life skills and healthier routines.
Method – The present study was carried out through the descriptive survey method within a correlational research design. A sample of 706 school-going adolescents were randomly chosen from Government, Government Aided, and Government Sponsored Secondary and Higher Secondary Schools in West Bengal by multiphasic stratified random sampling technique. (i) Attitude towards Physical Education and Sport Scale (Demirhan & Altay, 2001), (ii) Sports Multidimensional Perfectionism Scale (John, Dunn, et al., 2005), and (iii) Big Five Inventory (BFI), (Goldberg, 1993) were administered on the sample.
Results – Subscales of Sports Perfectionism and Personality Factors have a significant effect on attitude formation towards physical education of school-going adolescents considering separately and as a whole.
Discussions and Conclusions – The interplay of sports perfectionism and personality traits significantly influences school-going adolescents’ attitudes toward physical education. By addressing perfectionistic concerns and leveraging positive personality traits, educators can create supportive and engaging physical education environments that promote lifelong fitness and well-being.