PRE-COMPETITIVE STRESS LEVEL IN FEMALE FUTSAL ATHLETES IN THE SOUTHERN REGION OF RIO GRANDE DO SUL

Abstract

This study aimed to investigate the level of pre-competition stress observed during a soccer indoor competition in female athletes, in southern Rio Grande do Sul/Brazil. Were interviewed 50 athletes from 10 amateur teams participating in the 2010 edition of the Championship Mircamp in Pelotas, RS. It was used as a tool for data collection the Stress Symptoms List Pre-Competitive created by De Rose Jr (1998), which consists of 31 questions, where the items are rated on a Likert scale with five possible answers: (5) always, (4) often, (3) sometimes, (2) seldom, (1) never. In addition to the instrument that measured symptoms of stress pre-competition, the athletes responded to questions relating to demographic, socioeconomic and behavioral factors. The results showed that the average score was 2.6 (± 1.3), indicating that the stress symptoms were noticed between seldom and sometimes. The symptoms that showed higher were "I feel more responsible" (3.5 ± 1.4) "sweat a lot" (3.4 ± 1.6) and “I'm excited” (3.4 ± 1.4). Lower scores on the other hand, were "I bit my fingernails" (1.6 ± 1.2) and "I have doubts about my ability to compete" (1.7 ± 1.0). It was concluded that pre-competitive stress symptoms found in soccer indoor female athletes do not differ much from that found in the literature, being considered only moderate.