Abstract
The purpose of this study was to develop a Rational Emotive Behaviour Therapy (REBT) based group counselling program for athletes, and then to experimentally test the effects of the program on the competitive anxiety and irrational beliefs of non-western student-athletes. The effects of the REBT based program was examined using a 2 × 2 controlled quasi-experimental group design. 22 student-athletes participated in the study (11 in the experimental group and 11 in the control group). The Sport Anxiety Scale-2 was used to assess athlete competitive anxiety. To test the effects of program, descriptive statistics were calculated, and Bayesian repeated-measures ANOVA were conducted. Thematic analysis is used to analyse qualitative data. Data revealed significant decreases from pre- to post- in irrational beliefs and competitive anxiety in the REBT group compared to the control group. The findings indicated a positive effect of the REBT based program on the student-athletes’ competitive anxiety levels.
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First author conceived the research idea, analysed the data, structured, drafted the and edited the manuscript. Second author gave weekly supervision during the group process. The third author was not involved in the development or execution of the study but was added to the authorship team in order to assist write-up in the English language.
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Kara, E., Türküm, A.S. & Turner, M.J. The Effects of Rational Emotive Behaviour Therapy (REBT) Group Counselling Program on Competitive Anxiety of Student-Athletes. J Rat-Emo Cognitive-Behav Ther 41, 362–379 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10942-023-00497-z
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10942-023-00497-z