Sport self-efficacy and behavioral problems: A bidirectional, longitudinal investigation from middle childhood to early adolescence

Download this article

Arianna Gonzales and Paul S. Strand

Department of Psychology Washington State University, Washington D.C., USA

Citation

Gonzales, A., S. Strand, P. (2025). Sport self-efficacy and behavioral problems: A bidirectional, longitudinal investigation from middle childhood to early adolescence. International Journal of Sport Psychology, 56(5), 399-414. doi:10.7352/IJSP.2025.56.399

Abstract

Sport self-efficacy is concerned with attitudes and beliefs about one’s own athletic abilities. According to self-efficacy theory, sport self-efficacy will impact not only sports performance but also distal indicators of well-being such as emotional and behavioral adjustment. The present study utilized a sample of 961 children assessed at ages 12 and 15 years to examine longitudinal associations between sport self-efficacy and internalizing (e.g., depression/withdrawal) and externalizing (e.g., aggression/defiance) behavior symptoms. We hypothesized that sport self-efficacy would predict subsequent internalizing but not externalizing symptoms, with stronger effects for boys. Contrary to predictions, behavior symptoms predicted sport self-efficacy, but not vice versa. Specifically, higher internalizing symptoms predicted lower sport self-efficacy, and higher externalizing symptoms predicted higher sport self-efficacy. No sex differences were observed. In sum, sport self-efficacy may be differentially influenced by internalizing and externalizing symptomatology and associated experiences, rather than influencing those symptom profiles.

Keywords: Adolescence, Childhood, sport

---