Under an observational, transversal, and descriptive design, the study analyze the degree of adjustment of the perceptions of fear of failure as a mediating variable of the estimated relationship between sporting commitment and the appearance of burnout in young handball players in a competitive context. The sample included a total of 479 youth category handball players selected to compete in the Spanish Regional Championships. The age range was 16 −17 years old. With regard to the years of experience variable, 85.4% (...) stated that they have more than 5 years of experience at the federated handball player level. The Spanish version of Performance Failure Appraisal Inventory, Inventory Athletes Burnout Revised, and Sport Commitment Questionnaire were used to assess fear of failure. The correlation patterns evidence that commitment is negative and significantly associated with emotional exhaustion, depersonalization, and fear of failure and positively associated with reduced sense of personal accomplishment. In the standardized direct effect, negative and significant effects were observed between commitment and fear of failure, fear of failure with emotional exhaustion and depersonalization, and on the contrary, a negative and significant effect was observed between fear of failure and reduced sense of personal accomplishment. The evaluated athletes reflect a positive psychological disposition, show pride in having been selected by their territorial teams and reflect a high desire to show their sporting qualities. Despite the emergence of cognitive-emotional processes associated with fear of failure, this has been observed to protect the sense of self-fulfillment through sport effort, although it also has impacts on further emotional exhaustion and loss of value of sport effort. (shrink)

Background: In an unprecedented situation of interruption of the sporting dynamics, the world of sport is going through a series of adaptations necessary to continue functioning despite coronavirus disease 2019. More than ever, athletes are facing a different challenge, a source of discomfort and uncertainty, and one that absolutely alters not only sports calendars, but also trajectories, progressions, and approaches to sports life. Therefore, it is necessary to identify the levels of psychological vulnerability that may have been generated in the (...) athletes, because of the coexistence with dysfunctional responses during the COVID-19 experience, and which directly influence the decrease of their mental health.Methods: With a descriptive and transversal design, the study aims to identify the state of the dysfunctional psychological response of a sample of Spanish athletes. The DASS-21, Toronto-20, and Distress Tolerance Scale questionnaires were administered to a sample of high-level Spanish athletes in Olympic programs.Results: The results suggest that the analyzed athletes indicate high levels of dysfunctional response when their tolerance is low. In addition, the variables show less relational strength, when the capacity of tolerance to distress is worse and age is lower. At the same time, the greater the anxiety and uncertainty are, leading to more catastrophic and negative thoughts, the younger the athletes are.Conclusions: It is clear that both age and tolerance to distress are considered adequate protective factors for psychological vulnerability in general and for associated dysfunctional responses in particular. Moreover, the psychological resources offered by more experienced athletes are also a guarantee of protection against negativity and catastrophism. (shrink)