Modern performance-enhancing sporting activities in various sports are characterized by a steady and significant increase in sporting performance and a substantial expenditure of not only physical but also mental energy by participants in sporting events. Even a very physically and technically well-trained athlete cannot win (which he is potentially well prepared to do) if he or she does not have the necessary mental and psychological qualities to do so.
While studying the formation of psychological stability of athletes, i found out that the accumulated, both positive and negative energy can be expressed in some forms of aggression, and the psychological preparation of the athlete in this regard is equally important, because otherwise increasing the mood of the athlete to win, we increase his aggressiveness.
A distinctive feature of sports activity and modern sports, in comparison with many other kinds of activity, is that sports are the activity always demanding to overcome of those or other difficulties, endurance, patience, and psychological endurance.
Many studies of psychologists are devoted to the study of perseverance, patience, perseverance of athletes, but an important role in the psychological preparation of athletes is played by self-esteem because it will depend on an adequate assessment of their capabilities, optimal preparation for competitions, taking into account the capabilities of the individual. While analyzing the competitive activity of skiers of various ages and sports qualifications, we have established that high-class athletes have emotional self-control, aggressiveness, high level of intellectual development, are active and have a firm character.
Having studied the literature sources on this topic, i were able to draw the following conclusions: aggressiveness is a property of a person, expressed in preference to the use of violent methods to achieve their goals. There are two forms of aggression: non-destructive aggressiveness and hostile destructiveness.
Self-esteem and aggressiveness are inextricably linked in the following ways:
- regular failure to meet one's own needs can cause aggression;
- adequate self-esteem contributes to the constructive expression of dissatisfaction with oneself and others;
- exercises in various types of sports activities contribute to the constructive transformation of negative aggressive tendencies
High-class athletes have such personal traits as emotional self-control, which allows restraining high aggressiveness and anxiety, high level of intellectual development, strong nervous system.
The purpose of my work was to study the level of self-esteem and aggressiveness of athletes of different levels (beginners, juniors, masters) and individuals who do not have strong interests, to compare the above groups.
To achieve it, i conducted a study of the level of self-esteem and aggressiveness of athletes of different levels of sports training (beginners, juniors, masters) and individuals who do not have consistently expressed interests.
On the basis of the studied materials, i have established that at various interests and level of personal ambitions of sportsmen of various qualification different types of aggression prevail. The main task of the work was to check the authenticity of the hypothesis, which consisted in the existence of differences in the level of self-esteem and aggressive behavior depending on the preferences in the motivational sphere of personality.
A total of 120 people took part:
1. athletes (experienced) with more than 4 years of experience in sports and with the master of sports and master of sports candidates: 24 persons aged 13-29 (10 boys, 14 girls);
2. sportsmen (juniors) with more than 2 years of experience in sports and 1-3 sports categories: 36 persons aged 15-16 years (20 boys, 16 girls);
3. athletes (beginners): 26 people aged 15-16 years (15 boys, 11 girls);
4. individuals without strong interests: 34 persons aged 13-17 years (11 boys, 23 girls)
Athletes who are professionally engaged in sports and individuals who have no stable interests, the percentage of people has the highest self-esteem, but juniors, i.e. those who have already achieved a little in sports and beginners athletes have overrated self-esteem. And these differences are significant.