2021, Volume 1, Issue 1
Positive body image among Polish elite athletes
Aleksandra Budzisz1, Krzysztof Sas-Nowosielski1
1Department of Social Sciences in Sports, Faculty of Physical Education, Jerzy Kukuczka Academy of Physical Education in Katowice
Author for correspondence: Aleksandra Budzisz; Department of Social Sciences in Sports, Faculty of Physical Education, Jerzy Kukuczka Academy of Physical Education in Katowice; email: a.budzisz@awf.katowice.com.pl
Full text
Abstract
Background: This study aimed to analyze factors differentiating body appreciation among Polish elite athletes.
Material and Methods: Participants were athletes, both men and women (N=408), who completed questionnaire BAS-2.
Results: In general, men had a better perception of their body than women (p<0.01). Higher appreciation of the body was visible among women sprinters, opposite to volleyball players (p <0.03). Indirect competition for women was connected to higher body appreciation (p<0.05). Gender and individual/team sport also significantly differentiated appreciation of the body (p<0.02). Furthermore, training frequency in a week differentiated body appreciation (p<0.03), as well as characteristic of sports performance [indoor sports, and higher in water sports (p<0.02)].
Conclusions: Results suggest that not only the common category of the sport type – aesthetic, technical, strength – differentiates the body image. Equally important for differences in body appreciation is also gender, sport discipline, and background of sport training: frequency per week, the character of competition (direct-indirect), individual/non-individual competition, or characteristic of sports performance.
Key words: body image, sport, athletes, body appreciation scale