Anxiety and Perfectionism in Wrestlers

High levels of anxiety can adversely in?uence athletes’ performance, and an audience setting may raise the anxiety level altogether. Associations between negative performance outcomes and high levels of anxiety and perfectionism have been reported across the vast majority of sports, with measurable in?uences observed on individuals during performance.

The present study was designed to explore the relationship between perfectionism, anxiety, and competition level amongst high school wrestlers. Our analyses revealed statistically-significant positive relationships between a wide variety of factors, including state somatic anxiety and concern over mistakes; parental criticism and doubts about actions; and state cognitive anxiety and concern over mistakes. The results of the present study contain practical information for sport psychology consultants, coaches, and athletes.