Pre- Competition Anxiety and Achievement Motivation as Factors of Fear in Competition among Athletes

Fear of losing is seen as a stressor of athletes in winning competitions. The study employed quantitative research design to investigate the pre-competition anxiety experienced by high school athletes and its connection to their motivation for achievement wherein 154 athletic students from three representative high schools in Zhejiang, China were involved. It utilized various statistical techniques to describe demographic characteristics such as gender, grade level, and training duration. Mean comparison and analysis of variances were applied to identify variations in pre-competition anxiety based on gender, grade, and training duration, while correlation analysis was used to establish significant relationships between pre-competition anxiety and achievement motivation. Findings revealed that pre-competition anxiety level of students is above the average level, but not categorized as high level, as previously assumed in the hypothesis. They displayed a greater inclination towards fear of failure motivation, with achievement motivation falling within a moderate range rather than high. Gender, grade, and training duration showed significant differences in pre-competition anxiety, whereas self-confidence did not exhibit significant variations based on training duration. Findings concluded that fear of failure, although not the main factor, directly affects the significant positive correlation between pre-competition anxiety and achievement motivation.