Exploring peculiarities and performance predictors of character strengths in individual and team sports

Research has indicated that character strengths are relevant to well-being and performance across various life domains; however, they have rarely been considered in the context of sports. The present study examined the potential of character strengths, meaning positive and personally fulfilling traits, in predicting (a) participation in individual/team sports and (b) competition levels among athletes in both individual and team sports. A sample of 683 adults (50.7% women; mean age = 27.9 years), including individual (n = 284) and team sports (n = 399) athletes engaged in different sports and competition levels, completed self-reports assessing their sporting backgrounds. Additionally, the VIA-120 (Values in Action Inventory of Strengths) was employed to measure the 24 character strengths in the VIA classification. The results reveal that (a) a set of character strengths significantly contributes to predicting individual/team sport participation and (b) adding character strengths to the prediction of performance levels leads to a small, albeit non-significant, increase in explained variances. These findings help guide future research on the mechanisms linking character strengths and sports participation and inform the design of personality development and other interventions in sports. While valuable insights are provided, character strengths research in sports should be expanded to include well-being-related outcomes and different methodologies.