Dyadic Anxiety in Youth Sport: The Relationship of Achievement Goals With Anxiety in Young Athletes and Their Parents

The role of achievement motivation on precompetitive anxiety was examined in 73 dyads comprising youth athletes and a parent of each athlete. Participants completed questionnaires assessing achievement goals and anxiety. Actor-partner interdependence models were estimated using Mplus 7.11. Parents' adoption of performance-approach and performance-avoidance goals predicted athletes' worry (beta(performance-approach) =.30, p <.01; beta(performance-avoidance) =.25, p <.05). Athletes' adoption of any goal predicted parents' concentration disruption (beta(mastery-approach) =.41; beta(mastery-avoidance) =.30, p <.01; beta(performance-approach) =.27; beta(performance-avoidance) =.22, p <.05). Thus, parental definitions of competence held for the child was related to their young athlete's emotional state and vice versa.