Abstract
A PSYCHOMETRIC EVALUATION OF THE RECOVERY STRESS QUESTIONNAIRE FOR ATHLETES (RESTQ-SPORT) by Stacy L. Gnacinski The University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, 2017 Under the Supervision of Professor Barbara B. Meyer The Recovery Stress Questionnaire for Athletes (RESTQ-Sport; Kallus & Kellmann, 2016) has been utilized in over one hundred research studies on overtraining in sport (Kallus & Kellmann, 2016). Despite recommendations from researchers to incorporate the RESTQ-Sport into existing practices for monitoring athletes’ responses to training load, gaps in the literature impede the translation of the measure from research to practice (Saw, Main, & Gastin, 2015a; Taylor, Chapman, Cronin, Newton, & Gill, 2012). To address gaps in the literature and enhance knowledge regarding the measurement nuances of the RESTQ-Sport, three systematic studies were completed in the current dissertation project. For all three studies, online survey data were collected from athletes (N = 567) participating at various levels of competitive sport (i.e., collegiate, professional, Olympic/international). Results of the first study revealed several problems with the RESTQ- Sport measurement model, including item redundancy, inadequate scale reliability, and inadequate validity of the hierarchical factor structure. Results of the first study also indicated some evidence to support the simple structure underpinning profile analysis (i.e., 76 items loading on to 19 scales; Kellmann, 2010). Results of the second study revealed that while there is considerable overlap between the Profile of Mood States (POMS) and the RESTQ-Sport,
iii additional (29-46%) variance in RESTQ-Sport responses must be explained by variables other than mood states. Results of the second study, in conjunction with those of the first study, demonstrate that the POMS and RESTQ-Sport may be equally effective for identifying athletes at risk of overtraining, yet the RESTQ-Sport may provide more information than the POMS that can be used to enhance the specificity of individualized mood repair interventions. Results of the third study revealed that exercise intensity tolerance, pain catastrophizing, perceived susceptibility to sport injury, and chronic psychological stress are variables that explain significant proportions of variance in the perceived stress and recovery of non-contact and contact sport athletes’. Results of the third study highlighted the particular influence of chronic psychological stress on RESTQ-Sport responses. Taken together, the results of the dissertation research advance the RESTQ-Sport literature from a measurement perspective, and therefore prompt several implications for the improvement of professional practice.
iv © Copyright by Stacy L. Gnacinski, 2017 All Rights Reserved
v This dissertation is dedicated to: (1) the athletes who deserve the opportunity to live the dream and compete at world’s best form, and (2) the sport scientists and practitioners dedicated to providing athletes with such opportunity, working tirelessly behind the scenes to enhance athletes’ health and performance.
vi TABLE OF CONTENTS LIST OF FIGURES ..................................................................................................................... viii LIST OF TABLES ......................................................................................................................... ix ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ........................................................................................................... xi CHAPTER I Introduction & Literature Review ........................................................................................1 Background & Practical Context ....................................................................................1 Psychometric Properties..................................................................................................4 Responsiveness to Training Load, Injury/Illness, & Performance ...............................13 Literature Review Conclusions .....................................................................................22 Rationale for Dissertation Research..............................................................................23 Tables ............................................................................................................................25 II Examining the psychometric properties of the RESTQ-Sport: A methods comparison.....36 Abstract .........................................................................................................................36 Methods.........................................................................................................................42 Results ...........................................................................................................................45 Discussion .....................................................................................................................47 Figures & Tables ...........................................................................................................51 III Subjective measures of training load response: Revisiting the relation between the POMS and the RESTQ-Sport .............................................................................................74 Abstract .........................................................................................................................74 Methods.........................................................................................................................79 Results ...........................................................................................................................80 Discussion .....................................................................................................................81 Figures & Tables ...........................................................................................................87 IV. Psychological predictors of perceived stress and recovery in sport .................................94 Abstract .........................................................................................................................94 Methods.......................................................................................................................101 Results .........................................................................................................................104 Discussion ...................................................................................................................106 Figures & Tables .........................................................................................................112 V. Dissertation Conclusions Summary of Dissertation Results................................................................................122 Limitations & Directions for Future Research ...........................................................125 Implications for Professional Practice ........................................................................127 REFERENCES ............................................................................................................................129
vii APPENDICES ............................................................................................................................146 Appendix A – Demographic Questionnaire .....................................................................147 Appendix B – Participant Consent Form .........................................................................151 Appendix C – IRB#17.037 Approval Form .....................................................................153 Appendix D – Fair Use Copyright Checklist ...................................................................155 Appendix E – Category Response Curves .......................................................................158 CURRICULUM VITAE ..............................................................................................................169
viii LIST OF FIGURES Chapter II Figure 1. Hierarchical factor structure of the RESTQ-Sport .........................................................51 Figure 2. Hypothesized models tested ...........................................................................................52 Figure 3. IRT category response curves and total information curves ..........................................53 Chapter III Figure 4. Mood profiles of athletes with low and high stress-recovery scores .............................87 Chapter IV Figure 5. Frequency distribution of participants by sport type ...................................................112 Figure 6. Significant predictors of perceived stress and recovery from Model 3 in non-contact and contact sport athletes ............................................................................................113
ix LIST OF TABLES Chapter I Table 1. RESTQ-Sport Scale Descriptions ....................................................................................25 Table 2. RESTQ-Sport Scale Reliability ........................................................................................26 Table 3. RESTQ-Sport Criterion Validity ......................................................................................27 Table 4. RESTQ-Sport Factorial Validity .....................................................................................28 Table 5. Responsiveness of the RESTQ-Sport to Training Load ...................................................29 Table 6. Responsiveness of the RESTQ-Sport to Performance......................................................33 Table 7. RESTQ-Sport Summary Table for Practitioners .............................................................35 Chapter II Table 8. Previous Factor Analysis Results ....................................................................................54 Table 9. Advantages and disadvantages of common methods for psychometric evaluation .........55 Table 10. Athlete Demographic Characteristics ...........................................................................56 Table 11. CTT Analysis of RESTQ-Sport Stress and Recovery Scales ..........................................57 Table 12. General Stress and Recovery Subscale Rotated Pattern Matrix ...................................59 Table 13. Sport-Specific Stress and Recovery Subscale Rotated Pattern Matrix ..........................60 Table 14. General Stress and Recovery Item Rotated Pattern Matrix ..........................................61 Table 15. Sport-Specific Stress and Recovery Item Rotated Pattern Matrix .................................62 Table 16. IRT Analysis of RESTQ-Sport Stress and Recovery Scales ...........................................63 Table 17. CFA Model Comparisons by Fit Indices .......................................................................65 Table 18. Model 1 CFA Standardized Parameter Estimate Comparisons ....................................66 Table 19. Model 4 CFA and ESEM Comparisons by Fit Indices ..................................................68 Table 20. Model 5 CFA and ESEM Comparisons by Fit Indices ..................................................68
x Table 21. Reliability Estimates for RESTQ-Sport Scales ..............................................................69 Table 22. Model 4 CFA ESEM Standardized Parameter Estimate Comparisons .........................70 Table 23. Model 5 CFA ESEM Standardized Parameter Estimate Comparisons .........................71 Table 24. Summary of Potential Problematic Items ......................................................................72 Chapter III Table 25. Athlete Demographic Characteristics ...........................................................................88 Table 26. Descriptive Statistics ......................................................................................................89 Table 27. Model Summary .............................................................................................................90 Table 28. Significance Tests Results for Perceived Stress Regression Coefficients ......................91 Table 29. Significance Tests Results for Perceived Recovery Regression Coefficients ................92 Table 30. Significance Tests Results for Stress-Recovery State Regression Coefficients ..............93 Chapter IV Table 31. Athlete Demographic Characteristics .........................................................................114 Table 32. Descriptive Statistics ....................................................................................................115 Table 33. Model Summary in Non-Contact Sport Athletes ..........................................................116 Table 34. Significance Tests Results for Perceived Stress Regression Coefficients among Non- Contact Sport Athletes ..................................................................................................117 Table 35. Significance Tests Results for Perceived Recovery Regression Coefficients among Non- Contact Sport Athletes ..................................................................................................118 Table 36. Model Summary in Contact Sport Athletes ..................................................................119 Table 37. Significance Tests Results for Perceived Stress Regression Coefficients among Contact Sport Athletes ................................................................................................................120 Table 38. Significance Tests Results for Perceived Recovery Regression Coefficients among Contact Sport Athletes ..................................................................................................121
xi ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Many people deserve acknowledgement for their contributions to this dissertation research as well as my development as a scholar. First and foremost, I want to thank Dr. Barbara Meyer for allowing me to literally follow in her footsteps for six years. And while I am certainly grateful for your mentorship in the small yet critical details of life (e.g., ampersands, explanation of a dissertation, airline miles), I am most grateful for being able to observe and participate in your own personal pursuit of excellence. Thank you for modeling and teaching me what it takes to be an extraordinary family member, friend, and professional. Keep living the dream. Next, I would also like to thank Dr. Kyle Ebersole for his ongoing support throughout my graduate studies. Over the past year, I have reflected much on the evolution of our relationship. In revisiting an email from you to the group (me, David, Barbara), I think you hit the nail on the head – “every graduate student should read this [memoir] and understand what graduate school is really about.” To that point, the “family” that our two labs have created, I think, is what it is all about. And maybe some other stuff such as, but not limited to, avoiding end-of-sentence prepositions (see prior sentence). I would also like to thank my dissertation committee members (Dr. Cindy Walker, Dr. Dale Chapman, and Dr. Monna Arvinen-Barrow), for their thought provoking contributions to my dissertation research. Your guidance from proposal to defense was invaluable. In addition to my dissertation committee, I would also like to recognize the hundreds of athletes and coaches who dedicated time and energy to participation in and/or recruitment for my study. Lastly, I would like to thank my family and friends for their unwavering support throughout graduate school. To my parents and sister, thank you for keeping me grounded when life was kicking my tail, and loving me despite my faults. To my best friends – cheers. ☺
and friends for their unwavering support throughout graduate school. To my parents and sister, thank you for keeping me grounded when life was kicking my tail, and loving me despite my faults. To my best friends – cheers. ☺
Description
Evaluation of the RESTQ-Sport's psychometric properties and implications for athlete monitoring.