Level of mental skills among high level athletes in Algeria A comparative study according to the gender variable and the type of sport

Abstract

This study aimed to determine whether gender and sport affect the level of mental skills among high-level athletes. The researcher followed the descriptive approach of a comparative study in this research. The sample consisted of (401) male and female athletes, some of whom were from national teams and others were professional athletes in Algeria, distributed across 11 types of sports, and they were chosen randomly. The researcher relied in his study on a scale for measuring mental skills that was used at the University of Ottawa in Canada, where the researcher measured its validity and reliability, and then conducted a pilot study before distributing it to the sample members. The result was positive, as it can be used in the Algerian environment. The statistical methods were summarized in: SPSS v/20 data processor, arithmetic means, standard deviations, Student's t, ANOVA for variance. The results showed statistically significant differences based on gender, with males demonstrating superior performance in most skills. However, when considering the type of sport, combat sports showed the most significant performance, followed by team sports, and finally individual sports. These findings were interpreted in light of studies by scientists and authors in the field of sports psychology, whose theories all supported the research results. In conclusion, the researcher, through discussing the results and their sub-hypotheses, determined that both gender and sport type influence the level of mental skills among elite athletes in Algeria.