Development and initial psychometric evaluation of the sport interference checklist.
The Sport Interference Checklist gives BCBAs a quick, psychometrically sound way to pinpoint cognitive and behavioral problems athletes face in training and competition plus their openness to sport psychology help.
01Research in Context
What this study did
Brad et al. (2007) built the first Sport Interference Checklist (SIC).
They asked athletes to rate how often thoughts, feelings, or behaviors mess up practice or games.
The team then ran stats to see if the scores hang together and make sense.
What they found
The SIC scales showed good internal consistency and validity.
In plain words, the items within each scale stick together and measure what they claim to measure.
Coaches can now quickly spot who needs sport-psych help and who is open to it.
How this fits with other research
Matson et al. (2011) and Carbó-Carreté et al. (2016) did the same kind of psychometric homework for people with intellectual disability.
They also found solid alphas and validity, showing the method works across very different groups.
Ganz et al. (2004) looked at athlete buy-in too, but tried interviews instead of a checklist.
Their RCT found that talking up benefits raised perceived need yet lowered willingness to share personal stuff.
The SIC sidesteps that problem by letting athletes circle answers privately first, so the two studies dovetail rather than clash.
Why it matters
You now have a one-page tool that flags concentration lapses, anxiety, and team conflict before they ruin performance.
Hand it out at intake, glance at the sport-psych interest score, and you know who to call in or teach self-talk skills first.
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02At a glance
03Original abstract
The Sport Interference Checklist (SIC) was developed in 141 athletes to assist in the concurrent assessment of cognitive and behavioral problems experienced by athletes in both training (Problems in Sports Training Scale, PSTS) and competition (Problems in Sports Competition Scale, PSCS). An additional scale (Desire for Sport Psychology Scale, DSPS) was developed to assess the degree to which athletes desire sport psychology assistance in areas that are determined to be problematic. Factor analysis of PSCS items reveals six factors (Dysfunctional Thoughts and Stress, Academic and Adjustment Problems, Injury Concerns, Lack of Motivation, Overly Confident/Critical, Pain Intolerance), accounting for 64% of the total variance. PSTS and DSPS items yield four factors (Dysfunctional Thoughts and Stress, Academic Problems, Injury Concerns, Poor Team Relationships), accounting for 59% and 63% of total variance, respectively. Scores from these scales demonstrate acceptable internal consistency and convergent and discriminative validity. Response patterns of SIC scales are not influenced by gender or athlete type.
Behavior modification, 2007 · doi:10.1177/0145445507303827