The relationship between mental toughness and emotional intelligence in athletes

The primary aim of this study is to investigate the relationship between mental toughness and emotional intelligence among athletes. The research sample consisted of 265 student-athletes aged between 18 and 35, all enrolled at the Faculty of Sport Sciences at Burdur Mehmet Akif Ersoy University. Data were collected using a "Personal Information Form" prepared by the researchers, the "Sports Mental Toughness Questionnaire (SMTQ)", and the "Emotional Intelligence Scale (EIS)". Data analysis was performed using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) 17.0 software. Normality tests (Kolmogorov-Smirnov and Shapiro-Wilk) indicated that the data were not normally distributed. Accordingly, non-parametric tests including the Spearman Rank Correlation, Mann-Whitney U, and Kruskal-Wallis tests were employed. The Bonferroni post hoc test was also used to identify the sources of significant differences. Additionally, frequency, percentage, minimum, maximum, mean, rank mean, and standard deviation values were calculated. The significance level was set at p<0.05. The findings revealed significant relationships between the sub-dimensions of mental toughness and emotional intelligence. In particular, positive correlations were identified between confidence, control, and commitment and components such as emotional evaluation and emotional utilization. Furthermore, the variables of gender, age, sport type (individual vs. team sports), and years of sports experience were found to contribute to significant differences in certain sub-dimensions. In conclusion, there is a significant relationship between the emotional intelligence and mental toughness levels of athlete students, and these psychological characteristics are affected by various individual and environmental factors. This reveals that athletes should be supported in a multidimensional way.