Associations between University Students' Personality Traits and Victimization and its Negative Affect in School Physical Education

• Published in: Journal of Physical Education and Sport Vol. 18; no. 2; pp. 937 - 943
• Main Author: Lodewyk, Ken R
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Pitesti Universitatea din Pitesti 01.06.2018
• Subjects: Academic achievement; Affect (Psychology); Anxiety; Bullying; College Students; Exercise; Maximum Likelihood Statistics; Motivation; Personality; Personality traits; Physical Education; Physical fitness; Psychology; Secondary schools; Self esteem; Students; Systematic review; University students; Victimization; New York; United States > US
• ISSN: 2247-8051; 2247-806X
• DOI: 10.7752/jpes.2018.02139

Personality traits, affect, and victimization have been linked to participation and motivation in physical activity settings; yet little is known about interactions between these constructs in physical education. The aim of the study was to test a path model from personality traits to victimization through negative affect in school-based physical education. Surveys were administered to 300 university Kinesiology students assessing their trait personality and recollections of victimization and negative affect in school physical education. The results of the study revealed an excellent fit of the data to the proposed model with emotionality, anxiety, organization, and lower extraversion, social self-esteem, and prudence predicting negative affect. Victimization was predicted by negative affect and by lower conscientiousness, fairness, fearfulness, and social self-esteem. This study reveals important new insight into the relationship between negative affect, victimization, and the dimensions and facets of personality traits in physical education. Students that are prone to negative affect in physical education may be those that tend to be more emotional and introverted. More research on these relationships is needed with school-age students in physical education prior to asserting any implications for practice.