The Relationship Between Coping Styles And Subjective Well-being In Athletes: A Self-determination Theory Perspective

In competitive sports competitions,"play on the spot" plays a vital role for athletes in achieving ideal results.Even if the preparations before the game are adequate,there will often be abnormal performances.The competition process in itself can be regarded as the coping process of the interaction between the athlete and the competition environment,and this performance outcome often depends on his coping on the spot.Motivation,as an influencing factor of coping,will have a certain impact on the coping strategy of athletes.And subjective well-being,as a result of coping,will be generated after athletes have successfully coped.This research is based on the cognitive-motivation-relationship theory of coping(CMRT),subjective well-being theory(SWB),and self-determination theory of motivation(SDT).It takes professional athletes from some provinces and cities in China as the research object,and to examine athletes' coping strategies,subjective well-being,basic psychological needs satisfaction,and the status quo of sports motivation.It makes cluster analysis of athletes' coping strategies and sports motivations,and then analyzes the relationship between athletes' coping strategies and subjective well-being.It also explores the working mechanism among athletes' satisfaction of basic psychological needs,sports motivation,coping strategies,and subjective well-being.The research findings indicate:1.There are a certain degree of differences in gender,age,sports event,sports level,sports history,and athlete training models in various dimensions of athletes' coping strategies,subjective well-being,various dimensions of basic psychological needs satisfaction,and sports motivation.2.Athletes' coping strategies can be clustered into two categories,namely "medium direct,medium indirect" coping and "high direct,low indirect" coping;athletes' sports motivation can be clustered into four categories,namely "high autonomy and medium control","medium autonomy and high control","medium autonomy and low control","low autonomy and medium control".3.There is a significant correlation between the various dimensions of athlete's coping strategy and subjective well-being.And the model hypothesis of “coping strategy—subjective well-being” is verified.Direct response significantly positively predicts athlete's subjective well-being,and indirect response significantly negatively predicts athlete's subjective well-being.4.There is a significant correlation among the various dimensions of basic psychological needs,sports motivation,coping strategies,and subjective well-being.The model hypotheses of "basic psychological needs satisfaction—subjective well-being","basic psychological needs satisfaction—self-determination motivation—direct coping—subjective well-being" and "basic psychological needs satisfaction—non-self-determining motivation—indirect coping—subjective well-being" are verified.5.Satisfaction of basic psychological needs can significantly positively predicts athletes' subjective well-being.Self-determination motivation plays a mediating role between satisfaction of basic psychological needs and subjective well-being,and direct coping plays an intermediary role between satisfaction of basic psychological needs and subjective well-being.Self-determination motivation and direct coping play a chain-like intermediary role between satisfaction of basic psychological needs and subjective well-being.6.Non-self-determining motivation does not play an intermediary role between satisfaction of basic psychological needs and subjective well-being,and indirect coping does not act as an intermediary between satisfaction of basic psychological needs and subjective well-being.Non-self-determining motivation and indirect coping do not provide the chain-like mediation between satisfaction of basic psychological needs and subjective well-being.