Abstract
Qualitative studies indicate that parents report multiple stressors related to their child's sport participation (Harwood & Knight, 2009), yet there lacks an instrument to assess the frequency and intensity of parents' stressors in sport. Building on exploratory and confirmatory analyses (Eckardt, Tamminen, & McEwen, 2021) of the Stressors among Parents in Youth Sport Scale (SPYSS), the measure was administered to parents of youth sport athletes (N = 554, M = 46.2 years; 63.7% females; 33.4% males). Parents also completed measures of their child's sport ability, parental stress, wellbeing, expectations, support, and their experiences as a sport parent. Confirmatory Factor Analysis was applied and the indices for the intensity (X2 = 2513.4; p < .001; CFI = .995; TLI = .994; RMSEA = .051) and frequency of stressors (X2 = 2589.4; p < .001; CFI = .988; TLI = .987; RMSEA = .050) indicate a good model fit. Evidence for convergent validity of the SPYSS included positive correlations with perceived life stress, brief daily stressors, and parental distress; and negative correlations with parental wellbeing, warmth, and autonomy support. Stressor intensity and frequency were also positively associated with parents' perceptions of their child's ability, expectations for their child, and conflict with their child. There were mixed associations between parents' stressors and their sport social identity. One subscale (discrimination/belonging stressors) was not consistently associated with other outcomes. The results provide evidence for the factor structure and convergent validity of a measure assessing frequency and intensity of parental stressors in youth sport.
