Abstract
The purpose of this study was to examine the factor structure of an abbreviated version of the Sport-Multidimensional Perfectionism Scale-2 (Sport-MPS-2: Gotwals & Dunn, 2009) using data provided by 343 competitive curling athletes (M age = 30.78 years, SD = 7.93). The original Sport-MPS-2 contains 42-items that measure six facets of perfectionism: Personal Standards (PS: 7 items), Organization (ORG: 6 items), Perceived Parental Pressure (PPP: 9 items), Perceived Coach Pressure (PCP: 6 items), Concern Over Mistakes (COM: 8 items), and Doubts About Actions (DAA: 6 items). To reduce the time participants require to complete the instrument, five of the original PPP items were removed from the instrument. The four remaining PPP items were considered to be marker items on the basis that that they consistently had moderate to high factor loadings on PPP factors in previous studies (i.e., Dunn, Causgrove Dunn, & Syrotuik, 2002; Dunn, Causgrove Dunn, et al., 2006; Gotwals & Dunn, 2009; Gotwals, Dunn, Causgrove Dunn, & Gamache, 2010). All six PCP items were removed because more than half of the sample did not have a coach. A Principal Axes factor analysis was conducted on the Sport-MPS-2 data. To determine the number of factors, a combination of results from Cattell’s (1978) scree test and Lautenschlager’s (1989) parallel analysis were assessed. Results indicated the retention of five factors. The factor matrix was then subjected to a Direct Oblimin transformation (delta = 0). With the exception of one PS item, all remaining items loaded on their anticipated factors and demonstrated good simple structure (Thurstone, 1947). Inter-factor correlations ranged from -.37 (ORG and DAA) to .39 (COM and PS) and all five subscales had adequate levels of internal consistency (all αs > .77). The factor structure of the Sport-MPS-2 remained stable with the inclusion of a shortened PPP subscale.Acknowledgments: Sport Science Association of Alberta and the Canadian Curling Association