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Team-based attitude : theory development, inventory construction, and psychometric analysis

University of British Columbia

The purpose of this study concerns the development of a valid and reliable team-orientation instrument which measures tendencies towards multidimensional team-based attitudes within interactive, interdependent elite sport groups. The theoretical basis utilized to build a conceptual model includes team norms and team dynamics. Specifically, the components hypothesized to tap team-based attitude include team maintenance, team identity, team unity, cohesive norms, task-orientation, team motivation and aspirations, and locomotive norms. Team norms and team dynamics theory, existing inventory content, and interviews with expert coaches and elite athletes were all considered in developing the initial item pool. Based on operational definitions, expert judges performed an initial validation by fitting items within the appropriate construct. The empirical testing of the inventory was based on data from subjects (N=153) from the Canada West University Athletic Association. Lisrel VI confirmatory factor analysis, exploratory factor analysis, and reliability (internal consistency) were applied to the data. Factor loadings, goodness of fit index, chi-square to degrees of freedom ratio, root mean square residual, and Cronbach's alpha all provided evidence for initial support of the hypothesized factor structure. A paired groups correlated t-test with a sub sample (N=52) of the initial subject population provided evidence of reliability (stability) over time. A multivariate Hotellings T2 with individual subjects (N=53) and team subjects (N=53) resulted in significant differences between the two groups for all factors and a TBA total score. This known groups difference test proved the inventory could differentiate between individual and team athletes, providing support for construct validity. Coaches rated players on their level of cohesion and locomotion. Correlation coefficients failed to produce relationships between the coaches rating and the athletes' TBA Inventory score. However, this may have been due to the low number of coach respondents (N=3), or the very source of external validation (the coaches' rating) being inaccurate. The psychometric analysis provided support of the factor structure, along with reasonable validity and strong reliability results. Given the potential of the inventory in team dynamics research, sport scientists are encouraged to further test the TBA model, to develop a more parsimonious fit of the data to the model, inventory refinement, and population generalizability.

Thesis/Dissertation

application/pdf

2008-09-15

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http://hdl.handle.net/2429/2018

Physical Education

University of British Columbia

UBCV

DSpace