The Relationship Between Motivational Personality and Performance of Basketball Players

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the relationship between motivational personality, in terms of the Behavioural Activation System (BAS) and Behavioural Inhibition System (BIS), and basketball performance. The study involved 86 male players from nine teams in the Swedish Basketball League. It was hypothesized that players with higher scores in the BAS factors (BAS Drive, BAS Reward Responsiveness, BAS Fun Seeking) would perform better, both in scored points and the Plus-Minus (PM) factor. BAS/BIS scores were obtained using the Carver and White (1994) questionnaire. A multilevel regression analysis revealed that BAS factors were significant predictors of the PM factor, indicative of individual contributions to the team performance, but not scored points, indicative of individual performance. These findings suggest that players with higher BAS scores may contribute more to team performance.