Those Fighting with Burden on Their Back: Elite Taekwondo Players’ Perfectionism and Fear of Failure

Abstract

This study aimed to examine levels of perfectionism and fear of failure of elite athletes in the Turkish national taekwondo team through qualitative research methods. A total of 11 national team athletes (6 females and 5 males) participated in the research. The data were collected using a semi-structured interview technique. In the study, opinions, emotions and thoughts of elite national team athletes about the concept of perfectionism and fear of failure were determined. In the theme of perfectionism, there were 7 categories and 35 codes; in the theme of fear of failure, 6 categories and 36 codes were revealed. It might be concluded that perfectionism and fear of failure have a more complex structure than it seems for elite and high-ranking athletes, and this might affect their motivation in many positive and negative ways. In addition, it was found that when the coach is a family member, two concerns of athletes (the coach is upset due to failure, and the family is upset due to failure) come together. Therefore, those who are both a coach and parent should be more careful with their children/athletes. It should also be kept in mind that while perfectionism is a great source of motivation and self-confidence, it has the potential to make athletes drop out of sports.