THE EFFECT OF MARTIAL ARTS (KUDO) ON THE ANXIETY LEVEL OF ATHLETES
Abstract
High anxiety is a key psychological problem in high-performance sports, negatively impacting the reliability of athletic performance and the athlete's mental state. This problem is particularly acute in contact martial arts, which involve direct confrontation, risk of injury, and high psycho-emotional pressure. The aim of the study was to assess the impact of systematic training in the martial art of Kudo on levels of personal and state anxiety. The comparative study involved 15 combat athletes and 15 non-athletes, matched for age and gender. To determine anxiety levels, a Russian-language adaptation of the Spielberger-Khanin questionnaire, ensuring high measurement reliability, was used. In addition, state anxiety was measured in the combat athletes before and after competitive bouts to assess changes in acute stress. The results showed that the average level of personal anxiety in the Kudo group (30.88±5.40) was statistically significantly lower (p<0.01) than in the control group (39.16±6.51). Low levels were observed in 60% of martial artists versus 20% in the control group, indicating a pronounced adaptive effect. A pronounced dynamic in situational anxiety was revealed: after the fight, low levels were recorded in 93.3% of athletes, while there were no such indicators before the start. The decrease is statistically significant (p=0.0006), confirming the effectiveness of regulation skills in martial artists. Thus, regular Kudo practice contributes to the formation of a consistently low background of personal anxiety and develops the ability to quickly normalize psychologically after competitive stress. The results emphasize the practical value of integrating martial arts elements into psychophysical training for increasing athletes' stress resistance.
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References
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