Psychometric Properties of the RESTQ-Sport-36 in a Collegiate Student-Athlete Population

Area of Science:

• Sports Psychology
• Exercise Science
• Psychometrics

Background:

• Monitoring athlete well-being is crucial for performance and injury prevention.
• The RESTQ-Sport-36 is a widely used questionnaire for assessing training load and recovery.
• Its applicability in the collegiate student-athlete population requires validation.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the reliability and validity of the RESTQ-Sport-36 in collegiate student-athletes.
• To compare different structural models of the RESTQ-Sport-36.
• To assess the relationship between RESTQ-Sport-36 subscales and mood states.

Main Methods:

• 494 collegiate student-athletes completed the RESTQ-Sport-36 and the Brief Profile of Mood States (POMS).
• Confirmatory and exploratory structural equation modeling (SEM) were used to test model fit.
• Correlations between RESTQ-Sport-36 subscales and POMS were analyzed.

Main Results:

• The first-order 12-factor structure of the RESTQ-Sport-36 showed the best model fit.
• Hierarchical models did not demonstrate adequate fit.
• Moderate to strong correlations were found between stress/recovery subscales and mood states, supporting construct validity.

Conclusions:

• The RESTQ-Sport-36 is a reliable and valid measure for collegiate student-athletes.
• The 12-factor structure is supported, but interpretation of hierarchical factors like Total Stress and Total Recovery needs caution.
• The RESTQ-Sport-36 is a potentially useful tool for monitoring training load and competition in this population.