Burnout, Positivity and Passion in Young Mexican Athletes: The Mediating Effect of Social Support

The burnout syndrome is a negative experience for athlete development and it has been demonstrated that it gets worse when a sport is practiced in an obsessive way. Interventions with a positive view towards sports could be a protective factor to boost the athlete’s wellbeing. The aim of the present study was to analyse the mediator effect from social support, the relationship between the burnout, positivity and passion in young Mexican athletes. The sample was composed by 452 Mexican athletes, males and females (women 45%), from 12 to 18 years of age (M = 16.29, SD = 1.66). Participants answered the Athlete Burnout Questionnaire, The Scale of the Social Support Perceived by Athletes, the Passion Scale and the Positivity Scale. The results of structural equation modeling showed a good adjustment model (χ(2) = 889.213; df = 274; χ(2)/df = 3.245; p ˂ 0.01; CFI = 0.93; TLI = 0.91; IFI = 0.94; NFI = 0.91; RMSEA = 0.07). The harmonious passion presented direct and indirect effects on the burnout, being the perceived social support the mediator variable of the indirect effect. The positivity resulted positive predictor from the social support (β = 0.714, p ˂ 0.001) and social support predicted the burnout (β = −0.270, p ˂ 0.005). The obsessive passion had a direct effect over burnout (β = 0.627, p ˂ 0.001). Developing negative commitments to sports could be an indicator of a greater risk of experiencing individual conflicts that lead to sports burnout.