An exploration of anger development in soccer: The application of a contextual model of emotional development

In the past two decades, there has been a call to develop a greater understanding of emotions in sport (Vallerand, 1983; Crocker, 1997; Hanin, 1997; Hanin, 2000). Anger is one emotion that has been neglected or confused with aggression in sport psychology research (Isberg, 2000). The current research explores the development of anger in the sport of soccer using a contextual model of emotional development (Dupont, 1994). Using a cross-sectional, qualitative methodology, 24 soccer players were interviewed. The participants were selected, using purposeful sampling methodology, from three age groups: 8 ten-year-olds (4 male and 4 female), 8 fourteen-year-olds (4 male and 4 female), and 8 twenty-year-olds (4 male and 4 female). Each participant was interviewed regarding three emotional components of anger: the feeling/appraisal, the energy experience, and the behavior. Developmental differences were found in all three components of anger in the sport of soccer. Gender differences were observed regarding the perceptions of how anger affects soccer performance. Gender differences were also described by the 14 year-old participants regarding the events that make them angry and their energy experiences of anger.