ABSTRACT
Competitive youth sport can be very stressful and emotion-laden. This chapter provides an overview about how adolescent athletes can learn to manage competitive stress to facilitate performance and maintain psychological wellbeing. We discuss current theory and research that focuses on why adolescents perceive sport as stressful, how specific types of basic and self-conscious emotions are generated and their potential consequences, and the role of coping in the emotion regulation process. We also consider the importance of interpersonal (team-level) coping and the critical role of coaches, parents, and significant others in influencing how adolescents perceive and manage competitive stress. The last section of the chapter considers how practitioners can apply theory and research in youth sport settings to foster performance and wellbeing. We provide examples of intervention strategies that could help athletes effectively manage stress and provide suggestions for practitioners working with adolescent athletes.
