Physical Activity and Sport Anxiety Scale (PASAS)

Abstract

The Physical Activity and Sport Anxiety Scale (PASAS) is a 16-item self-report questionnaire developed to measure social anxiety and avoidance specifically within the context of physical activity and sport. This instrument addresses the critical need to assess psychological barriers, such as performance worry and fear of negative evaluation, which act as psychological moderators of exercise behaviour. Understanding these anxieties is crucial given the importance of regular physical exercise for optimal individual health.

Keywords

Physical Activity and Sport Anxiety Scale, PASAS, Social Anxiety, sport psychology, fear of negative evaluation, exercise behaviour, avoidance, self-report.

Authors

Norton, P. J., Hope, D. A., & Weeks, J. W.

Purpose

The primary purpose of the PASAS is to quantify the degree of social-evaluative concern experienced by individuals during athletic participation or general physical activity. The scale was created to integrate measures of social anxiety and avoidance into the comprehensive assessment of sport and exercise contexts, where such concerns often manifest acutely.

Given the established importance of regular physical activity for mental and physical health, the PASAS provides clinicians and researchers with a specialized tool to identify individuals whose participation is severely hindered by psychological moderators, specifically fear of negative evaluation (FNE) and resulting behavioural avoidance, thereby allowing for targeted intervention strategies.

Construct

The PASAS measures social-evaluative anxiety specific to physical activity settings. This construct encompasses core symptoms often associated with social phobia, tailored to performance and exercise environments. These include the fear of being observed or evaluated negatively by others while performing athletic tasks or exercising in public.

Crucially, the scale also assesses the resulting behavioural component, which involves the tendency toward avoidance of situations where one might be scrutinized (e.g., avoiding team sports or exercising in public gyms). The PASAS, therefore, provides a measure of context-specific social distress, focusing on feelings of self-consciousness, worry about performance, and withdrawal tendencies.

Validity

Initial psychometric analysis conducted by Norton, Hope, and Weeks (2004) provided evidence for the scale’s strong validity. The validation process demonstrated that the PASAS successfully distinguishes between individuals with varying levels of social anxiety specifically related to physical settings, supporting its utility as a domain-specific measure.

The scale exhibits strong convergent validity, showing significant positive correlations with established, broader measures of social anxiety and generalized fear of negative evaluation (FNE). Furthermore, discriminant validity is supported by its relative distinctiveness from measures of general anxiety or depression, confirming that the PASAS specifically captures context-dependent social anxiety in sport and exercise.

Reliability

Reliability analyses for the PASAS indicate high levels of internal consistency, which suggests that all 16 items consistently measure the same underlying construct. The original research reported a strong Cronbach’s alpha coefficient for the total scale score, affirming the scale’s reliability in a research setting.

Although specific longitudinal data were not detailed in the original source content, measures of this type are generally expected to demonstrate acceptable test-retest reliability, ensuring stability of scores over short time intervals for individuals whose underlying anxiety level remains consistent.

Factor Analysis

The foundational study utilized factor analytic techniques to confirm the latent structure of the PASAS. This analysis was performed to determine whether the 16 items loaded onto one or more interpretable factors related to social-evaluative concerns in physical settings.

The scale is primarily utilized as a measure of a unidimensional construct—social anxiety and avoidance in physical settings—allowing for the computation of a single, clinically meaningful Total Scale Score. This structure aligns with the purpose of measuring the overall severity of performance-related social distress.

Instrument

Test Type: Self-report questionnaire; Psychological screening tool

Format: 16 items rated on a 5-point Likert scale (ranging from “Not at all characteristic of me” to “Extremely Characteristic of me”).

Language Available: English (Original version)

Population Group: Individuals participating in or avoiding physical activity and sports, typically those concerned with social evaluation.

Age Group: Adolescents and Adults (typically 18+ in initial validation samples).

Population Details: The scale is designed for use in both clinical and non-clinical populations where social anxiety may interfere with exercise adherence or sports participation.

Test Methodology: Total Scale Score computed by summing all item scores. Items 3, 11, and 14 are reverse-scored prior to summation.

Keywords

Psychological assessment, psychometrics, sport performance, exercise adherence, fear of evaluation, social phobia, avoidance behaviour, Norton, Hope, Weeks.

Authors

Author ORCID Identifier: N/A (Not provided in source)

Affiliation Email addresses: N/A (Not provided in source)

Correspondence Address: N/A (Not provided in source)

Permissions & Fee and Test Year

The Physical Activity and Sport Anxiety Scale (PASAS) was initially published in 2004. Researchers seeking to utilize the scale should consult the primary authors (Norton, P. J., Hope, D. A., & Weeks, J. W.) or the journal publisher (Wiley/Blackwell, for *Anxiety, Stress, and Coping*) regarding current permissions and licensing fees for academic, research, or commercial clinical application.

Reference’s

Norton, P. J., Hope, D. A., & Weeks, J. W. (2004). The physical activity and sport anxiety scale (PASAS): Scale development and psychometric analysis. Anxiety, Stress, and Coping, 17, 363-382.

Items of the Physical Activity and Sport Anxiety Scale (PASAS)

IMPORTANT: The following scale items must be preserved in their original language and must not be changed in any way.

Directions: These statements describe how a person might feel of think while participating in athletic activities. Please rate how characteristic each statement is of you while playing sports or exercising/working-out.

• Not at all characteristics of me
• Slightly characteristic of me
• Moderately characteristic of me
• Very characteristic of me
• Extremely Characteristic of me

*** Scoring Instructions: Items 3, 11, and 14 are reverse scores. Total Scale Score computed by summing all items. ***

• 1. I worry about what people will think of me while playing sports, even though it will not make any difference.
• 2. I feel that I will humiliate myself when I play sports.
• 3. I rarely worry about what kind of impression I am making on someone while exercising/working out. *
• 4. I am usually worried about what kind of impression I make while playing sports.
• 5. I am afraid that people will find fault with my performance while playing sports.
• 6. Sometimes I think I am too concerned with what other
  people think about my performance while exercising/working out.
• 7. I feel nervous if other people are watching me when I am exercising/working out.
• 8. I usually get nervous when I play sports in front of even a few people who are watching.
• 9. I feel that I will humiliate myself when I exercise/work out.
• 10. I don’t want the ball to come to me when I play team sports.
• 11. Other people’s opinions of how well I play sports do not bother me. *
• 12. I feel self-conscious when playing sports.
• 13. I pass the ball to a teammate when I get nervous.
• 14. I could not care less if an audience was watching me perform. *
• 15. I avoid social gatherings if I think they will involve an athletic activity.
• 16. I avoid exercising/working out where others can see me.