Personality Trait Differences of Traditional Sport Athletes, Bullriders, and Other Alternative Sport Athletes

The purpose of this study was to examine the personality characteristics of traditional and alternative sport athletes. The participants were comprised of 70 male University Division I traditional sport athletes (e.g., tennis and volleyball), 63 male bullriders, and 50 male contemporary alternative sport athletes (moto-cross, wakeboarding, etc.). Athletes provided demographic information and responded to items related to Zuckerman’s Sensation Seeking Scale and Cattell’s 16 Personality Factor Inventory. Results indicated significant differences between the two alternative sport groups and the traditional sport group. Specifically, the alternative sport athletes were more reserved, self-sufficient, and sensation seeking than traditional athletes. Alternative sport athletes may need to be coached, conditioned, and rehabilitated differently than traditional sport athletes, because they seem to possess different personality characteristics than traditional sport