Development and Validation of Perceived Stigmatization in Sports Scale for Female Athletes

The current study aimed to develop an indigenous, valid and reliable perceived stigmatization in sports scale for female athletes (PSSSFA). Eight in-depth, detailed and semi-structured interviews were conducted with female athletes, whereas, the preliminary item pool of twenty items was administered on 125 female university athletes. The age was 18-24 years (M= 21, SD=1.6). The process of scale development depended upon two phases. The first phase was about construct conceptualization through interviews and the second phase consisted of examining factor structure and reliability of the scale. Perceived Stigmatization in Sports Scale for Female Athletes was developed in Urdu. Total 20 items were developed but the final scale included 18 items with five-point rating scale. On the basis of scree plot and Eigen values, three factors were extracted: Family Stigmatization included 6 items and had .82 reliability, Social Stigmatization included 5 items and had .75 reliability and Effect on Performance included 7 items and had .76 reliability. The overall Cronbach alpha value was .88. The findings of the study tended to investigate factors affecting the perceived stigmatization associated with female athletes and these results would help in providing awareness regarding challenges being faced by female athletes in their respective sports.