Localization of Athlete Level Classification Based on the Athlete Needs Assessment Tool (SWAN): An Approach Consistent with the Structure and Culture of Iranian Sports

Subject Areas : Sport Sciences Quarterly

shahin kalantari ¹ , mahdi namazizadah ^{2 *} , zahra fathirazaee ³ , rokhsarah badami ⁴

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Received: 2025-04-24 Accepted : 2025-07-27 Published : 2025-12-11

Keywords: localization, Swan, athlete levels.,

Abstract :

This study localized the Swan (2015) questionnaire to evaluate Iranian athletes (professional and non-professional) in football and boxing. The localization process included cultural adaptation, validity assessment (face, content, and construct), and reliability. Content validity was confirmed with the participation of 250 sports and academic experts through a three-stage Delphi technique (10 experts). Reliability was assessed using Cronbach's alpha (0.978 and 0.963 with an interval of 10 days) and construct validity was assessed using Bartlett and KMO tests. Also, the reliability of the 5 factors of the questionnaire was reported to be above 0.92. Exploratory factor analysis confirmed the structure of the localized instrument. Content validity index (CVI = 0.84) and average scores above 7 in the Delphi stages indicated the validity and comprehensiveness of the questionnaire. Correlation of the instrument with its 5 factors showed a strong relationship close to 1 in all cases. Friedman test showed that the factors of "success at the highest level of the athlete", "highest standard of athlete performance", "experience at the highest level of the athlete", "competitiveness of sports at the national level" and "competitiveness of sports at the global level" are ranked 1 to 5, respectively. (p < 0.001) The results indicate that the Swan questionnaire has been successfully localized and has favorable psychometric properties. This tool can be used in analyzing and evaluating Iranian athletes, identifying talents, assessing mental and psychological readiness, and designing specific training programs for football and boxing. There is a possibility of generalizing this tool to other disciplines and it is suggested that it be examined in future research. In general, this tool can be used as a valuable tool in evaluating and improving the performance of Iranian athletes at different levels of sports.

 

 

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