Author(s): SAKAI, K., SASABA, I., Institution: RITSUMEIKAN UNIVERSITY, Country: JAPAN, Abstract-ID: 1467

Introduction
In volleyball, the setter is regarded as a central pillar of the team (Inaba, 1983). Olympic-level setters suggest that higher competitive levels are associated with greater psychological demands (Endo, 1997). However, the psychological characteristics required of top-level setters have not been sufficiently clarified. This study aimed to clarify which innate and acquired psychological characteristics are specific to top-level male setters.

Methods
The Diagnostic Inventory of Psychological Competitive Ability for Athletes (DIPCA.3) and the Yatabe–Guilford Personality Inventory (YGPI) were used as acquired and innate psychological indicators (total N = 79). Participants were classified into upper-level high-school, lower-level high-school, upper-level university, lower-level university, domestic top-league, and domestic second-league groups. SPSS was used, and competitive levels within each developmental stage were compared (α= 0.05).

Results
Results of a Kruskal–Wallis test conducted on DIPCA.3 scores revealed that psychological competitive ability differed significantly by competitive level (p = .002). Post-hoc multiple comparisons using Bonferroni correction indicated that both the domestic top-league (p = .012) and the domestic second-league groups (p = .002) scored significantly higher than the lower-level high-school group. For each YGPI scale score, a one-way ANOVA test was applied to data that followed a normal distribution, while Kruskal–Wallis tests were applied to data that did not. Significant differences among competitive levels were observed for Depression (D; p = .006), Regression tendency (C; p = .019), Inferiority feeling (I; p = .001), and Nervousness (N; p = .017). For D, the domestic top-league group scored significantly lower than the lower-level high-school group (p = .035). For C, the domestic second-league group scored significantly lower than the upper-level high-school group (p = .044). For I, the domestic top-league group scored significantly lower than both the upper-level high-school group (p = .016) and the lower-level high-school group (p = .037), and the domestic second-league group scored significantly lower than the lower-level university group (p = .010), the upper-level high-school group (p < .001), and the lower-level high-school group (p = .002). Furthermore, the upper-level university group also scored significantly lower for I than both high-school groups (p = .027 and p = .044). For N, the domestic second-league group scored significantly lower than the lower-level high-school group (p = .028).

Conclusion
This study results revealed that top-level male setters share certain psychological characteristics. These findings underscore the importance of psychological characteristics such as emotional stability and reduced susceptibility to negative emotions for setters performing at highly competitive levels.