Dimensionality of the Mental Toughness Questionnaire (MTQ48)

John L Perry; Doug Strycharczyk; Neil Dagnall; Andrew Denovan; Kostas A Papageorgiou; Peter J Clough

doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2021.654836

Dimensionality of the Mental Toughness Questionnaire (MTQ48)

Front Psychol. 2021 Jul 23:12:654836. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2021.654836. eCollection 2021.

Authors

John L Perry¹, Doug Strycharczyk², Neil Dagnall², Andrew Denovan², Kostas A Papageorgiou³, Peter J Clough⁴

Affiliations

¹ Department of Psychology, Mary Immaculate College, Limerick, Ireland.
² Department of Psychology, Manchester Metropolitan University, Manchester, United Kingdom.
³ School of Psychology, Queens University Belfast, Belfast, United Kingdom.
⁴ Department of Psychology, University of Huddersfield, Huddersfield, United Kingdom.

Abstract

Currently there is debate as to whether mental toughness is a unidimensional or multidimensional construct. To investigate the dimensionality of the Mental Toughness Questionnaire 48-items (MTQ48), a widely used measure of mental toughness, we examined data from a sample of 78,947 participants. A series of exploratory structural equation models (ESEM) assessed unidimensional, multidimensional, and bifactor solutions. Overall, results supported a bifactor conceptualization of mental toughness. Bifactor analysis was consistent with the use of a general factor score. In conclusion, the authors argue that mental toughness should be considered as an umbrella term representing a general trait comprised of related constructs that provide a psychological advantage in performance and promote positive mental health. Finally, this article identifies limitations in the existing measurement of mental toughness and proposes necessary directions in future research.

Keywords: MTQ48; bifactor; exploratory structural equation modeling; mental toughness; psychometrics.