Transformational Parenting Style, Autonomy Support, and their Implications for Adolescent Athletes’ Burnout

The aim of this research was to examine the relationships between transformational parenting, autonomy support displayed by mothers and fathers, and sport burnout in 360 junior soccer players (324 males, range age = 12-18 years). To this end, four steps were followed. Steps 1 and 2 tested the psychometric properties (i.e., factorial structure, internal consistency, and evidence of discriminant validity) of the Spanish version of the Transformational Parenting Questionnaire (TPQ), and steps 3 and 4 examined the proposed relationships. Overall, the Spanish TPQ demonstrated adequate factorial validity and satisfactory internal consistency, representing a valid and reliable adaptation of the instrument. The results also suggested a positive association between transformational parenting and autonomy support by both parents, and a negative association between transformational parenting and sport burnout, mediated by autonomy support by mothers but not by fathers. Additionally, players who perceived their families as employing highly transformational parenting displayed lower levels of sport burnout than players who perceived their families as displaying low levels of transformational parenting behaviours. Findings support the positive consequences of displaying transformational parenting and autonomy-supportive environments in preventing young soccer players' burnout.