The short form of the physical self-description questionnaire: validation study among Slovenian elementary and high school students

IntroductionSelf-concept is one of the most studied psychological constructs and an important aspect of our personality. Self-concept refers to the way people perceive, evaluate and think about themselves. These perceptions are based on experiences and interaction with social environment, and the attributions that we make when examining our own behavior (Shavelson, Hubner, & Stanton, 1976). Self-concept develops from early childhood through adolescence and adulthood (Broderick & Blewitt, 2006), becoming increasingly differentiated with age. It includes the evaluation of abilities, skills, feelings and attitudes in different areas (e.g. social, physical, academic, emotional) considered important to individuals. Numerous studies have confirmed the relationship between selfconcept and psychological adjustment and well-being among adolescents. Favorable self-perceptions in youth were found to be associated with a more socially desirable behavior, greater emotional stability (Garaigordobil & Dura, 2006), less aggressive behavior at school (Musitu, Lopez, & Emler, 2007), fewer loneliness experiences and greater life satisfaction (Moreno, Estevez, Murgui, & Musitu, 2009), better academic achievement (Guay, Marsh, & Boivin, 2003) and sport performance (Garcia et al., 2014). Given that identity formation is the key developmental task of adolescence, education has a crucial role in fostering positive and healthy self-concepts in young people.Physical self-concept is considered an important subdomain of overall self-concept that incorporates different components such as self-perceived health, physical appearance and physical abilities (Marsh, 2002). In physical activity, sport, and physical education settings, physical self-concept can be viewed either as a mediating factor that promotes physical activity and allows the acquisition of health-related physical fitness as well as result of exercise (Marsh, Chanal, & Sarrazin, 2006). A significant association has been consistently demonstrated between physical activity and physical self-concept in children and adolescents (Babic et al., 2014). The physical self-perceptions significantly influence psychological health and well-being of young people (Shapka & Keating, 2005), thus, they are particularly important in adolescent years. Many authors emphasize the importance of physical education in schools for their physical self-concept development (Gehris, Kress, & Swalm, 2010), since positive physical self-perceptions increase engagement levels and motor learning (Peart, Marsh, & Richards, 2005). Different measurement tools for assessing physical self-concept among youth have been proposed in the last two decades, reflecting its multidimensional and hierarchical organization. Among them, the most commonly used are the Physical self-perception profile (PSPP; Fox, 1990) and the Physical self-description questionnaire (PSDQ; Marsh, Richards, Johnson, Roche, & Tremayne, 1994). Based upon Shavelson's model of self-concept, the PSDQ (Marsh et al. 1994) remains currently the most comprehensive and widely validated instrument for measuring multidimensional physical selfperceptions. It contains 70 items with nine specific (strength, body fat, activity, endurance, sport competence, coordination, health, appearance and flexibility) and two general components (global physical self- concept, and self-esteem). Confirmatory factor analysis conducted on a sample of Australian secondary school students supported the factorial validity of the original PSDQ, as well as convergent and discriminant validity of the instrument with other physical selfconcept measures (Marsh et al., 1994). Furthermore, adequate psychometric properties of the PSDQ have been extensively documented in different language and cultural adolescent samples (Schipke & Freund, 2012): Spanish Italian, French, German, Norwegian, Turkish, Greek, and more recently, Serbian and Slovenian samples. …