This study was conducted in order to establish the relationship between the mental toughness levels and the anger and aggressiveness levels of the boxers and investigate the mental toughness, anger and aggressiveness according to the variables of the sporting age and the status of whether or not being a national boxer. The study was performed with the descriptive (screening) and relational (correlational, causal comparison) design. The study sample was formed by 177 boxers (nMan=130; nWoman=47) in the age range of 18-35, assigned via the random sampling method, who competed in the Turkey Boxing Championship that took place in Kırşehir in 2022. Sport Mental Toughness Questionnaire (SMTQ), Competitive Aggressiveness and Anger Scale (CAAS) and Personal Information Forms were used as the data collection tools for the study. The techniques of correlation analysis, unpaired t-test and Cohen’s d (d), for calculating the effect size of the significant differences found in the t-test analysis results, were employed for the analysis of the obtained data. According to the results of analysis, the positive significant relationships were detected between the confidence subscale of Sport Mental Toughness Questionnaire (SMTQ) and the aggressiveness subscale of Competitive Aggressiveness and Anger Scale (CAAS), and the negative significant relationships were detected between the SMTQ total, constancy subscale and control subscale and the CAAS anger subscale and the CAAS total of the boxers. Further, the positive significant relationships were detected between the Sporting Age and the SMTQ total, confidence subscale and constancy subscale, and the negative significant relationships were detected between the Sporting Age and the CAAS total, anger subscale and aggressiveness subscale. Besides, while the average scores of the national boxers for the SMTQ total, confidence subscale and control subscale were observed to be significantly higher than those of the boxers who are not national team members. In conclusion, the aggressiveness (aggressiveness) of the boxers increases with increasing mental toughness (confidence), while the aggressiveness and anger (CAAS total, anger) decrease with increasing mental toughness (SMTQ total, constancy and control).

Boxing, anger, aggressiveness, mental toughness.