Revision and validation of the sport emotion questionnaire for Chinese professional athletes

This study aimed to culturally adapt and validate the Sport Emotion Questionnaire (SEQ) for routine monitoring of emotional states in Chinese professional athletes and to identify distinct emotional patterns using latent profile analysis. The original SEQ item pool was translated, culturally and linguistically reviewed, and supplemented with emotion expressions provided by experienced athletes. Classification data from 122 professional athletes were used to construct the 41-item preliminary Sport Emotion Questionnaire for Chinese Professional Athletes (SEQ-CPA), which represented the five original domains. Factor structure was examined using exploratory factor analysis (n = 320) and confirmatory factor analysis (n = 249). Following ACO-based item reduction, the selected model underwent cross-sample CFA, and measurement invariance was tested across gender and sport type. Validity was further examined using measures of emotion, athletic mental energy, psychological strain, and well-being across 527 athlete observations. Latent profile analysis was conducted in the combined EFA and CFA samples (N = 569). Exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses supported three dimensions: anxiety, happiness, and anger. ACO produced the final nine-item SEQ-CPA. The selected model showed good fit across samples, with strict measurement invariance across gender and scalar invariance across individual- and team-sport groups. Internal consistency was satisfactory for all dimensions. The three dimensions showed differentiated relationships with other emotion measures, athletic mental energy, psychological strain, and well-being. Latent profile analysis identified four profiles: happiness, negative state, anxiety, and submerged. Psychological strain was lowest in the happiness profile and highest in the negative state profile. The nine-item SEQ-CPA demonstrated satisfactory reliability and validity for assessing anxiety, happiness, and anger in Chinese professional athletes. It provides a concise measure for routine emotional monitoring, while profile analysis offers a complementary way to interpret the three dimensions in combination.