Abstract
The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between technical unforced errors (UE) and
psychological competitive ability in volleyball games among university female athletes, and to present a basic and
practical method to reduce UE. A questionnaire on UE in volleyball games and Diagnostic Inventory for Psychological Competitive Ability (DIPCA.3) were conducted on 116 university female volleyball players, and 102 were analyzed. UE in volleyball games had a three-factor structure: “low frequency of UE”, “high frequency of UE” and “UE when passing the ball to the setter”. The “high frequency of UE” scale showed a low negative correlation with the “prediction” (r=-.331, n=102, p<.001) and “judgment” (r=-.291, n=102, p<.01) of the psychological competitive ability. frequent UE in volleyball may be reduced through training “prediction” and “judgment”. The “UE when passing the ball to the setter” scale revealed a low negative correlation with the “perseverance” (r=-.218, n=102, p<.05) and “confidence” (r=-.197, n=102, p<.05) of the psychological competitive ability. UE when passing the ball to the setter may be reduced by developing perseverance and confidence. The “low frequency of UE” scale displayed no significant correlation with the psychological competitive ability. The low frequency of UE when passing the ball to the setter in volleyball may be related to individual personalities.
