Abstract
This study aimed to examine the perception of mentoring, exercise satisfaction, and athletic performance of domestic kendo athletes according to their individual characteristics, and to identify the relationships among these factors. The study population consisted of professional and university kendo athletes registered in 2013. Using convenience sampling, data from a total of 271 individuals were selected, including professional athletes who participated in the 2013 Bongrimgi National Professional Kendo Tournament and athletes affiliated with kendo clubs at 17 universities nationwide. Based on the analysis of this data, the following conclusions were drawn: First, there were differences in the perception of mentoring, exercise satisfaction, and athletic performance depending on the athletes' characteristic factors, namely the number of awards won and their level of individual effort. Second, kendo athletes' perception of mentoring had a partial influence on their exercise satisfaction. Third, kendo athletes' perception of mentoring had a partial influence on their athletic performance. Finally, kendo athletes' exercise satisfaction had a partial influence on their athletic performance. In follow-up research, there is a need to conduct in-depth qualitative research on the differences in mentoring functions between athletes and coaches that can be revealed from different perspectives.
This study has a three-fold objective; (a) To examine the effects of players' characteristics on the perception of mentoring; (b) To examine the perceptions of mentoring on athletic satisfaction and sport performance; and (c) To examine the relationships between athletic satisfaction and sport performance among elite kendo athletes. Participants (n=271) were members of University and professional kendo teams who participated in the 2013 Bonglim national championships, Korea. Methods were performed by ANOVA and multiple regression analysis using SPSS ver. 17.0, as statistics program. Results indicated that levels of mentoring perceptions, athletic satisfaction and sport performance were different depending on numbers of awards and levels of personal attempt. Both mentoring perception and athletic satisfaction have influenced on level of sport performance. Finally, level of athletic satisfaction has a positive effect on sport performance.