Pixels vs. Paper: Comparing Online and Traditional Survey Methods in Sport Psychology

The purpose of this study was to compare participant responses to a questionnaire delivered via the Internet with data collected using a traditional paper and pencil format distributed via postal mail. Athletes (N = 214, mean age 26.53 years) representing 18 sports from the New Zealand Academy of Sport were randomly assigned into two groups and completed the Athlete Burnout Questionnaire (ABQ; Raedeke & Smith, 2001). There was a noticeable trend (p = .07, twotailed) toward a better response rate in the online group (57.07%) compared with the postal group (46.63%). Furthermore, online questionnaires were returned faster and contained fewer missing responses. A series of nested, multigroup confirmatory factor analyses indicated that there were no significant group differences in the factor structure or latent mean structures of the ABQ.