Spotlight on the link between imagery and empathy in sport

Background: Imagery and empathy are both important resources for athletes’ performance. Although the imagery is frequently used in sport psychology, its relationship with dispositional empathy remains largely unexplored. Objectives: The aim of this study was to examine the associations between multidimensionally defined empathy and the ability to use the imagery in athletes, and more specifically whether empathy and general imagery ability (and their interaction) can predict the use of situational imagery components. Methods: The study’s sample consisted of 279 athletes (including 98 women) with different levels of expertise: regional (n = 94), national (n = 94), and international (n = 91). The average age was approximately 20 years (M = 20.5, SD = 1.02, min. = 18, max. = 26). The Imagination in Sport Questionnaire and the Empathic Sensitiveness Scale were the instruments used in the study. Results: The results indicated that there was a repeated interaction between personal distress and general imagery in the complementary impact on situational imagery. Conclusions: Our study has applied implications and is relevant for illuminating the link between imagery and empathy. © 2021, The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer-Verlag Italia S.r.l. part of Springer Nature.