Better to Have Played than Not Played? Childhood Sport Participation, Dropout Frequencies and Reasons, and Mental Health in Adulthood (original) (raw)
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The Association Between Sports Participation and Mental Health Across the Lifespan
International journal of sport studies for health, 2023
Context: Mental health problems are extremely common all over the world and contribute significantly to illness and impairments. There is an acknowledged need for interventions that focus on prevention to foster mental health, and to fulfill this need, sports offer a promising way to promote mental health and avoid the beginning of a mental illness. In this study, a literature review is presented about the association between sports participation and mental health across the lifespan. Objectives: To determine the association between sports participation and mental health and get information about the mental health benefits that can be achieved by increased participation in sports, both by the general public and professional athletes at any age. Methods: To conduct the literature review, a search on different databases was carried out for research articles with the key terms "sports participation" and "mental health" to find their association. Results: Participation in sports was found to be positively associated with psychological well-being and connected with fewer mental health problems. Sports participation was associated with higher self-esteem and a lower risk of anxiety, depression, and socialbehavioral inhibition in adolescents. Sports participation led to reduced smoking and a type of personality that was resistant to alcohol and drug addiction. Sports club membership, high or moderately frequent sports participation, participation in outdoor sports, team sports, contact sports, and competition were all linked to fewer internalizing problems. Conclusions: Participation in sports is beneficial to the mental health of children, adolescents, and adults. Team sports and sports clubs are especially advantageous for mental health due to social and psychological support. Creating opportunities for sports participation can lead to the promotion of mental health.
Journal of sport & exercise psychology, 2016
The purpose of this study was to examine the longitudinal and unique association between number of years of team sport and individual sport participation during adolescence and depressive symptoms during early adulthood. Adolescents (n = 860) reported team sport and individual sport participation in each year of secondary school for five years. Participants reported depressive symptoms using the Major Depression Inventory three years after secondary school. Multivariate linear regression was performed to model the associations of sport participation with depressive symptoms while controlling for sex, age, parent education, and baseline depressive symptoms. In the final model, adolescents who consistently participated in team sport during high school reported lower depression scores in early adulthood (β = -.09, p = .02). Number of years of individual sport participation was not statistically significantly associated with depressive symptoms in early adulthood. Based on these finding...
Scandinavian Journal of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Psychology
Background: Mental health problems in adolescents have become a major public health challenge in many western countries. Many adolescents participate in noncompetitive or competitive sports for leisure. The aim of this study was to examine the association between participation in noncompetitive or competitive sports and mental health problems among Norwegian adolescents. Method: Data from a cross-sectional survey conducted among Norwegian junior high (N=9414) and high school students (N=10,571) aged 13 to 22 years were examined. The Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ) was used for measuring mental health problems, in the form of total symptom scores and impact on daily life. Participation in sports was categorized as follows: 1) not participating; 2) participating in noncompetitive sports; and 3) participating in competitive sports. Sports were divided into individual and team sports. Weekly exercise, healthy diet, and number of friends were investigated as mediating factors, and age, gender, and perceived economic status were controlled for in the analysis. Results: Adolescents participating in either noncompetitive or competitive sports had fewer total symptoms and less impact of problems on their daily life compared with those not participating in sports. In particular, participation in team sports as opposed to participation in individual sports seemed to be associated with fewer mental health problems. Weekly exercise, healthy diet, and number of friends were found to be partially mediating factors, explaining some, but not all, of the association between participation in either sports group. Participation in competitive sports, especially, was associated with fewer mental health problems. Conclusions: Participation in sports, either noncompetitive or competitive, is associated with fewer mental health problems in adolescents. This negative association is strongest for those participating in competitive sports. Further research is needed to explore the mechanisms underlying this relationship.
International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 2022
The purpose of this study was to examine how wellbeing is associated with the setting in which sport participation takes place and the breadth of sport participation. Demographic characteristics (age, gender, ethnicity, deprivation, (dis)ability status), recreational physical activity, and wellbeing were assessed in cohorts of adolescents (11–17 years)between 2017 and 2019 in Aotearoa, New Zealand. Better wellbeing was associated with participation in any sport vs. none (OR =1.57, 95% CI = 1.30–1.90). Better wellbeing was also associated with participating in any coached sport training (OR = 1.48, 95% CI = 1.33–1.66), competitive sport (OR = 1.33, 95% CI = 1.18–1.49), social sport (OR = 1.33, 95% CI = 1.18–1.49), and uncoached sport training (OR = 1.16, 95% CI =1.03–1.31) compared to non-participation in the given setting. Wellbeing was not associated with participation in physical education or solo sport. Participating in sport in three to five different settings (3 settings: OR = 1.21, 95% CI = 1.01–1.44; 4 settings: OR = 1.33, 95% CI = 1.09–1.62; 5 settings:OR = 1.37, 95% CI = 1.07–1.75) or sports (3 sports: OR = 1.25, 95% CI = 1.04–1.51; 4 sports: OR = 1.31,95% CI = 1.06–1.61; 5 sports: OR = 1.33, 95% CI = 1.05–1.69) was associated with better wellbeing compared to participation in a single setting or sport, respectively. A balanced approach to participating across a variety of sport settings and sports that are facilitated by quality coaches may offer the largest additional wellbeing value.
Systematic Reviews
Background Sport is a subset of physical activity that can be particularly beneficial for short-and-long-term physical and mental health, and social outcomes in adults. This study presents the results of an updated systematic review of the mental health and social outcomes of community and elite-level sport participation for adults. The findings have informed the development of the ‘Mental Health through Sport’ conceptual model for adults. Methods Nine electronic databases were searched, with studies published between 2012 and March 2020 screened for inclusion. Eligible qualitative and quantitative studies reported on the relationship between sport participation and mental health and/or social outcomes in adult populations. Risk of bias (ROB) was determined using the Quality Assessment Tool (quantitative studies) or Critical Appraisal Skills Programme (qualitative studies). Results The search strategy located 8528 articles, of which, 29 involving adults 18–84 years were included for...
The Developmental Model of Sport Participation describes three pathways that youth can follow: recreational participation, late specialization and early specialization. Many competitive sport programmes are promoting early specialization in hopes that their athletes will gain an advantage over others; however, research indicates that youth who wait until adolescence to specialize in a given sport may achieve physical and psychological benefits. The purpose of this study was to investigate the psychological effects of sport specialization by examining relationships between youth hockey players' level of specialization, psychological needs satisfaction (PNS), psychological needs dissatisfaction (PND), mental health and mental illness. Sixty-one youth male hockey players (M age = 14.90) responded to an online survey. Results indicated that PND according to specialization was significant with early specializers reporting the highest PND and recreational athletes reporting the lowest PND (p = .029), indicating a large effect size (η 2 = .157). No other significant differences were found. Bivariate correlations revealed significant relationships between all variables. Moreover, regression analyses showed that PNS positively predicted mental health (β = .47) and negatively predicted mental illness (β = −.51),
International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health
Sport participation has been advocated as a strategy to improve adolescents’ mental health. However, how these variables evolve during the adolescent years is uncertain. The objective of the present work was to examine the longitudinal associations of sports participation and depressive symptoms in adolescents. Participants were 525 Spanish adolescents (50.3% boys), aged between 12 and 15 years old (M = 13.45, SD = 0.69). They were enrolled in 18 secondary schools located in Andalusia (Spain) in the first two academic years of Compulsory Secondary Education. Data were collected in three waves, separated by one year, by administering self-report measures of depressive symptoms and sport participation. Repeated measures analyses of variance were conducted to examine the change in depressive symptoms and sport participation, and a latent growth curve model was tested to examine the change in depressive symptoms controlling initial sport participation and gender. At each wave, more freq...
American journal of health promotion : AJHP, 2017
To examine whether retrospectively assessed sports participation (SP) and competitive sports (CS) at the age of 12 years is associated with mental health and health behavior in young adulthood among males. A cross-sectional study using self-administered questionnaires. Conducted prior to compulsory military refresher training course in Finland allowing geographically representative sample of Finnish young men. Six hundred eighty males aged between 20 and 35 years. Mental well-being was measured with the short version of Warwick-Edinburgh Mental Well-Being Scale and mental distress with 5 items of The Short Form Helalth Survey (SF-36) scale. Binary logistic regression models. Sports participation at the age of 12 was associated with better mental health in young adulthood, with both mental well-being (odds ratio [OR] = 1.86, 95% confidence interval 1.11-3.11) and mental distress (OR = 0.61, 0.41-0.90). Age, years of education, and current physical activity were controlled. Higher lev...
The Relationship of Young Adults’ Health and Their Sports Participation
Traditional sport participation has been associated with improved physical, psychological, and social skill outcomes. Engagement in action sports has increased considerably since the late 1980s, yet associated research is limited. This study examines and compares young adults' health and their participation in action sports, traditional sports, both sports types, or in neither of the sports types. Data were collectedfrom 687 traditional public university students who self-reported their sport participation history, frequency and mode. Health was assessed with the young adult Salutogenic Wellness Promotion Scale (SWPS-YA). While no significant differences, positive or negative, in overall health benefits between sports types were found, differences in the health behavior across the seven measured domains by sport participation were observed. In all cases, involvement in action or traditional sports was associated with greater health benefits than non-participation suggesting youth should be encouraged to participate in either or both sport typesfor health promotion.
Tackling Mental Health in Youth Sporting Programs: A Pilot Study of a Holistic Program
Child Psychiatry & Human Development, 2020
Linking mental health services to organised sport offers an avenue to identify and improve mental health among adolescents. In this study, we investigated the efficacy, acceptability and feasibility of an integrated mental health system embedded within a junior sports development program. A three-step integrated mental health program for 12-to 15-year-old rugby league players (N = 74) was delivered in urban (n = 44) and rural (n = 33) areas. Specifically, this system (a) assessed participant mental health on primary outcome measures of anxiety, depression, and anger/conduct problems (and secondary outcome measures of personal attributes and relationships), (b) provided feedback to participants, parents and program coordinators, and (c) connected participants and parents to a multi-component intervention including online resources, a group-based workshop program (4 × 30-min sessions), and tailored individual-level follow-up and referral to further care for participants at high risk of mental health problems. From pre-to post-program, boys' anxiety symptoms declined significantly (with only a trend-level reduction in depression), and there were significant improvements in grit (for urban boys only), efficacy to manage negative emotions, and prosocial behaviour. In addition, when boys reported symptoms associated with high risk for mental health problems, providing parents with feedback enhanced boys' access to care and was associated with significant declines in anxiety symptoms. The program was generally acceptable and feasible, with very high retention in the youth sports development program. Overall, early findings support further deployment and evaluation of integrated mental health systems embedded within sporting contexts to address mental health problems among adolescent boys.