Year: 2020
Type: dissertation
Study design: Observational Study
Abstract: Background: Individual sport athletes have reported higher levels of anxiety and depression symptoms than team sport athletes. However, few studies have explored depression and anxiety symptoms in athletes across different types of individual sports. \nAims: The aim of this study was to compare levels of depression and anxiety symptoms in Icelandic athletes across different types of individual sports. Also, the aim was to compare mean differences across selected sport specific and generic factors in anxiety symptoms, depressive symptoms and athletic identity. Finally, the aim was to compare prevalence rates across gender and type of individual sports. \nMethods: Cross-sectional survey was used. Patient health questionnaire (PHQ-9), general anxiety disorder (GAD-7) and athletic identity measurement scale (AIMS) were all used as measures. Participants were individual sport athletes (n=187), 18 years old and older. \nResults: The main findings show that there is a difference in anxiety, depression and athletic identity between genders. Females scored higher on those scales compared to males. Athletic identity score was similar between genders. Also, aesthetic sport has the highest prevalence compared to other types of sports when it comes to anxiety and depression. \nConclusion: Future studies should consider exploring mental health issues in specific sports to identify sport specific triggers in the onset/maintenance of mental health issues in athletes. Many of previous studies have only looked at individual athletes as one big group. There is a difference between an individual sport athlete and athlete in group sports. That has shown to be problematic because many athletes that are in individual sports have to entail a different type of sport context, with that it could be a type of risk factor for them. \nKeywords: Anxiety, depression, athletic identity, athlete, mental health
Source: Skemman
Language: English
Subfield: Developmental and Educational Psychology
Field: Psychology
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: green
Funder: Háskólinn á Akureyri
OpenAlex ID: W7027510508