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Cited by 156Sport Psychology and PerformancePsychological Treatments and AssessmentsMental Health Treatment and Access

An Evidence-Informed Framework to Promote Mental Wellbeing in Elite Sport

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Purcell, Rosemary, Pilkington, Vita, Carberry, Serena, Reid, David, Gwyther, Kate, Hall, Kate, Deacon, Adam, Manon, Ranjit +2 more·2022·Frontiers in Psychology
DOI 10.3389/fpsyg.2022.780359PMC PMC8890033
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Abstract

Elite athletes, coaches and high-performance staff are exposed to a range of stressors that have been shown to increase their susceptibility to experiencing mental ill-health. Despite this, athletes may be less inclined than the general population to seek support for their mental health due to stigma, perceptions of limited psychological safety within sport to disclose mental health difficulties (e.g., selection concerns) and/or fears of help-seeking signifying weakness in the context of high performance sport. Guidance on the best ways to promote mental health within sporting environments is increasing, though current frameworks and position statements require greater focus on a whole of system approach, in which the needs of athlete, coaches and high-performance staff are considered within the context of the broader ecological system in which they operate and perform. This paper synthesizes existing research, reviewed for translatability by mental health professionals working in elite sport, to provide an evidence-informed framework with real world utility to promote mentally healthy environments for all stakeholders in elite sporting organizations, from athletes through to administrators. Recommendations are provided to positively impact the mental wellbeing of athletes and support staff, which may in turn influence athletic performance. This framework is intended to provide sporting organizations with evidence-informed or best practice principles on which they can develop or progress their policies to support mental health promotion and prevent the onset of mental health difficulties. It is intended that the framework can be adapted or tailored by elite sporting organizations based upon their unique cultural, contextual and resourcing circumstances.

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  • Keyes' dual-continua model has been endorsed in an elite sports context and empirically validated across general population studies.

    “given this framework has been endorsed in an elite sports context [34, 63, 64] and empirically validated across a range of studies in the general population [32, 65, 66].”

    From The Mental Health of Elite-Level Coaches: A Systematic Scoping Review (2024) · cites this paper as [34]

  • A coach can experience high levels of wellbeing and flourish despite the diagnosis of a mental disorder.

    “It is emphasised that a coach can therefore experience high levels of wellbeing and flourish within their profession (e.g. career progression and strong social connections) despite the diagnosis of a mental disorder (e.g. generalised anxiety disorder) [34].”

    From The Mental Health of Elite-Level Coaches: A Systematic Scoping Review (2024) · cites this paper as [34]

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Authors
Purcell, R., Pilkington, V., Carberry, S., Reid, D., Gwyther, K., Hall, K., Deacon, A., Manon, R., Walton, C. C., & Rice, S.
Affiliations
  • The University of Melbourne (AU)
  • Deakin University (AU)
  • Australian Football League (AU)
Corresponding author
Purcell, Rosemary
ORCID
Venue
Frontiers in Psychology
Publisher
Frontiers Media SA
Published
2022-02-16
Volume
13
Pages
780359-780359
ISSN
1664-1078 (ISSN-L)
DOI
10.3389/fpsyg.2022.780359
PMC
PMC8890033
OpenAlex
W4213127562
Cited by
156
References
111
Citations by year
2026: 44 · 2025: 48 · 2024: 30 · 2023: 23 · 2022: 11
FWCI
5.71
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Licence
Locations
  • Frontiers in Psychology (publishedVersion, cc-by)
  • PubMed Central (publishedVersion, cc-by)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • DOAJ (DOAJ: Directory of Open Access Journals) (submittedVersion, cc-by-sa)
  • Deakin Research Online (Deakin University) (submittedVersion)
  • Figshare (submittedVersion, cc-by)
  • Minerva Access (University of Melbourne) (submittedVersion, cc-by)
Topics
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Developmental and Educational Psychology › Sport Psychology and Performance
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Psychological Treatments and Assessments
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Social Psychology › Mental Health Treatment and Access
Keywords
psychological well-being, elite sport, mental health promotion, mental illness, stigma, help-seeking, psychological safety, coaches, athlete mental health, mental health policy, ecological systems approach, athletic performance

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