Putting the Athlete First: a Comprehensive Assessment of Elite Para Athlete Well-Being

MacDougall, Hannah; O’Halloran, Paul; Sherry, Emma; Shields, Nora

doi:10.1007/s41543-017-0003-8

Cited by 10 publications

(9 citation statements)

References 57 publications

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“…While it is understood that more experienced athletes have greater maturity and understanding of life circumstances, younger athletes have been more hopeless about the limitations of confinement. All of this is in line with the hypotheses in studies on psychological well-being among athletes of different ages [16] and sporting experience [52]. Although most of the hypotheses have been confirmed, recent studies have marked the relevance of sports practice for psychological well-being in terms of gender, in favour of men [53], it should be noted that no gender differences have been found between the scores of men and women in this study, although they have shown high indicators of psychological well-being in both subgroups.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 86%

Perfectionism, Resilience and Different Ways of Experiencing Sport during COVID-19 Confinement

González-Hernández

Bianco

Silva

et al. 2022

IJERPH

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The relationship between sports practice and physical and mental health became an important issue during the COVID-19 pandemic, where keeping fit and exercising was one of the best and most popular ways to cope with the confinement situation. The aim of this study was to determine the relationships between perfectionism and resilient resources with psychological well-being, differentiating sports category, gender and experience in a sample of athletes during confinement in different countries affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. An incidental and cross-sectional random sampling method was designed (n = 583). The sample was analysed with three different instruments, evaluating perfectionism, resilience and psychological well-being patterns and comparing three groups with different levels of practice due to confinement (full reduction, moderate reduction and only access restrictions). Results show that both male and senior athletes were more organized, resistant to changes and focused their attention and efforts on their demands and potential. They were stimulated by obstacles that required more effort compared to U23, who reported higher concerns and lower organisational scores. Athletes who completely interrupted their sports dynamics showed higher indicators of perfectionism and performed worse in resilience and well-being. Despite this, age and the variability of the athletes’ experiences proved to be relevant factors in an athlete’s trajectory, and continued to represent a certain degree of balance in the face of COVID-19.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 86%

Perfectionism, Resilience and Different Ways of Experiencing Sport during COVID-19 Confinement

González-Hernández

Bianco

Silva

et al. 2022

IJERPH

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“…Several studies have indicated the need for a holistic conceptualization of well-being; as pressures faced outside of sport have an equally great impact on performance and overall well-being for athletes as those experienced within sport (e.g., Dunn, 2014; Galli, 2019; Giles et al, 2020; Lundqvist, 2011; Macdougall, O’Halloran, Sherry, et al, 2017; Macdougall et al, 2015). Within our present study, para-athletes’ conceptualizations of well-being aligned with an integrated approach, acknowledging the impact of broader challenges faced in addition to the sport-specific contextual influences on well-being.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The elite sporting environment is complex and challenging. The unique and contextual physical, mental, and social demands an athlete faces can be beneficial and/or detrimental to their health and well-being (Macdougall, O’Halloran, Sherry, et al, 2017; Rice et al, 2016). How an athlete copes, their mental resilience, and whether they have a strong support network will determine an athlete’s success and impact on their well-being (Mandolesi et al, 2018; Nässi et al, 2017).…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Understanding experiences of and influences on well-being in elite para-sport: A qualitative exploration of U.K. para-athletes.

Miller,

Barker,

Hunton

et al. 2024

Sport, Exercise, and Performance Psychology

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The well-being of elite athletes has been an important focus of research in recent years, with a view to identifying the specific stressors they experience and thus inform effective mechanisms of support for those competing at an elite level. However, para-athlete wellbeing has been comparatively underresearched, and the nuances that may contribute to or inhibit well-being in this population are still poorly understood. Therefore, the purpose of our study was to explore elite para-athlete experiences of well-being and to understand the unique aspects of the elite para-athlete environment that may impact upon their well-being. Semistructured interviews were conducted with 21 current U.K. paraathletes (13 Paralympians and eight internationally competitive para-athletes; from 12 different summer para-sports; median age: 28.8 years, range 22-47). Data were inductively thematically analyzed. Four key themes were developed: (a) understanding of para-athlete well-being, (b) a need for specialized support, (c) navigating conflicting identities, (d) access to (some) opportunities. Para-athletes highlighted a need for more specific, tailored support from within the elite sport context (e.g., in relation to transitions into centralized programs and the day-to-day support offered by athlete support personnel). Classification processes were experienced as highly stressful events, which many para-athletes felt underprepared to navigate. Para-athletes struggled to manage their identity as an elite sports person, fighting against media "superhuman" discourses and pressures from national governing body (NGB) staff that failed to acknowledge them as "person first, athlete second". Our study emphasizes the importance of the provision of tailored support to protect and enhance well-being in this specific population.

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“…Other work has compared their mental health to that of other populations including individuals with disabilities who do not participate in para-sport and Olympians (Macdougall et al, 2017;Olive et al, 2021). A growing body of work has also paid attention to the applied practice and the delivery of psychological skills training in para-sport contexts when working with Paralympic athletes (Guerrero et al, 2020).…”

Section: Para-athlete Wellbeingmentioning

confidence: 99%

From minding the gap to widening the gap: Paralympic athletes' experiences of wellbeing during the postponement of the Tokyo 2020 games

Bundon¹,

Trainor²,

Bennett³

et al. 2022

Front. Sports Act. Living

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In March 2020, it was announced that the Tokyo Games would be postponed for one year due to the COVID-19 pandemic. While athletes commonly face challenges in sport such as injuries, the pandemic and rescheduling of the Games was an unexpected event that had serious potential to challenge the psychological wellbeing of athletes. Furthermore, it was an event that was simultaneously experienced by all athletes preparing for the Games. It provided a novel opportunity to explore how athletes navigated this challenging environment and the subsequent potential impact on their psychological wellbeing. It also provided a unique opportunity to engage para-athletes and explore how they experienced the pandemic and postponement. This manuscript draws on a larger qualitative study of 21 Canadian athletes (14 Olympic and seven Paralympic) who were on target to compete at the 2020 Games when the postponement was announced. For this manuscript, we focus on the accounts of seven Paralympic hopefuls and their experiences of adjusting to the postponement, while attending to the unique social identities of athletes with disabilities. Adopting a constructionist lens, semi-structured interviews were conducted at two time points. Through reflexive thematic analysis, we developed three themes. “We are all in the same boat. . . or are we?” describes the Paralympic hopefuls experiences early in the pandemic and how they felt united by the Canadian response to withdraw from the Games. It then discusses how, over time, they started to understand athletes with disabilities were being inequitably impacted by the pandemic and related public health measures. “Maybe it means more to them than us” examines how their perceptions changed as they acknowledged that although all athletes were facing a disruption to their sport careers, the implications were not the same for all. “Vulnerability and the Paralympic athlete” addresses how Paralympic athletes engaged with societal narratives about risk, vulnerability and disability and what this meant for the Paralympic Movement's response to the pandemic. “Honestly, I've experienced it before” examines how the Paralympic hopefuls drew on past experiences of injury to navigate the pandemic and the protective impact on their psychological wellbeing. Findings shed light on how systemic ableism interacted with the pandemic to magnify feelings of inferiority and further marginalization but also how para-athletes drew on past experiences to navigate challenges to their psychological wellbeing.

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Putting the Athlete First: a Comprehensive Assessment of Elite Para Athlete Well-Being

Cited by 10 publications

References 57 publications

Perfectionism, Resilience and Different Ways of Experiencing Sport during COVID-19 Confinement

Perfectionism, Resilience and Different Ways of Experiencing Sport during COVID-19 Confinement

Understanding experiences of and influences on well-being in elite para-sport: A qualitative exploration of U.K. para-athletes.

From minding the gap to widening the gap: Paralympic athletes' experiences of wellbeing during the postponement of the Tokyo 2020 games

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