School of Sport and Health Sciences, University of Central Lancashire, Preston, UK.
School of Sport, Exercise and Health Sciences, National Centre for Sport and Exercise Medicine, Loughborough University, Loughborough, UK.
Sci Med Footb. 2022 Dec 1;6(5):650-659. doi: 10.1080/24733938.2022.2084149. Epub 2022 Jun 5.
Mental health research in sport is almost entirely focused on elite male athletes. However, recent research suggests that elite female athletes are at higher risk for mental ill-health when compared to their male counterparts. Given the recent growth of women's football in England and lack of research surrounding mental health in this population, this study sought to explore the prevalence of, and factors associated with depression, anxiety, and eating disorder symptoms in females competing in the top two tiers of English football.
An anonymous online questionnaire pack, which measured personal and player characteristics and included the Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9), Generalised Anxiety Disorder scale (GAD-7), Brief Eating Disorder Questionnaire (BEDA-Q), and General Help-Seeking Questionnaire (GHSQ), was completed between November 2020 and March 2021 by elite female footballers competing in the Women's Super League (WSL) and Women's Championship.
A total of 115 players completed the questionnaire (63 from the WSL; 52 from the Women's Championship). 36% displayed eating disorder symptoms (BEDAQ) 11% displayed moderate to severe anxiety symptoms (GAD-7), and 11% displayed moderate to severe depression symptoms (PHQ-9). Significant associations emerged between starting status, want for psychological support, student-athlete status, help-seeking intentions score, and mental ill-health symptoms.
In summary, elite female footballers in England reported significant mental health symptoms, particularly disordered eating symptoms. Further research should explore the experiences of mental ill-health in this population, focusing on the factors that were important in this study.
运动心理学研究几乎完全集中在男性精英运动员身上。然而，最近的研究表明，与男性运动员相比，精英女性运动员的心理健康出现问题的风险更高。鉴于英格兰女足的最近发展，以及针对该人群心理健康的研究缺乏，本研究旨在探讨在英格兰顶级两级足球比赛中参赛的女性运动员抑郁、焦虑和饮食障碍症状的流行程度以及与这些症状相关的因素。
2020 年 11 月至 2021 年 3 月期间，参加女子超级联赛（WSL）和女子冠军联赛的精英女子足球运动员在线匿名填写了一份问卷包，其中包括个人和球员特征，以及患者健康问卷（PHQ-9）、广泛性焦虑障碍量表（GAD-7）、简要饮食障碍问卷（BEDA-Q）和一般求助问卷（GHSQ）。
共有 115 名球员完成了问卷（WSL 63 人；女子冠军联赛 52 人）。36%的球员表现出饮食障碍症状（BEDAQ），11%的球员表现出中度至重度焦虑症状（GAD-7），11%的球员表现出中度至重度抑郁症状（PHQ-9）。首发状态、对心理支持的需求、学生运动员身份、求助意向评分与心理健康症状之间存在显著关联。
总之，英格兰的精英女性足球运动员报告了明显的心理健康问题，尤其是饮食障碍症状。进一步的研究应该探索该人群的心理健康问题，重点关注本研究中重要的因素。
