Systematic review explores how sports participation affects mental health in children and adolescents, suggesting important influences from social settings.
Key Points
This review aims to understand how sports participation affects the mental health of children and adolescents and the factors influencing this relationship.
Conducted a systematic review of qualitative studies across six electronic databases.
Included 25 studies after screening 1,001 records from various sources.
Used thematic analysis based on the socio-ecological model to synthesize findings.
Sports participation positively and negatively influenced mental health outcomes like emotions, self-confidence, and resilience.
Identified five individual mechanisms affecting mental health: distraction and focus, performance, personal development, purpose, and belonging.
Interpersonal factors, including the roles of coaches and family, significantly impacted mental health outcomes.