‘Mental heAlth and well-being in rUgby pLayers’ (MAUL) study: an online survey of diverse cohorts of rugby union players internationally
Introduction Mental health and well-being is a relatively under-researched area in rugby, especially outside the elite men’s game. Evidence suggests that physical activity and sports benefit mental health and well-being, and rugby provides health-enhancing moderate-to-vigorous physical activity.Obje...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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BMJ Publishing Group
2024-12-01
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| Series: | BMJ Open Sport & Exercise Medicine |
| Online Access: | https://bmjopensem.bmj.com/content/10/4/e002164.full |
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| author | Jon Patricios Paul Kelly Simon Kemp Debbie Palmer Karim Khan Caithriona Yeomans Kathryn Dane Steffan Griffin Samantha Fawkner Heather Lewis Kearnan Myall Rebecca Syed Sheriff Kaitlin Simpson |
| author_facet | Jon Patricios Paul Kelly Simon Kemp Debbie Palmer Karim Khan Caithriona Yeomans Kathryn Dane Steffan Griffin Samantha Fawkner Heather Lewis Kearnan Myall Rebecca Syed Sheriff Kaitlin Simpson |
| author_sort | Jon Patricios |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Introduction Mental health and well-being is a relatively under-researched area in rugby, especially outside the elite men’s game. Evidence suggests that physical activity and sports benefit mental health and well-being, and rugby provides health-enhancing moderate-to-vigorous physical activity.Objective This cross-sectional study used an online approach and engaged national rugby governing bodies to understand adult rugby players’ mental health and well-being and increase the diversity of the current evidence base.Results 500 rugby players completed an online survey. 44% of participants identified as female, and 55% as male. The UK (67%), Ireland (15%) and South Africa (12%) were the countries with the highest representation. 71% of participants were amateur players, with elite players making up 20% of the population. 87% of players participated in contact forms of the game, with 9% predominantly playing non-contact rugby. Over 50% of participants reported that rugby impacted ‘extremely’ positively on both their mental health and well-being. Based on the Kessler psychological distress scale (K10), 57.8% of all respondents belonged to the ‘psychologically well’ group. Males were more likely to belong to this group than females (p=0.01). Non-contact and amateur players had lower scores of psychological distress than contact and professional players (p=0.001 and p=0.006), respectively. Non-contact players had higher well-being (Short Warwick-Edinburgh Mental Well-being Scale) scores than contact players (p<0.001).Conclusion This study provides new insights into the mental health and well-being of a diverse group of rugby players. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-7020df50922649e69ab91ccdfdd5d8d5 |
| institution | OA Journals |
| issn | 2055-7647 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2024-12-01 |
| publisher | BMJ Publishing Group |
| record_format | Article |
| series | BMJ Open Sport & Exercise Medicine |
| spelling | doaj-art-7020df50922649e69ab91ccdfdd5d8d52025-08-20T01:57:52ZengBMJ Publishing GroupBMJ Open Sport & Exercise Medicine2055-76472024-12-0110410.1136/bmjsem-2024-002164‘Mental heAlth and well-being in rUgby pLayers’ (MAUL) study: an online survey of diverse cohorts of rugby union players internationallyJon Patricios0Paul Kelly1Simon Kemp2Debbie Palmer3Karim Khan4Caithriona Yeomans5Kathryn Dane6Steffan Griffin7Samantha Fawkner8Heather Lewis9Kearnan Myall10Rebecca Syed Sheriff11Kaitlin Simpson12Waterfall Sports Orthopaedic Surgery, Netcare Waterfall Hospital, Midrand, South AfricaPhysical Activity for Health Research Centre, University of Edinburgh Institute for Sport, Physical Education and Health Sciences, Edinburgh, UKMedical Services, Rugby Football Union, London, United KingdomUK Collaborating Centre on Injury and Illness Prevention in Sport, Edinburgh Sports Medicine Research Network, University of Edinburgh Institute for Sport Physical Education and Health Sciences, Edinburgh, UK1 School of Kinesiology, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada5Department of Physical Education and Sport Sciences, Limerick, UK1Discipline of Physiotherapy, School of Medicine, Trinity College Dublin, Dublin, Ireland2College of Medical and Dental Sciences, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, UK1 Physical Activity for Health Research Centre, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UKSt Mary’s Hospital/Imperial College London, London, UK1 Department of Psychiatry, Oxford University, Oxford, UK1 Department of Psychiatry, University of Oxford, Oxford, UKUK Collaborating Centre on Injury and Illness Prevention in Sport, Edinburgh Sports Medicine Research Network, University of Edinburgh Institute for Sport Physical Education and Health Sciences, Edinburgh, UKIntroduction Mental health and well-being is a relatively under-researched area in rugby, especially outside the elite men’s game. Evidence suggests that physical activity and sports benefit mental health and well-being, and rugby provides health-enhancing moderate-to-vigorous physical activity.Objective This cross-sectional study used an online approach and engaged national rugby governing bodies to understand adult rugby players’ mental health and well-being and increase the diversity of the current evidence base.Results 500 rugby players completed an online survey. 44% of participants identified as female, and 55% as male. The UK (67%), Ireland (15%) and South Africa (12%) were the countries with the highest representation. 71% of participants were amateur players, with elite players making up 20% of the population. 87% of players participated in contact forms of the game, with 9% predominantly playing non-contact rugby. Over 50% of participants reported that rugby impacted ‘extremely’ positively on both their mental health and well-being. Based on the Kessler psychological distress scale (K10), 57.8% of all respondents belonged to the ‘psychologically well’ group. Males were more likely to belong to this group than females (p=0.01). Non-contact and amateur players had lower scores of psychological distress than contact and professional players (p=0.001 and p=0.006), respectively. Non-contact players had higher well-being (Short Warwick-Edinburgh Mental Well-being Scale) scores than contact players (p<0.001).Conclusion This study provides new insights into the mental health and well-being of a diverse group of rugby players.https://bmjopensem.bmj.com/content/10/4/e002164.full |
| spellingShingle | Jon Patricios Paul Kelly Simon Kemp Debbie Palmer Karim Khan Caithriona Yeomans Kathryn Dane Steffan Griffin Samantha Fawkner Heather Lewis Kearnan Myall Rebecca Syed Sheriff Kaitlin Simpson ‘Mental heAlth and well-being in rUgby pLayers’ (MAUL) study: an online survey of diverse cohorts of rugby union players internationally BMJ Open Sport & Exercise Medicine |
| title | ‘Mental heAlth and well-being in rUgby pLayers’ (MAUL) study: an online survey of diverse cohorts of rugby union players internationally |
| title_full | ‘Mental heAlth and well-being in rUgby pLayers’ (MAUL) study: an online survey of diverse cohorts of rugby union players internationally |
| title_fullStr | ‘Mental heAlth and well-being in rUgby pLayers’ (MAUL) study: an online survey of diverse cohorts of rugby union players internationally |
| title_full_unstemmed | ‘Mental heAlth and well-being in rUgby pLayers’ (MAUL) study: an online survey of diverse cohorts of rugby union players internationally |
| title_short | ‘Mental heAlth and well-being in rUgby pLayers’ (MAUL) study: an online survey of diverse cohorts of rugby union players internationally |
| title_sort | mental health and well being in rugby players maul study an online survey of diverse cohorts of rugby union players internationally |
| url | https://bmjopensem.bmj.com/content/10/4/e002164.full |
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