In line with sport psychology's growing focus on wellbeing and mental health, meaning (i.e., experiencing life as coherent, significant, oriented, and belonging) has been gaining attention in elite sport. Its study is theoretically and practically relevant, since athletes often refer to meaning, especially when it is lacking. However, while wider research highlights its role for physical and...
Positive affect during exercise is a key predictor of continued participation, yet the mechanisms through which mindfulness-based exercise influences affect remain largely inferred from retrospective, outcome-focused designs. This study used a think-aloud (TA) methodology to capture consciously accessible, moment-to-moment experience during exercise and to test whether a single bout of...
Combat sports athletes are exposed to higher rates of injury, often resulting in increased anxiety and decreased pre-event self-efficacy. Mindfulness may serve as a protective buffer against these psychological effects. This study aimed to examine the relationship between athletic mindfulness and pre-event self-efficacy through competitive anxiety, as well as the moderating role of injury...
Mindfulness can play a critical role in promoting and protecting mental wellbeing among elite athletes. However, mechanisms of change are needed to provide theoretical insight when designing mindfulness-based programs in this population. The purpose of this study was to explore how mindfulness predicts mental wellbeing through the attitudes of gratitude (toward pleasant moments) and...
Need-supportive sport coaching, rooted in Self-Determination Theory (SDT), aims to fulfill athletes' psychological needs, enhancing both performance and well-being. However, existing interventions aim to foster it, often take educational position and fail to address the emotional challenges faced by coaches. This study introduces the Mindfulness-Acceptance-Commitment (MAC) framework as a...
Research suggests that Mindfulness- and Acceptance-Based Interventions (MABIs) can impact sport performance and performance-relevant factors, though questions remain regarding when and for whom MABIs are effective. Specifically, inquiries into intervention engagement (i.e., dosage), potentially impacted by participant readiness, are needed. The present study utilized a non-randomized control...
Attentional control is a crucial cognitive ability for sports performance. The current research aimed to investigate whether a brief (20-min) pre-competition mindfulness meditation (MM) intervention enhances athletes' attentional control during competitions and alters the activity of brain regions related to attentional control. We created a virtual reality shooting competition to compare the...
The mindfulness-based intervention and psychological skills training are often used for maintaining the mental health or reducing undesirable mental states in athletes. However, their differences in acute effects on mental health and underlying neural mechanism are not well understood. Therefore, the purpose of the current study was to examine the differential effects of brief mindfulness...
Abstract Objectives To test whether a mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR) program could reduce symptoms of anxiety, stress, and depression, and increase psychological well-being among retired Iranian football players compared to an active control group. Design Randomized controlled trial, with an 8-week MBSR intervention (16 group sessions, 90 min each) and an active control group. Three...