Evaluation of the Online Sport-Specific Mindfulemotions Program in a Population of Scandinavian Elite Athletes Measuring Psychological Parameters

Abstract

Professional athletes are often affected by public pressure, choking under pressure, depression, anxiety, stress, or burnout. Mindfulness training seems to be a valuable tool for reducing those symptoms. Due to the general interest in online applications and the constraints of the global COVID-19 pandemic, the future of mindfulness training might be digital, and the expansion of such interventions is inevitable. Therefore, we translated and digitalised the German sports-specific mindfulness program called mindfulemotions (https://mindful-motions.de/) and evaluated it with a psychological randomised controlled trial pilot study in a population of Scandinavian elite athletes making it the first English online mindfulness-based intervention (MBI) for professional athletes. 28 athletes started the involvement, and 12 athletes finished the participation. The athletes completed several self-report questionnaires, a diary at the end of the intervention and follow-up questions after one year assessing psychological parameters before and after the mindfulness practices and website feedback. The results suggest that the web-based online program seems at the first glance feasible, comprehensible, and applicable. The nonparametric post-test analyses eventuated in an increase in mindfulness and self-compassion scores for the intervention group, but not for the control group. Overall, due to the small sample size, it is difficult to draw definitive conclusions about the feasibility of the web-based online program, but the website’s establishment and the program’s implementation were successful. This research supports the need to execute a more extensive and comprehensive investigation of the online mindfulemotion program and its potential for elite athletes.