Effects of mindfulness-based interventions on sport performance and psychological outcomes in athletes: A systematic review and meta-analysis of randomised controlled trials

Abstract Objective To give a comprehensive review on the effectiveness of mindfulness-based intervention in sports performance in athletes. Methodology Six online databases including Web of Science, EBSCOhost(Elton B. Stephens Company), Cochrane library, Embase, Scopus, Pubmed were searched to identify randomized controlled trials (RCTs) exploring the effects of mindfulness training on athletes' sports performance. Meta-analyses, subgroup analyses, and publication bias analyses were done using the RevMan version 5.4 software package.

Results: Of the 1853 articles identified, 21 RCTs were included, which included 920 athletes, 467 athletes in the experimental group and 453 athletes in the control group, including 496 males and 324 females. Overall, mindfulness training enhanced athletes' mindfulness level ( d = 0.77, p < 0.05), mindfulness flow experience ( d = 0.87, p < 0.05) and athletic performance ( d = 0.94, p < 0.05), and reduced athletes' competitive anxiety ( d = -1.13, p < 0.05), but had no significant effect on stress ( p > 0.05), emotional regulation ( p > 0.05) and mental toughness ( p > 0.05). Exploratory subgroup analyses found no statistically significant differences in the effects on sport performance according to intervention type ( p = 0.98), sport type ( p = 0.37), competitive level ( p = 0.08), or session duration ( p = 0.11).

Conclusion: Mindfulness training appears to have a positive effect on improving athletic performance and mindfulness. Future research should focus on combining mindfulness interventions with specific sports to develop high-quality interventions for specific sports, while carefully considering the unique requirements of each sport's environment.