Symposium
Anxiety Disorders
Allison Waters, Ph.D. (she/her/hers)
Professor
Griffith University
Brisbane, Queensland, Australia
Rachel Sluis, PhD
research Fellow
Griffith University
Brisbane, Queensland, Australia
Wayne Usher, PhD
research Fellow
Griffith University
Brisbane, Queensland, Australia
Lara Farrell, Ph.D. (she/her/hers)
Professor
Griffith University
Southport, Queensland, Australia
Caroline Donovan, PhD (she/her/hers)
Pro
Griffith University
Southport, Queensland, Australia
Kathryn Modecki, PhD
Professor
University of Western Australia
Perth, Western Australia, Australia
Melanie Zimmer-Gembeck, PhD (she/her/hers)
Professor
Griffith University
Southport, Queensland, Australia
Mental health and wellbeing programs embedded within youth sports development programs have been found to enhance adolescents’ mental health outcomes. However, prior studies have examined outcomes for adolescent males and very little is known about outcomes for young women. Furthermore, a range of individual, family and program-related factors mean that completion of all components of integrated sports and mental health programs can be challenging for some young people, and it is currently unknown whether the degree of completion of mental health components influences mental health outcomes. The present study examined mental health outcomes from a youth sports development program including a mental health and wellbeing program (Life-Fit-Learning) in adolescent males and females, and among the larger cohort of adolescent males, whether partial or full completion of Life-Fit yielded different outcomes for adolescents within healthy and high-risk ranges for anxiety, depression and behavioral problems.
Participants were 503 adolescents between 12 and 16 years of age (M age = 13.36; 416 males; 87 females) who completed pre- and post-program mental health assessments, and a youth rugby league development program including an online and onfield mental health and wellbeing program (Life-Fit-Learning), rugby league and fitness components and parent feedback and support.
From pre- to post-program, anxiety and depression declined but not to within healthy ranges but did so for behavioral problems in males in high-risk ranges regardless of partial or full completion of the Life-Fit components. Full compared to partial completion of the Life-Fit components was required for improvements in depression in boys within the healthy range and self-satisfaction for males in general. Declines in anxiety were observed in females in high-risk ranges but no improvements were observed in girls’ depression, behavioral problems and self-satisfaction.
Increasing the focus on anxiety and depression may be important for strengthening outcomes in high-risk males and ensuring program completion may be important for boys’ depression and self-satisfaction in general. Further outcome studies are required for females and programs may need to be tailored to their needs to improve outcomes.