AN OBSERVATIONAL RESEARCH APPROACH TO PREVALENCE OF MENTAL HEALTH SYNDROMES (ANXIETY, DEPRESSION, BURNOUT) AMONG ELITE VS. AMATEUR ATHLETES OF PAKISTAN

Abstract

Study Background: Mental health syndromes refers to the group of symptoms or signs that occur together and indicate a specific condition such as anxiety, depression, and mental burnout. The purpose of this study was to compare the prevalence of anxiety, depression and burnout symptoms between amateur and elite athletes. Methodology:  A cross-sectional observational survey was conducted among 600 athletes (300 elite, 300 amateur) recruited from sports clubs and online communities of Pakistan. Validated instruments—the Generalized Anxiety Disorder-7 (GAD-7), Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9), and Athlete Burnout Questionnaire (ABQ)—were administered. The collected data were processed through the statistical package for social sciences (SPSS, version 26), and thus, suitable statistical tools were applied according to the needs of the study. Results: It was found that there were significantly higher rates of anxiety symptoms in elite athletes compared with non-athletes (35.7% vs 24.3%, p < 01), depressive symptoms (p < 05), and burnout (40.0% vs. 26.7%, p <.001) compared to amateurs. Conclusion: Regression analyses provided evidence that elite status was a predictor of mental health treatment for all outcomes, after adjustment for age, gender and socioeconomic background. The study also concluded that Elite athletes suffer more than amateurs from mental health symptoms; thus, more specific psychological support should be implemented in the elite sport context. Causal mechanisms for determining the efficacy of interventions need to be explored in future longitudinal studies.