The Current Research Trends on Public Mental Health in Sports and Exercise Settings
A special issue of International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health (ISSN 1660-4601). This special issue belongs to the section "Exercise and Health-Related Quality of Life".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: 30 September 2025 | Viewed by 107
Special Issue Editor
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
There is scientific evidence that practicing sports can improve mental health due to the feeling of belonging to a team or by carrying out physical exercise regularly. However, this practice can also hinder mental health due to the demands of daily training, such as competitions. In this way, the training schedules, the diets before competitions, traveling for competitions, and the high demands for sports performance can lead to internal pressures (the athlete) or external pressures (managers, trainers, sponsors, family, and teammates), as well as worries about practice and sports performance. Other relevant aspects associated with the practice of sports and exercise are the levels and objectives of the practice, such as those practiced for recreational purposes, for educational purposes, or those that are practiced in and out of school during childhood and adolescence. Whether it is individual or group sports or sports with a great focus on body aesthetics, each one of these influences the mental health of the practitioners, subjecting their bodies to greater or lesser work; however, in each one, it is possible to emphasize that mental health is important for performance and that taking care of their mental health is a sign of strength.
On the other hand, physical activity and sports practice have come to play an important role in society not only at an individual level, but also for public health, since it has been shown that physical activity helps maintain public health in general, and mental health in particular. When you do not practice physical activity or sports, the risk of suffering from noncommunicable diseases and other health problems increases. Therefore, sport is a tool to promote a healthier society.
This Special Issue aims to present the most recent research studies that expand our knowledge of the research into mental health in the fields of sports and physical exercise in various social groups, including school children, adolescents, emerging adults, middle-aged adults, older people, and individuals with chronic diseases, among others.
In this Special Issue, original research articles and reviews are welcome. Research areas may include (but not limited to) the following:
- Contextual factors that contribute to mental health in sports and exercise.
- Motivational variables that contribute to mental health in sports and exercise.
- Relationships between motivation for sport/exercise and core self-evaluations (including self-esteem, self-efficacy, and others).
- Stress and coping strategies in sports and exercise.
- Evidence-based research on specific psychological preparation and its effects on mental health in sports and exercise.
- Outdoor exercise and mental health.
- Psychological aspects of exercise and other pro-health behaviors (e.g., healthy diet, adequate amount of sleep and rest) and anti-health behaviors (e.g., smoking, binge drinking, substance abuse).
- Research in young athletes to improve their adherence in the present and future.
Prof. Dr. Heriberto Antonio Pineda-Espejel
Guest Editor
Manuscript Submission Information
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Keywords
- sport psychology
- team cohesion
- sport performance
- personal standards
- social standards
- healthy diet
- social context
- personality in sport
- motivation
- mental health
- physical activity
- exercise
- sports body aesthetics
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