The Stratas Foundation
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Recent sport psychology research has built on the findings that successful athletes score high in functional impulsivity, the ability to make quick and firm decision-making. Recent findings conclude that the most successful athletes have scored high in emotional regulation, the ability to control thoughts, feelings, and actions. Emotional regulation is associated with expertise and expert performance in previous studies. 124 athletes representing 23 individual and team spo...rts, including 40 Olympians, participated in the study. 54 of the participants were identified as having a high level of impulsivity and were divided into two groups, successful athletes, and less-successful athletes. There were no significant differences across gender. The results concluded that participants in the less-successful athlete group had higher levels of neuroticism and lower levels of emotional regulation than the successful athlete group, suggesting emotional regulation plays a key factor in an athletes’ success. For more, read: Siekanska, M., Wojtowicz, A. (2020). Impulsive athlete as a self-regulated learner. Can self-confidence and a positive social attitude change a developmental inhibitor into a growth catalyst? Journal of Physical Education and Sport, 20(2). See more

It's been a minute since we last said thanks! We want to take a moment to express our gratitude for your continued support. Those who like our photos, share our posts, volunteer their time, or donate to our cause. Your support is what has helped sponsor mental health research in Canada and has kept us going since 2018. We would be nothing without you! If you are looking to support us some more, please share our content around or click the link in our bio to donate. Every bit counts and helps us fund our next round of scholarships in the 2021-2022 academic year.

How an athlete responds to adversity is literally sink or swim according to a new study of eight Olympic swimming champions, including Michael Phelps. The researchers analyzed autobiographies written by each athlete to determine that each of them had experienced an adverse event that they considered traumatic. They also reported dealing with some form of developmental stressor or disorder early in life, such as ADHD, dyslexia, OCD, family dysfunction, body dissatisfaction, me...dia intrusion, and stuttering. Each reported at least one maladaptive response to trauma and stress, such as substance abuse, long-term depressive episodes, or suicidality. At various points in their career, each athlete underwent a transitional process in which the swimmers realized that attempting to maintain normalcy was unsustainable. These transitional processes marked the turning point in each athlete’s career. During their growth phase, each swimmer reported either enhancing their social relationships, developing a closer bond with their spirituality, or building prosocial habits such as volunteering and advocacy work. All eight swimmers effectively turned adversity experiences into growth experiences leaning on the social supports available to them, and fostering community. This paper also supports earlier research that prosocial responses to stressors and trauma can provide an edge over sports competition. The researchers note that brooding and rumination were not associated with growth during the athletes’ careers and that athletes at the highest level have built transparent, open, prosocial, community-building behaviors and habits to turn adversity into growth that transcends sport. For more, read: Howells, K. & Fletcher, D. (2015). Adversity and growth-related experiences in Olympic swimming champions. Psychology of Sport and Exercise, 16(3): 37. See more

Have you found that athletics have had a positive impact on your mental health? Or have you found that therapy has improved your performance and ability to cope as an athlete? We're running a series on athletics and mental health right now, exploring research investigating the relationship between athletics and mental health. Hope you enjoy!

There is a Chinese saying that goes: If you want happiness for an hour, take a nap. If you want happiness for a day, go fishing. If you want happiness for a year, inherit a fortune. If you want happiness for a lifetime, help somebody. Often times, people find happiness in helping others. Although that is the case, what we don’t notice a lot of the time is the lasting effects helping someone has on that person you are helping. Acts of kindness can stay with someone for a lifetime. Doing small, kind things in the world, go a long way. Keep giving, and be kind to one another

Recent research in sports psychology has examined the impact of sports on positive youth development, particularly for at-risk youth. In light of this ongoing research, there have been efforts to create and implement evidence-based programs that are dedicated to addressing mental health concerns. This study focuses on a trauma-informed sports curriculum called Do the Good (DtG) for adolescents in residential settings, that face unique behavioural and emotional problems. DtG... aims to build competency, emotional self-regulation, and strong playerteam relationships. A total of 88 female students aged 12 to 21, of diverse ethnocultural backgrounds, participated. Of these, 62 volunteered to enter the DtG and 26 in the treatment-as-usual (TAU)/control group. Over the course of 5 months, DtG participants engaged in group sports for one hour per week. It was found that DtG participants had a statistically significant decrease in total Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL) symptoms from pre- to post-DtG (p < .01), as determined by licensed therapists. CBCL measures included internalizing (anxiety/depression, withdrawal, somatic complaints) and externalizing (delinquency, aggression). On the other hand, the TAU group had a statistically significant increase in internalizing symptoms (p < .01). Taken together, these findings suggest that physical activity can reduce symptoms of mental health ailments that stem from traumatic experiences. For more, read: D’Andrea, W., et al. (2013). Journal of Family Violence (28). See more