Influence Of Mindfulness On Perceived Stress And Mental Well-Being Among Student Athletes During Lockdown

Abstract

The Covid-19 pandemic Lock-down had imposed many restrictions. Although the lockdown was intended to protect the people, it has its own downsides causing lot of stress especially among athletes. The aim of this study is to find the relationship between Trait Mindfulness, Perceived stress and Mental Well-being among student athletes. In addition, the study also explores the stress experienced by these student athletes during the lockdown period, factors that contributed to their stress and the coping strategies they used. Mixed method (QUAN-Qual model) was used to conduct the study.  Student athletes of both U.G and P.G level participating in various sports from various Colleges/Universities in the Chennai city were surveyed. Mindful Attention Awareness Scale (MAAS), Perceived Stress Scale (PSS), Warwick Edinburgh Mental Well-being Scale (WEMWBS)and a few open-ended questions prepared by the researcher were used to collect the data. The findings of the study reveal that mindfulness is a significant predictor of wellbeing among students’ athletes. Moreover, the major themes emerged in the qualitative analysis of factors responsible for stress were practice disruption, restricted movement, interpersonal problems, financial problems and emotional problems. Thus, the study highlights the importance of mindfulness training to enhance the level of Mental Well-being and better coping among student athletes.