Study on the mental health of women practicing mountain sports and climbing: elite vs. non-elite

Abstract

There's current social interest in participating in outdoor activities, which necessitates a deeper examination of the psychosocial factors surrounding these sports. This proposal is part of the project "Evaluation of the physical and mental health of women practicing mountain and climbing sports". Mental health and psychosocial variables are analyzed in women who participate in these sports. The purpose of the study is to investigate the psychosocial well-being of the participants and to analyze the effect of age and sporting level (elite vs. non-elite). A total of 91 women participated, divided into two groups: 20 athletes from the Spanish national teams (junior and senior) in climbing, ski mountaineering, and mountain running (elite group), and 71 non-elite women. The following scales were used: the Spanish Subjective Happiness Scale Satisfaction with Life Scale, Brief Resilient Coping Scale, DASS Scale (for depression and stress), and the Competitive State Anxiety Inventory. All scales employed are validated. Significant differences were found by age (under 35 years vs. over 35 years) in resilience [Z = 688, p = .007, Hedges' g = .702]; depression [Z = 780, p = .05, Hedges' g = .452]; stress [Z = 789, p = .05, Hedges' g = .442]; cognitive anxiety [Z = 560, p < .001, Hedges' g = .863]; somatic anxiety [Z = 758, p = .03, Hedges' g = .453]; and self-confidence [Z = 688, p = .007, Hedges' g = .613]. By sporting level (elite vs. non-elite), elite athletes exhibited greater life satisfaction [Z = 482, p = .028, Hedges' g = .559] and lower cognitive anxiety [Z = 383, p = .002, Hedges' g = .841]. The linear regression analysis revealed that the two predictor variables accounted for 57.7 % of the variance in subjective happiness (R = .785, R² = .586, R² = .577, F(2–88) = 62.307, p < .001, power β-1 = .97783). The variable with the greatest weight was life satisfaction (Beta = .582, t = 6.901, p < .001), followed by resilience (Beta = .263, t = 3.118, p = .002). The discussion of the study's findings demonstrates that this research is consistent with other similar investigations. A potential limitation of the study is the relatively small sample size.