UBC Women Varsity Athlete Thriving
Creators: name: Baker, Alexandra
name: De Boer, Audrey
name: Dhaliwal, Jenna
name: Loschiavo, Izzy
name: Sehgal, Kanishk
Publisher: name: The University of British Columbia
Year: 2024

description: The purpose of this project is to gather knowledge and insight from women varsity athletes at the University of British Columbia (UBC) on how they perceive their levels of thriving throughout their competitive season. Additionally, this study provides recommendations as to how thriving may be improved through different stages of their athletic season during the course of a year, and what can be done better to support varsity athletes. These findings can guide UBC Athletics as to when is the best time and frequency to study varsity athletes’ thriving. The study can be used to provide insight to help future research in this area and increase awareness of the importance of women varsity athletes thriving and athlete well-being. Thriving has been defined as the development of self-actualization, personal fulfillment, and realization of one’s fullest potential (Benson &amp; Scales, 2009). This includes achieving at a high level of athletic and academic performance and an overall, positive well-being (Augustus et al., 2023). This study was conducted using a 31-question online survey that included a mix of openended, multi-select, Likert-scale type, and yes-or-no questions examining mental health, thriving and overall well-being. A total of 43 individuals accessed the survey. Thus, 41 undergraduate students and 2 graduate students at UBC were assessed in this study. The sample size included participants within the age range of 17-25 years old, and the varsity sports that they were associated with included basketball, softball, rugby, track and field, rowing, soccer, swimming, cross country, field hockey and ice hockey. Results from the survey show that academic stress negatively affects thriving for the majority of student athletes, with 52% at their lowest levels of thriving during midterm exams, and 29% during final exams. Additionally, thriving levels in the athletic season are highest during pre-season, and the lowest during playoffs. Furthermore, emotional exhaustion is the biggest indicator of low thriving levels. Factors negatively affecting thriving include poor sleep habits, individual performance in the season, issues with coaches and teammates, and lack of confidence. Factors that positively affect thriving are joining extracurricular clubs, spending time in nature, socializing with friends, and reading. When looking at factors that prevent varsity athletes from accessing mental health services on campus, we note that 54.76% of participants felt time was the largest barrier. This was followed by lack of awareness (26.19%), finances (9.52%), stigma (7.14%) and others (2.39%). Overall, three recommendations have been made based on the results of our study. First recommendation is ongoing education and training for the teams’ coaches. Second, based on the athletes perceived lack of time to access mental health support, we recommend bringing in general mental health support to athletes, and not just sport specific counseling. Third, is to host workshops that engage athletes with available programs and services at UBC and resources, especially during times of low thriving, to increase awareness of mental health services available at UBC. Disclaimer: “UBC SEEDS provides students with the opportunity to share the findings of their studies, as well as their opinions, conclusions and recommendations with the UBC community. The reader should bear in mind that this is a student project/report and is not an official document of UBC. Furthermore readers should bear in mind that these reports may not reflect the current status of activities at UBC. We urge you to contact the research persons mentioned in a report or the SEEDS Coordinator about the current status of the subject matter of a project/report.”