The Elite Athlete Mental Health Strategy Trial

Study Overview
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Brief Summary
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The purpose of this study is to determine whether positive mental health help-seeking attitudes, and behaviour in elite athletes can be increased through an online intervention.

Detailed Description
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Mental disorders account for approximately 30% of the non-fatal disease burden in Australia, with the most prevalent disorders of depression, anxiety and substance use disorders experienced by 18% of the population in any single year. These disorders are significantly more common in young adulthood than at any other stage in the lifespan. Despite the availability of effective treatments for many disorders, this high susceptibility in young people is coupled with low rates of seeking professional help. As elite athletes have been found to have less positive attitudes towards seeking help for mental health issues, and they are most often young adults themselves, they may be even less likely than non-athletes to utilise professional services. Although there is a strong relationship between exercise and positive mental health, the prevalence of mental disorders in elite athletes is currently not known. A literature review of the general literature on help seeking and a series of focus groups with elite athletes from the Australian Institute of Sport conducted by the current research group in 2008, suggested that help-seeking by these athletes might be increased by improving their knowledge about mental health, reducing stigma, and providing feedback about the symptoms of common mental disorders. The current project was designed to test these possibilities utilising an online format. The Elite Athlete Mental health Strategy (TEAMS) project comprises two phases: (1) a large scale survey of the mental health status of elite athletes; (2) a randomised controlled trial of the effectiveness of three interventions designed to increase help seeking attitudes and help seeking behaviours related to mental disorders in elite athletes. These three interventions are: destigmatisation and mental health literacy; feedback; and a help-seeking list of resources. The study aims to compare the effectiveness of these three interventions relative to each other and a control condition.

Official Title
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The Elite Athlete Mental Health Strategy: A Randomised Controlled Trial of an Online Intervention for the Mental Health Help-Seeking of Elite Athletes

Conditions
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Mental Health Help-Seeking

Intervention / Treatment
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* Other: Destigmatisation and Mental Health Literacy
* Other: Help-seeking list
* Other: Feedback


Participation Criteria
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Eligibility Criteria
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Inclusion Criteria: Invited through sports organisation Elite athlete Able to read English Exclusion Criteria: None.

Ages Eligible for Study
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Minimum Age: 18 Years

Sexes Eligible for Study
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All

Accepts Healthy Volunteers
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Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Study Plan
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How is the study designed?
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Design Details

Allocation: Randomized
Intervention Model: Parallel Assignment
Masking: None (Open Label)


Arms and Interventions

| Participant Group/Arm | Intervention/Treatment |
| --- | --- |
| Experimental: Destigmatisation and Mental Health Literacy<br> | Other: Destigmatisation and Mental Health Literacy<br>* Written material delivered over 2 weeks via the Internet, including mythbusters, debunking common myths around anxiety and depression, as well information about a range of celebrities who have identified themselves as having depression or anxiety. Also contains mental health literacy information.<br>|
| Experimental: Help-seeking list<br> | Other: Help-seeking list<br>* List of sources for mental health help-seeking delivered over 2 weeks.<br>|
| Experimental: Feedback<br> | Other: Feedback<br>* Written material delivered over 2 weeks via the Internet, including two short self-report measures (Goldberg Anxiety, Goldberg Depression), which will provide feedback to the participant about levels of depression and anxiety.<br>|
| No Intervention: Control<br> | |

What is the study measuring?
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Primary Outcome Measures

| Outcome Measure | Measure Description | Time Frame |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Help-seeking attitudes (Attitudes Toward Seeking Professional Psychological Help: Shortened Form, ATSPPH-SF) |  | Baseline, post, 3 month, and 6 month follow-up | 

Secondary Outcome Measures

| Outcome Measure | Measure Description | Time Frame |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Help-seeking behaviour, and Help-seeking intentions (General Help-Seeking Questionnaire, GHSQ) |  | Baseline, post, 3 month, and 6 month follow-up | 

 Terms related to the study
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Keywords Provided by Centre Hospitalier Valida
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Help-seeking, Mental Health, Athletes