Clinical trial NCT00940732: The Elite Athlete Mental Health Strategy Trial
Official title: The Elite Athlete Mental Health Strategy: A Randomised Controlled Trial of an Online Intervention for the Mental Health Help-Seeking of Elite Athletes
Study type: INTERVENTIONAL
Overall status: COMPLETED
Phase: NA
Conditions: Mental Health Help-Seeking
Keywords: Help-seeking
Mental Health
Athletes
Lead sponsor: Australian National University
Sponsor class: OTHER
Collaborators: name: Australian Institute of Sport
First posted: 2009-07-16
Enrollment: 59
Sex: ALL
Minimum age (years): 18
Standard ages: ADULT
OLDER_ADULT
Accepts healthy volunteers: yes
Allocation: RANDOMIZED
Intervention model: PARALLEL

Brief summary: 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: 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.

Eligibility criteria: Inclusion Criteria:

* Invited through sports organisation
* Elite athlete
* Able to read English

Exclusion Criteria:

* None.

Primary outcomes:
measure: Help-seeking attitudes (Attitudes Toward Seeking Professional Psychological Help: Shortened Form, ATSPPH-SF)
timeFrame: Baseline, post, 3 month, and 6 month follow-up
Secondary outcomes:
measure: Help-seeking behaviour, and Help-seeking intentions (General Help-Seeking Questionnaire, GHSQ)
timeFrame: Baseline, post, 3 month, and 6 month follow-up
Other outcomes:
Locations:
city: Canberra
country: Australia
facility: The Centre for Mental Health Research, The Australian National University
state: Australian Capital Territory
Study officials:
affiliation: The Centre for Mental Health Research, The Australian National University
name: Amelia Gulliver, BA, BAppPsych, BScPsych (Hons)
role: PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOR
affiliation: The Centre for Mental Health Research, The Australian National University
name: Kathy Griffiths, BSc (Hons), PhD
role: STUDY_CHAIR
affiliation: The Centre for Mental Health Research, The Australian National University
name: Helen Christensen, BA (Hons), MPsych, PhD
role: STUDY_DIRECTOR
References:
citation: Gulliver A, Griffiths KM, Christensen H, Mackinnon A, Calear AL, Parsons A, Bennett K, Batterham PJ, Stanimirovic R. Internet-based interventions to promote mental health help-seeking in elite athletes: an exploratory randomized controlled trial. J Med Internet Res. 2012 Jun 29;14(3):e69. doi: 10.2196/jmir.1864.