Role of Religious Beliefs and Practices on the Mental Health of Athletes with Anterior Cruciate Ligament Injury

Abstract

The present study examined the effects of religion and spirituality practices and beliefs on emotional and psychological outcomes among professional athlete with anterior cruciate ligaments (ACL) injury. Methods: A sample of professional athletes (n = 50) with ACL injury and prior to surgery participated in this study.

Religiosity and Female Participation in Sport: Exploring the Perceptions of the Turkish University Students

“…Future research should also investigate health benefits of religiosity for athletes as there is a vast literature (e.g. [39,64]) depicting that religiosity play a central role in the process of reconstructing the coping strategies and reducing depression, anxiety and stress. Moreover, previous research conveyed associations between religiosity and substance misuse (i.e., alcohol, cigarette smoking) and potential doping behavior [65][66][67] which is another topic to be studied among Turkish athletes.…”

“…Various studies showed that athletes and coaches may use religion as a psychological support tool as they face stressors and challenges during training sessions and especially in competition [37][38][39]. They may also use aspects of religious practice to produce team cohesion [40].…”

“…What's more, a study found out that those who are spiritual and/or religious indicate better outcomes of mental health in a Muslim society [41]. Najah et al [39] stated that future studies on Muslim population require looking at elements accounting for these associations and need to be responsive to cultural and theological matters in their assessment.…”

Religious Belief vs. Religious Practice. What is More Beneficial to Elite Athletes? An Investigation of Religious/Spiritual Belief, and its Relationship to Challenge & Threat Appraisal

“…In a very recent paper, Najah, Farooq, and Rejeb (2017) used a quantitative approach to studying the effects of religiosity/spirituality practice on psychological outcomes. They assessed 50 professional athletes that had suffered anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injuries prior to their surgery.…”

“…Firstly, the majority of the studies in the literature only concern religious/spiritual practice. Just one paper (Najah et al, 2017) addresses the belief aspect of religiosity/spirituality as a potential determinant. Secondly, aside from Vernacchia et al (2000) and their study of Olympic athletes, the majority of the literature base is derived from findings with student-athletes, despite the fact that many practicing sport psychologists are looking for research that they can utilise for elite populations.…”