Mental Toughness May Have an Impact on Athlete's Performance: Systematic Review

Abstract

Psychological health spans several domains, including mental health and quality of life. Mental Toughness is the most widely used but its understanding is limited when applied in sports psychology. Mental Toughness can affect athlete’s performance, Mental Toughness plays an important role in maintaining overall athlete performance during intense matches. The total number of articles obtained at the beginning of the search matched the keywords that has been set is 33 articles. Furthermore, of the remaining 12 articles were identified after an extensive search of the literature in accordance to the PRISMA guidelines, there were four articles included in the exclusion criteria with details, two articles included in the qualitative articles, one article was a duplicate article, and one article was a case study article after a critical appraisal was carried out. The results of a systematic review on twelve articles, the authors found an effect of mental toughness on improving athlete performance. Each of the results found resulted in three major themes, namely: (1) the relationship between mental toughness, mindfulness, and psychological skills in athletes. (2) factors impact athletes' performance, well-being, and ability to handle challenges in sports. (3) the influence of various demographic and educational factors on mental toughness in athletes. The study emphasizes Mental Toughness's impact on both physical performance and mental health in athletes, highlighting its role in managing stress and pressure during sports challenges. Additionally, it underlines the importance of implementing Mental Toughness and mindfulness training programs, along with providing robust psychological support, to enhance athletes' mental strength and overall well-being in sports..