Exploring Mental Health Experiences in Professional Cricket

虽然职业板球的心理健康受到了公众的广泛关注，但目前，缺乏关于职业板球心理健康的实证研究和权威数据（McCabe et al., 2021）。板球是一项重视不犯错误和不容忍失败的游戏，职业游戏中的职业生涯与极端的高潮和低谷，远离家庭的大量时间以及对个人表现的增强有关，这是一个独特的组合，有可能影响球员在整个职业生涯中的心理健康。职业板球职业生涯的独特性使得心理健康成为研究人员和更广泛的板球多学科团队探索的重要领域（McCabe等人，2021）。因此，迄今为止的研究强调，需要收集有关职业板球心理健康的更严格证据，以便能够设计、实施和评估板球特定的支持和干预方案（McCabe等人，2021年；Vella等人，2020年）。因此，我们的研究项目将通过调查职业板球运动员心理健康的经历、障碍和促进因素来补充现有的文献。然后，该项目将能够为主要板球利益相关者（如各县、PCA、英格兰和威尔士板球委员会和国际板球理事会）制定建议、政策指导方针和实际干预措施。因此，我们研究项目的两个主要目的是：(1)探索职业板球运动员心理健康的经验、障碍和促进因素；(2)提供和评估职业板球运动员的组织心理健康干预。为了实现这些目标，我们的项目将包括三项研究。首先，横断面研究将在英国男性和女性职业板球的特定、独特背景下定义心理健康，通过发现它对游戏中的关键利益相关者（例如，首席执行官、板球总监、PCA/ECB/Opening up负责人、球员、教练、理疗师、医生、心理学家、学院教练和球员）的意义。第二项研究将探讨职业板球运动员的心理健康经历，导致这些经历的主要障碍和促进因素，以及这些障碍和促进因素在整个赛季中普遍存在的时间。第二项研究将采用定性的纵向方法，包括对一组球员的反复访谈，以跟踪他们的心理健康经历，以及导致这些经历在典型板球赛季中发生变化的原因。在研究1和2的基础上，第三项研究将检查和评估提供组织干预的有效性、功效和实用性，以保护和增强职业板球运动员在职业生涯中的心理健康，减少职业板球运动员在心理健康和寻求帮助方面的耻辱。总的来说，我们的项目将围绕职业板球的心理健康建立一个有价值的证据基础，从中可以向主要利益相关者和组织提供建议、政策指导和干预措施。参考文献mccabe， T., Peirce， N., Gorczynski， P., & Heron， N.（2021）。对板球运动中精神疾病的叙述性审查及其对精神卫生支持的建议。中华体育杂志，7(1),391 - 391。https://doi.org/10.1136/bmjsem-2020-000910Vella， S., Swann， C., & Tamminen， K.（2020）。反思在体育领域的心理健康：关键问题和前进的方式。运动心理学报，33(1),123-129。https://doi.org/10.1080/10413200.2020.1854898

While mental health in professional cricket has received lots of public attention, presently, there is a lack of empirical research and definitive data around mental health in the professional game (McCabe et al., 2021). Cricket is a game that places a premium on not making mistakes and the intolerance of failure, and a career in the professional game is one associated with extreme highs and lows, extensive time away from family and an enhanced individual focus on performance which is a unique combination that has the potential to impact players mental health across their career. The unique nature of a career in professional cricket makes mental health an important area of exploration for researchers and the wider cricket multidisciplinary teams (McCabe et al., 2021). Hence, research to date has highlighted the need to collect more rigorous evidence around mental health in professional cricket to be able to design, implement and evaluate cricket specific support and intervention programmes (McCabe et al., 2021; Vella et al., 2020). Therefore, our research project will add to the extant literature by investigating the experiences, barriers, and facilitators of mental health in professional cricket. The project will then enable the development of recommendations, policy guidelines and practical interventions for key cricket stakeholders (e.g., Counties, PCA, England and Wales Cricket Board, and International Cricket Council). Hence, the two main aims of our research project are to: (1) to explore the experiences, barriers, and facilitators of mental health in professional cricket, (2) deliver and evaluate an organisational mental health intervention in professional cricket.To achieve these aims our project will comprise three studies. First, a cross-sectional study will define mental health in the specific, unique context of UK male and female professional cricket through discovering what it means to the key stakeholders within the game (e.g., CEO's, Directors of cricket, Heads of the PCA/ECB/Opening up, Players, Coaches, Physios, Doctors, Psychologists, Academy coaches and Players). The second studywill explore professional cricketer's experiences of mental health, the key barriers and facilitators that lead to those experiences and when these barriers and facilitators are prevalent across the course of a season. This second study will use a qualitative, longitudinal approach including repeated interviews with a group of players to track their mental health experiences and what leads to these experiences changing across the course of a typical cricket season. Building on from studies 1 and 2, the third study will examine and evaluate the effectiveness, efficacy, and practicalities of delivering an organisational intervention, to protect and enhance professional cricketer's mental health during their career and reduce the stigma around mental health and help-seeking in professional cricket.Overall, our project will build a valuable evidence base around mental health in professional cricket, from which, recommendations, policy guidance, and interventions can be provided to key stakeholders and organisations.ReferencesMcCabe, T., Peirce, N., Gorczynski, P., & Heron, N. (2021). Narrative review of mental illness in cricket with recommendations for mental health support. BMJ Open Sport & Exercise Medicine, 7(1), e000910. https://doi.org/10.1136/bmjsem-2020-000910Vella, S., Swann, C., & Tamminen, K. (2020). Reflections on the Field of Mental Health in Sport: Critical Issues and Ways of Moving Forward. Journal Of Applied Sport Psychology, 33(1), 123-129. https://doi.org/10.1080/10413200.2020.1854898