The Effects of Psychological Skills Training on Mental Toughness and Psychological Well-Being of Student-Athletes

This study examined the effects of apsychological skills intervention (PST) designed to enhance the mentaltoughness and psychological well-being of student-athlete rowers (N = 16).Within this context, PWB was conceptualized by an amalgamation of the followingpsychological constructs; self-esteem, perceived self-efficacy, positive affectand dispositional optimism. Progress was examined at three times evenlydispersed over the course of the six-month intervention, pre-, mid- andpost-intervention. The intervention was solution-focused and informed byDweck’s (2009) theory of a growth mindset and Goldberg’s (1998) psychologicalstrategies to develop mental toughness. The study design was a 2 (group) × 3(time) two-way MANOVA with repeated measures on one factor (time). Variousmeasures of mental toughness and positive psychological constructs wereutilised. Over the course of the intervention, MT significantly improved, inaddition to perceived self-efficacy, self-esteem and positive affect. Positivesignificant relationships were observed between components of MT and each ofthe positive measures; which lends support to the conceptualization of MT as apositive psychological construct which fosters positive psychological states(Clough u0026 Strycharczyk, 2012). Further research is warranted to examine thedevelopment of MT on negative psychological constructs.