According to the World Health Organization, mental health refers to a state of well-being and effective functioning in which an individual realizes his or her own abilities, is resilient to the stresses of life, and is able to make a positive contribution to his or her community. Mental health covers three main components, including psychological, emotional and social health. Further, psychological health has two distinct indicators, psychological well-being (e.g., self-esteem and quality of life) and psychological ill-being (e.g., pre-clinical psychological states such as psychological difficulties and high levels of stress). Emotional well-being describes how an individual feel about themselves (including life satisfaction, interest in life, loneliness, and happiness); and social well–being includes an individual’s contribution to, and integration in society.
Participation in sport has shown to positively impact mental and social health status, sports participation was associated with lower levels of perceived stress, and improved vitality, social functioning, mental health, and life satisfaction.
the evidence presented here indicates that for adults, sports participation is associated with better overall mental health, mood, higher life satisfaction, self-esteem, body satisfaction, Health Related Quality of Life, self-rated health, and frequency of laughter. Sports participation has also shown to be predictive of better psychological wellbeing over time, higher positive affect, and greater life satisfaction. Furthermore, higher frequency of sports participation and/or sport played at a higher level of competition, have been linked to lower levels of mental distress, higher levels of body satisfaction, self-esteem, and overall life satisfaction in adults.
