My dissertation unearthed several perceived barriers to seeking mental health services. One of the major barriers identified by participants had to do with the culture of sport itself. Generally, participants identified the culture of football as the predominant barrier to seeking professional mental health services.
As discussed in the previous post, sports play an important role in developing our sense of self—who we are and what we believe in—and most athletes will integrate lessons they learn from their coaches, teammates and sports participation into their personal values. Many of the participants stressed the importance of picking a school/football program that fit their individual strengths, and where they felt they would have a competitive advantage as a football player. Importantly, however, participants reported the best experiences when the team culture created by their coach mirrored their own personal values. Similarly, participants described the frustration and confusion, both as an athlete and as an individual, when it became clear that there was a mismatch between an athlete’s personal values and team culture.
Participants all felt that it was the coach who set the team culture, either explicitly or implicitly, and that the captains played a unique role in enforcing the culture in the locker room and on the field. They indicated some coaches are more intentional in setting the team culture and expectations for players through team meetings and setting team mottos for the upcoming season, while other coaches set the team culture implicitly by their recruiting and hiring decisions, their preferred style of play, playing time decisions, and punishment for various behaviors.
When players felt they were playing for a coach who shared their personal values and athletic values, they felt more supported, more confident, more trusting of the coach's decisions, and generally reported feeling a positive playing experience. However, when there was a mismatch between the player's values and those of the coach, they felt more insecure, more isolated, had worries about their success on the team, and were less likely to trust the intentions of their coaches. It seemed, in talking with the players, that transparency was a highly sought after value in coaches--players wanted to play for someone who was open and honest in their communication and decision making. In other words, they wanted to play for someone who they understood and who was consistent.
When working with younger athletes, I often try to help them think through and identify what values are important to them so they can then identify which coaches and programs would be a good match. The process of identifying important values can help the athlete set their own goals and mindset regardless of whether they have the luxury of choosing a team/program. When working with coaches or teams, I often start with a hypothetical --imagine it's the end of the season and a sports writer was writing an article about your team and the season...what do you hope they will write? What would you want them to notice was different about your team? This way of thinking helps folks start brainstorming what is at the core of their organization, team and their players. Once you can identify your values, how to set meaningful goals and standards for the season becomes much more clear and allows players to compete with intention.
***Based on results from my dissertation: "No pain, no gain: American football players' attitudes towards help-seeking and barriers to mental health service utilization" (2015).