Conceptualisation, measurement, and associated factors of eudaimonic well-being of athletes: a systematic review

ABSTRACT

Eudaimonic well-being among athletes is a growing area of research, although systematic evaluations of the conceptualisation and measurement of eudaimonic well-being among athletes remain limited. Eudaimonic well-being has been defined in several ways but generally refers to positive human functioning encompassed by various psychological characteristics such as personal growth. The purposes of the study were to systematically review the conceptualisations and measurements of the eudaimonic well-being of athletes and to summarise the potential antecedents of eudaimonic well-being and the effects of interventions. A systematic review was conducted following the PRISMA 2020 guidelines. The Mixed Methods Appraisal Tool was used to assess the risk of bias. Electronic databases (e.g., APA PsycINFO, PubMed, Scopus, SPORTDiscuss, Web of Science, and Google Scholar) and manual searches during February 2022 identified 1866 potential articles published over about a half-century (1974–2022). After screening based on the inclusion (e.g., elite or non-elite athlete samples) and exclusion criteria (e.g., review studies), 38 articles constituting over 8,585 research participants satisfying eligibility criteria were included in the review. The results illustrated that more than half of the selected studies applied Ryff’s model and Ryff’s measurement of psychological well-being to investigate athletes’ eudaimonic well-being. A variety of participant characteristics and psychological factors, including self-determined motivation, need satisfaction, and personality-related variables (e.g., self-compassion), were significantly associated with eudaimonic well-being among athletes. Lastly, mindfulness-related intervention programmes positively impacted the development of athletes’ eudaimonic well-being. The findings provide significant insight into understanding athletes’ mental health and performance from a eudaimonic perspective.

KEYWORDS:

• Athlete well-being
• eudaimonia
• mental health
• positive psychology
• psychological well-being
• sport for development‌

Acknowledgement

The authors thank anonymous reviewers for constructive feedback and Dr. Annear Michael for his suggestions on this manuscript.

Authors’ contribution

KK and SS contributed to the conception and design of the study. All authors contributed to the organisation of the data and data analysis. KK wrote the first draft of the manuscript. All authors contributed to manuscript revision, read, and approved the submitted version.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Funding

The current study was not provided any financial support.