Date of Presentation
5-5-2022 12:00 AM
College
School of Osteopathic Medicine
Poster Abstract
Due to the Covid-19 pandemic, many organized sports programs have been canceled or limited in participation. While research prior to the pandemic has strongly suggested that participation in organized sports has benefits for mental and physical health, especially in adolescence, there have been minimal studies on how the removal of organized sports affects mental health outcomes. Additionally, studies have found that the stress of the pandemic and its associated life changes has greatly decreased mental health outcomes in our target population. These findings may indicate the importance of return to organized sports in a time where mental health outcomes are already low in our communities.
Our study is one of the first to analyze this important relationship between the closures of sports, the return to sports, and their associated impact on mental health in the wake of the pandemic in New Jersey. With sports starting to open back up in the area, evaluating the impact that this lapse in participation has had on the athlete’s mental health is increasingly important.
Keywords
COVID-19, Youth Sports, Adolescent, Mental Health
Disciplines
Family Medicine | Medicine and Health Sciences | Pediatrics | Psychiatric and Mental Health | Psychiatry
Document Type
Poster
Included in
Family Medicine Commons, Pediatrics Commons, Psychiatric and Mental Health Commons, Psychiatry Commons
The Impact on Adolescent Mental Health in South Jersey Due To the Cancelation and Return of Sports
Due to the Covid-19 pandemic, many organized sports programs have been canceled or limited in participation. While research prior to the pandemic has strongly suggested that participation in organized sports has benefits for mental and physical health, especially in adolescence, there have been minimal studies on how the removal of organized sports affects mental health outcomes. Additionally, studies have found that the stress of the pandemic and its associated life changes has greatly decreased mental health outcomes in our target population. These findings may indicate the importance of return to organized sports in a time where mental health outcomes are already low in our communities.
Our study is one of the first to analyze this important relationship between the closures of sports, the return to sports, and their associated impact on mental health in the wake of the pandemic in New Jersey. With sports starting to open back up in the area, evaluating the impact that this lapse in participation has had on the athlete’s mental health is increasingly important.