Effect of 8-week psychological skills training program on mental toughness, mood profile and athletic mental energy

The purpose of this study is to assess the impact of an 8-week psychological skills training program consisting of weekly 40-minute sessions on the mental endurance, mood profile, and athletic mental energy levels of young female football players. This study utilized a non-equivalent control-group pre test-post test design. The population of the study consists of athletes (N = 20) from the Beylerbeyi Women's Football Team competing in the 2nd League. The experimental group of athletes had a scheduled psychological skill training program lasting 40 minutes once a week for a duration of 8 weeks. In contrast, the control group of athletes maintained their everyday routines without any intervention. In order to determine the mental endurance, mood profile, and athletic mental energy levels of the participants, the "Mental Toughness Scale in Sports, Mood Profile Questionnaire, and Athletic Mental Energy Scale" were applied to both groups as pre-test and post-test. The collected data were analyzed on a computer using SPSS 25.0 statistical software. The statistical study involved the application of an Independent Sample T Test and a Paired T Test. Based on the research analysis, it was found that the mental endurance and mood pre-test levels of the athletes were similar across different groups. However, there was a difference in the fatigue-free sub-dimension of athletic mental energy, with the control group exhibiting higher pre-test levels. The study revealed notable differences in the post-test levels of the athletes in the experimental group compared to those in the control group. The experimental group exhibited increased levels in the confidence sub-dimension of mental toughness as well as in all sub-dimensions of mood profiles. The study also found that there is a difference in the sub-dimensions of athletic mental energy, such as confidence, motivation, and calmness, in favor of the experimental group. The research has shown that an 8-week program of psychological skills training influences the following elements: mental endurance; confidence, mood profile; fatigue/stagnation, vigor/activity, athletic mental energy; vigor, confidence, and motivation. Furthermore, evaluations conducted on the control group revealed that the pre-test and post-test measurements of mood and athletic mental energy exhibited similarity. However, there was a disparity observed in the confidence sub-dimension of mental endurance measurements.