Sports Psychology

Sports Psychology

Relationship Between Defense Mechanisms and Suicidal Ideation in Professional Athletes: The Mediating Role of Interpersonal Problems

Document Type : Original Article

Authors
Maryam Gholami 1
Sajjad Basharpoor 2
Zahra Salmani Givi 3
1 PhD student in Psychology, Department of Psychology, Faculty of Educational Sciences and Psychology, University of Mohaghegh Ardabili, Ardabil, Iran.
2 Professor, Department of Psychology, Faculty of Educational Sciences and Psychology, University of Mohaghegh Ardabili, Ardabil, Iran.
3 Master's degree in General Psychology, Department of Psychology, Qom Branch, Islamic Azad University, Qom, Iran.
10.48308/mbsp.2023.10680.1199
Abstract
Purpose: The present study aimed to model the mediating role of interpersonal problems in the relationship between defense mechanisms and suicidal ideation in professional athletes using structural equation modeling.
Methods: The research design was descriptive–correlational. The statistical population consisted of all professional athletes in Kermanshah Province in 2022, from whom 220 participants were selected through convenience sampling. The research instruments included the Defense Mechanisms Questionnaire–40 developed by Andrews et al. (1993), the Inventory of Interpersonal Problems–47 by Pilkonis et al. (1996), and the Suicide Cognitions Scale developed by Rudd et al. (2010). Data were analyzed using structural equation modeling.
Results: The results indicated that the indirect path coefficients between mature defense mechanisms and suicidal ideation (β = −0.134, P<0.01), immature defense mechanisms and suicidal ideation (β=0.153, P< 0.01), and neurotic defense mechanisms and suicidal ideation (β = 0.165, P< 0.01) were statistically significant.
Conclusion: The findings demonstrated that maladaptive defense mechanisms increase the risk of suicidal ideation in professional athletes through the intensification of interpersonal problems. Accordingly, psychological interventions in sport should emphasize the modification of defensive patterns and the enhancement of interpersonal skills as preventive strategies within athletes’ mental health programs.
 
Keywords
Suicide
Interpersonal Difficulties
Defense Mechanisms
Professional Athletes
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Sports Psychology
Volume 15, Issue 1
2023
Pages 238-252

  • Receive Date 26 August 2022
  • Revise Date 02 November 2022
  • Accept Date 16 April 2023