Offsides! Surveying mental health in sport officials across Canada

Carter, Tori B. (2024) Offsides! Surveying mental health in sport officials across Canada. Masters thesis, Memorial University of Newfoundland.

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Abstract

The objective of this study was to establish a baseline of knowledge surrounding sport officials’ mental health in Canada. A survey comprised of several adapted validated questionnaires was distributed to sport officials across Canada. 229 participants (77.9% male; Mage = 42.2 years) completed this survey, representing 10 sports. Results indicated a prevalence of mental health symptoms including depression (18.8%), post traumatic stress disorder (15.0%), attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (12.6%), generalized anxiety disorder (6.2%), and eating disorders (3.6%). 16.6% of officials warranted a diagnosis of a mild mental disorder, 12.5% of a moderate mental disorder, and 9.4% of a severe mental disorder. While officiating, 5.1% felt sexually harassed in the past year, 16.8% reported exposure to physical violence, and 44.4% reported being threatened, bullied, or harassed. Significant differences were present between genders on the Mental Health Literacy Scale (p = .01), Kessler 10 (p = .007), and Patient Health Questionnaire 4 (p = .001) and indicated that female officials have higher mental health literacy, but more distress than their male counterparts. The high prevalence of mental health outcomes reported by sport officials in Canada supports the current literature indicating that mental health is affecting sport officials.

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