Stress and Mental Well-Being Experiences of Professional Football Coaches

The stress experiences and their impact upon the daily lives and mental well-being of English Premier League professional (soccer) football coaches were explored using an in-depth qualitative design. Eight participants were interviewed using a semi-structured approach with thematic and causal network analysis revealing that (a) a range of contextually dependent demands were experienced and interpreted in relation to their situational properties; (b) many demands were appraised and emotionally responded to in a negative manner; (c) a range of coping strategies were adopted to cope with stress experiences, with many reported as ineffective; and (d) stress experiences often led to negative implications for their daily lives and eudaimonic and hedonic well-being. Positive adaptations to some demands experienced were reported and augmented perceptions of mental wellbeing. The findings of this study make a novel and significant contribution to understanding the interrelationships between the principal components of the stress process and the prospective links between stress and mental well-being.

Automated summary

The study reveals that English Premier League professional football coaches often experience negative emotional responses to stress and employ ineffective coping strategies. These stress experiences typically result in negative implications for their daily lives and well-being, but positive adaptations to certain demands can enhance perceptions of mental health.