Interventions for the Mind, Body, and Spirit of NCAA Student-Athletes: An Evidence to Practice Review

Abstract

Life as an athlete in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) can enrich and play an integral part in a young student-athlete's development. Consequently, this lifestyle comes with its own stressors that affect one’s physical, spiritual, and psychosocial well-being. These issues can affect various aspects of a student-athlete’s life, including their performance in sports, school, and social settings. Recent studies have begun connecting these domains directly to the health and well-being of NCAA student-athletes, leading to new evidence focused on the best intervention protocols for the biopsychosocial-spiritual (BPSS) model of health. A systematic review was conducted using five electronic databases. Twenty studies were included in this review, each assessing how effective existing interventions were at helping the health outcomes of BPSS factors in NCAA student-athletes specifically. The most used interventions in the reviewed literature included cognitive behavioral therapy, cognitive dissonance, and mindfulness. Results suggested that the interventions had positive BPSS effects on student-athlete stressors. This data can be especially beneficial for healthcare providers, such as athletic trainers, who work directly with them daily. The overall health of NCAA student-athletes should be considered when creating treatment protocols and BPSS-based programs should be incorporated due to their demonstrated positive effects.