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ORIGINAL RESEARCH article

Front. Sports Act. Living
Sec. Sport Psychology
Volume 6 - 2024 | doi: 10.3389/fspor.2024.1416045
This article is part of the Research Topic Online Assessment in Health and Sport Psychology View all 3 articles

Determining the Acceptance of e-Mental Health Interventions in Elite Athletes Using the Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology

Provisionally accepted
Sheila Geiger Sheila Geiger 1,2*Julia Aufderlandwehr Julia Aufderlandwehr 1,2Anna Julia Esser Anna Julia Esser 1,2Theresa Schadendorf Theresa Schadendorf 1,2Thomas Muehlbauer Thomas Muehlbauer 3Eva-Maria Skoda Eva-Maria Skoda 1,2Martin Teufel Martin Teufel 1,2Alexander Bäuerle Alexander Bäuerle 1,2
  • 1 Clinic for Psychosomatic Medicine and Psychotherapy, LVR-University Hospital Essen, University of Duisburg-Essen, Essen, Germany, Essen, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany
  • 2 Center for Translational Neuro- and Behavioral Sciences, Essen University Hospital, Essen, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany
  • 3 Division of Movement and Training Sciences/Biomechanics of Sport, University of Duisburg-Essen, Essen, Germany, Essen, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

    Elite athletes are exposed to many different sport-specific stressors that may put them at particular risk for mental health symptoms and disorders. E-mental health interventions could be a feasible option to support elite athletes in need. The aim of the present study was to assess the acceptance of e-mental health interventions among elite athletes and explore its underlying drivers and barriers. A cross-sectional study was conducted with N = 382 elite athletes. Of these, N = 275 (71.99%, 167 females) were included in the statistical analyses. The impact of various sociodemographic, sport-related and medical characteristics on acceptance was assessed. EHealthrelated data and acceptance of e-mental health interventions were examined using a modified assessment based on the Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT). Overall, the acceptance of e-mental health interventions in elite athletes can be classified as high (M = 3.69 SD = 0.97). In the UTAUT regression model sex, financial situation, depression symptoms, digital confidence, digital overload as well as the UTAUT predictors performance expectancy, effort expectancy, and social influence significantly predicted acceptance. The UTAUT model has proven to be a valuable instrument to predict the acceptance of e-mental health interventions in elite athletes. Given the strong association between acceptance and future use, new interventions should focus on the explored factors to establish effective e-mental health interventions for elite athletes.

    Keywords: eHealth, UTAUT, Sports, Internet, Survey

    Received: 11 Apr 2024; Accepted: 10 Sep 2024.

    Copyright: © 2024 Geiger, Aufderlandwehr, Esser, Schadendorf, Muehlbauer, Skoda, Teufel and Bäuerle. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

    * Correspondence: Sheila Geiger, Clinic for Psychosomatic Medicine and Psychotherapy, LVR-University Hospital Essen, University of Duisburg-Essen, Essen, Germany, Essen, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany

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