Evidence map›Paper›PMID 39673648›Full record

SynthesisJournal of religion and health2025

The Relationship Between Spirituality and Sports from the Point of View of Sports Psychology Researchers: A Systematic Review of Research Over Two Decades.

Hossein Shirvani, Minoo Asadzandi, Amin Amini

Abstract readSystematic Review
PubMed Publisher
In one paragraph

Synthesis in Journal of religion and health, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 3 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
3citing papers in PubMed, 1 pooled it
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

3 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.

  1. Pooled it
  2. Article
  3. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

3 authors.

Hossein ShirvaniExercise Physiology Research Center, Life Style Institute, Baqiyatallah University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran. shirvani@bmsu.ac.ir.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-0696-958X
Minoo AsadzandiMedicine, Quran, and Hadith Research Center, Baqiyatallah University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0001-5149-6374
Amin AminiDepartment of Artificial Intelligence and Cognitive Sciences, Imam Hossein University, Teheran, Iran.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-5744-9410

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

This systematic review investigates the relationship between spirituality and sports as explored by sports psychology researchers over the past two decades. Utilizing four reputable databases-Psychology and Behavioral Science Collection, PubMed, Web of Science, and Scopus-articles published between 2000 and 2023 were examined. Sixty-one articles met inclusion criteria for the final review. The study categorizes findings based on article frequency across two decades, participant demographics (athletes, coaches, students, psychologists, injured individuals, managers, and sports professionals), research methodologies (qualitative, quantitative, review studies, and ethnography), and data collection methods (library research, questionnaires, interviews, open-ended inquiries, observations, and documentation). Notably, the number of articles published in the second decade (2011-2023) doubled compared to the first decade (2000-2010). While professional athletes were the primary focus of 30 articles, a significant portion (18 articles) examined spirituality in relation to sports. The predominant method approaches were text analysis and surveys, with 14 and 13 articles, respectively. Data collection methods primarily involved library research, questionnaires, and interviews, with 26, 17, and 17 articles, respectively. The analysis highlights several thematic categories, including the relationship between spirituality and sports performance, spirituality's role in shaping sports culture, and the intersection of spirituality and religion within sports. Additionally, discussions delve into the religious identity of athletes and the impact of spirituality on various psychological variables within sports contexts. The research findings suggest a complex and nuanced relationship between spirituality and sport, but evidence regarding a cause-and-effect relationship remains inconclusive.

Indexed as

AthletesPsychology, SportsResearch PersonnelSpiritualitySportsHumansReligion Clerics/ChaplainsSpiritualitySportSystematic review

Identifiers

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.