ArticleSuicide & life-threatening behavior2026
Improved Social Functioning Mediated the Effects of Adolescents' Sports Participation on Self-Harm and Psychological Wellbeing: A Prospective Cohort Study.
Article in Suicide & life-threatening behavior, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.
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.
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.
Who cites it
0 citing papers in PubMed.
No citing paper in PubMed yet.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
1 author.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
introductionThe prevalence of self-harm, regardless of the presence of suicidal intent or not, has been increasing, and effective and accessible intervention strategies are needed. This study investigated whether sports participation in adolescence serves as a protective factor against the future development of self-harm or poor psychological wellbeing, as well as the relevant psychosocial mechanisms.
methodsA secondary data analysis was conducted using a nationally representative cohort in the United Kingdom, in which participants (n = 7361, 55.4% female) completed measures of sports participation (age 17), the number of close friends (age 19), life satisfaction (age 20), and self-harm and poor psychological wellbeing (age 25).
resultsMore frequent sports participation was prospectively associated with a lower risk of self-harm and better psychological wellbeing. Path analyses supported a significant serial mediation model whereby the effects of sports participation on self-harm and psychological wellbeing are mediated by an increased number of close friends and higher levels of life satisfaction.
conclusionThese findings indicate that sports participation has potential value in optimizing mental health, particularly in reducing the likelihood of self-harm and improving psychological wellbeing. In addition, improved social relationships and life satisfaction mediated the impact of sports participation on self-harm and psychological wellbeing. Overall, the findings lay a solid foundation for further testing the benefit of encouraging sports participation among adolescents to optimize interpersonal functioning and mental health outcomes.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
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.