Anxiety, depression and post-traumatic stress disorder among female UiTM handball athletes during COVID-19 Pandemic: A case study

• Published in: Journal of Physical Education and Sport
• Main Author: Ayob N.N.; Tumijan W.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Editura Universitatii din Pitesti 2022
• Online Access: https://www.scopus.com/inward/record.uri?eid=2-s2.0-85140914706&doi=10.7752%2fjpes.2022.10306&partnerID=40&md5=4856498a8caa969510d62cc045dbc0dc

The COVID-19 pandemic has affected the athletes' social activity and management, especially during Movement Control Order (MCO). The preparation and schedules of the athletes were influenced by the problems and difficulties related to social distress, instability of the qualifying tournament and often refused access to a productive training environment, coaches, and teammates. It may cause disturbances in the mental health of the athletes. This study aimed to identify the anxiety level, post-traumatic stress disorder, and depression among female Universiti Teknologi MARA (UiTM) handball players during the COVID-19 pandemic. A cross-sectional research design was performed. A total of 110 UiTM handball players participated in the study. The Impact of Event Scale-Revised (IES-R) was used to measure post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). The Generalised Anxiety Disorder 7-items (GAD-7) and the Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9) were used to measure the anxiety level and depression, respectively. The mean IES-R reported a score of 34.50 (SD=15.19), which exceeded the cutoff score of 25 for a diagnosis of post-traumatic stress disorder. From three dimensions of PTSD, the highest score was reported on avoidance [mean (SD) = 13.92 (6.42)], followed by intrusion [mean (SD) = 13.01 (7.57)], and hyperarousal [mean (SD) = 7.57 (4.73)]. Of 110 respondents, only 13.60% (n = 15) were normal, while 65.50% (n=95) has mild to severe anxiety. Depression reported by only 5.50% (n = 6) respondents were normal, while 94.50% (n = 104) had minimal to severe depression. In conclusion, the athletes' anxiety levels, post-traumatic stress disorder, and depression are affected during the COVID-19 pandemic. The restriction and fear that occur during pandemics may trigger PTSD among athletes. The anxiety and depression reported had affected general people, and the results among athletes were similar. © 2022, Editura Universitatii din Pitesti. All rights reserved.