The International Society of Sport Psychology, the University of Southern Denmark and Team Denmark is launching an international think tank on Olympic athletes’ mental health. This is the first example of a new ISSP initiative: The Annual International Think-Tank.
Think-Tank 2018:
The Mental Health of Olympic Athletes (Odense, Denmark, Sept. 20-21, 2018)
The International Society of Sport Psychology, the University of Southern Denmark and Team Denmark is launching an international think tank on Olympic athletes’ mental health. This is the first example of a new ISSP initiative: The Annual International Think-Tank.
Mental health is a major resource for Olympic athletes and aspirants in relation to their performance and development. However, athletes experience additional mental health risk factors compared to non-athletic populations, such as high training loads and overtraining syndrome, tough competitions, transitional challenges, identity crises, substance misuse, and a stressful lifestyle.
The participants of the think tank will discuss: 1) key concepts and definitions related to Olympic athlete mental health,2) methods of doing research in mental health and bridging these to applied practice, and 3) future perspectives. From these discussions, the collaborators will co-author a consensus statement publication, which will be printed in the International Journal of Sport and Exercise Psychology. Participants in the Think Tank will be top researchers and practitioners in mental health, and representatives of key sport psychology societies from around the world, including the Chinese Olympic Committee, FEPSAC, USOC, AASP, ASPASP, FIFA, Team Denmark, and ISSP.
The Think Tank will be hosted by the University of Southern Denmark. It will take place in Odense, Denmark on September 20-21, 2018. More information about this Think-Tank will be released soon.