Psychol Sport Exerc. 2026 Sep 9:103259. doi: 10.1016/j.psychsport.2026.103259. Online ahead of print.
ABSTRACT
Organised sport provides an accessible environment for mental health promotion, particularly for adolescent males. The aim of this study was to conduct a cluster-randomised controlled trial evaluating the effectiveness of Ahead of the Game, a sport-based mental health literacy and resilience program, compared to an active control who received promotional materials. Forty-four Australian community sport clubs were stratified by sport and block randomised, in varying sizes, to receive either Ahead of the Game (n = 20) or the active control (n = 24). A total of 704 adolescent males aged 12-21 years (n = 349 intervention, 14 clusters; n = 355 active control, 18 clusters) completed surveys at baseline and follow-up, approximately 6 weeks post-intervention. Intention-to-treat analysis using mixed-effects modelling was used to account for clustering at the team level. The findings showed that compared to the active control, Ahead of the Game participants demonstrated significantly greater increases in resilience (differential change = 1.60, 95% CI 0.47 – 2.74, p = .005) and intentions to seek help from formal sources (differential change = 0.50, 95% CI 0.20 – 0.80, p = .001). Significant improvements were also observed for secondary outcomes, confidence to provide help and reduced endorsement of mental illness stereotypes. These findings extend those of the previous Ahead of the Game matched-control trial in providing evidence that the program produces benefits beyond low-cost social marketing approaches, despite modest engagement with the intervention components (∼55% attended at least one workshop). Future research is needed to examine the longer-term outcomes and cost-effectiveness of the program.
PMID:42716331 | DOI:10.1016/j.psychsport.2026.103259
