The possible effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on the psychology of Greek athletes
Keywords:
reappraisal, suppression, fear, COVID-19, athletesAbstract
Athletes who suffered severe negative effects from the COVID-19 pandemic were forced to change habits and significant restrictions were placed upon the exercise of their profession. The main purpose of this research is to investigate the psychological effects of athletes during the COVID-19 pandemic, by assessing the levels of fear of the disease and emotional regulation. The sample consisted of 331 athletes from a range of sports. In order to conduct this research, 2 questionnaires were used: (1) the Greek version of the "Emotion Regulation Questionnaire" (ERQ) and (2) the Greek version of the one-dimensional questionnaire for the "Fear of COVID-19" (Fear of COVID-19 scale). The statistical analysis was performed using with the SPSS v.23. The Greek athletes in the sample showed relatively high levels of reappraisal and moderate levels of suppression. Men showed higher levels of suppression than women, and as age increased there was a raise in reappraisal levels. Regarding the levels of fear of contracting COVID-19, low levels of fear were observed. Females showed higher levels of fear than men, and as the years of experience increased, the levels of fear of the COVID-19 disease decreased. Greek athletes had relatively high levels of reappraisal, moderate levels of suppression and low levels of fear about the disease COVID-19.
Key words: reappraisal; suppression; fear; COVID-19; athletes.
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