Assessing the impact of sports and team sports participation on mental health and empowerment at the individual and societal levels: Insights from a Scopus bibliometric analysis

Abstract

Introduction: This study comprehensively examined the impact of sports and team sports participation on mental health and empowerment at both the individual and societal levels, focusing on improvements in psychological attributes. A Scopus bibliometric analysis and narrative review were performed to explore this relationship, which has previously been insufficiently explored. Materials and methods: Documents were retrieved from the Scopus database using a specific Boolean expression. After reviewing titles and abstracts, 230 relevant documents were selected. Bibliometric analysis was performed using VOSviewer software, incorporating performance analysis and science mapping techniques, including co-authorship, co-occurrence, bibliographic coupling, and co-citation analyses. Then, a narrative review was performed to examine the key themes identified through the bibliometric analysis. Results: Co-occurrence analysis of author keywords revealed two primary research clusters: one focused on the connection between physical and mental health in sports, and the other on the empowerment benefits of sports participation for individuals and society. Co-citation analysis identified strong relationships among key authors in the field. Co-authorship analysis emphasized the importance of international collaboration in addressing complex issues in sports and mental health research. The narrative review found that sports participation generally has positive effects on mental health across diverse populations, including children, adolescents, and individuals with disabilities. Team sports are typically associated with greater psychosocial benefits than individual sports. Additionally, sports participation has been linked to improvements in cognitive function, emotional regulation, resilience, and social skills. Discussion: The findings highlight the crucial role of sports in promoting mental health and psychological empowerment. This study offers a comprehensive framework for understanding the impact of sports participation at both individual and societal levels. The insights gained can inform policies and interventions aimed at encouraging greater sports participation. Limitations include the reliance on a single database and the potential exclusion of relevant articles owing to the search criteria. Conclusions: This study provides valuable insights into the complex relationships between sports participation, mental health, and psychological empowerment. Future research should focus on longitudinal studies that track the effects of increased sports participation across diverse populations and types of sports.