Comparison of mental health and its dimensions in athletic and non-athletic high school male students of boarding schools in Maroodasht city

Master's Thesis in the field

Physical Education and Sports Science - Motor Behavior Orientation

Comparison of mental health and its dimensions in male high school students, athletes and non-athletes in boarding schools in Morodasht city

The purpose of this research is to compare mental health and its dimensions in male students. He was an athlete and non-athlete high school student in boarding schools in Marovdasht city. For this purpose, 324 students of these schools participated in the research, of which 150 were athletes and 174 were non-athletes. The mental health questionnaire was completed by the participants. To test the research hypotheses, the t-statistic method in independent groups and two-way analysis of variance was used, and the significance level was considered to be 0.05 for all hypotheses. The results showed no significant difference in the general mental health score of the two groups. No significant difference was observed between the groups of athletic and non-athletic students in terms of physical symptoms, anxiety and insomnia, social dysfunction and depression. According to the findings of this research, it can be concluded that there is no significant difference in mental health between athletic and non-athletic students in boarding schools. style="direction: rtl;"> 

Today, extensive advances in technology have clearly affected the style and way of life of many human societies, which is more evident in industrialized countries. Despite the emergence of the energy crisis in the future of the world, there has been a significant decrease in the movement and physical activities of the people of the society, due to the appearance of the machine and the substitution of comfort and inactivity instead of physical effort. People are becoming more and more sedentary day by day, and many people only find the possibility to do physical and sports activities in their limited free time (Maddi and Niromand, 1369).

In the last decade, more attention has been paid to the role that sports and physical activities play in treating mental problems and improving mental health. In one of the studies, the benefits that have been documented as a result of physiological changes during exercise include improving mental status and mood and controlling anxiety and depression. Also, this research states that socio-cultural and psychological changes arising from sports and physical activity bring valuable mental health benefits (Carles and Douglas [1], 2010). 

"Physical activity [2]" is a set of activities that make a person's body and movements to be trained, thereby developing the beauty of a person and bringing him closer to absolute beauty. Of course, it should be acknowledged that the above definition is a general and comprehensive concept of all types of physical activities, competitive recreation; Therefore, in the definition of sport, the French Germainian [3] says: sport is activity and employment in idle hours, in which the aspect of movements is more than other aspects, and at the same time, it is an activity related to the game that can include movements and activities that indicate doing something. Therefore, such activities, which are conducted in a competitive manner, have special instructions and rules and it is possible to become a professional activity as well (Sha'bani Bahar, 2014).

The "school" educational system plays a very important role in health education and its promotion during childhood and after, and it improves the students' personality, attitude, skills and also their awareness. Training to increase the participation of adolescents and young people in physical activities is one of the important ways to support the promotion of effective behaviors in health (Azermi, 2011).

According to Tons[4] et al. Boarding schools [5] were established in order to create a suitable opportunity for the education of rural students and those on the outskirts of cities (Abbasian Esfarjani, [6] 2001).Ignoring the situation of teenagers studying in these schools may have adverse consequences; Because they start and go through their teenage years at school age, and this period is associated with certain deep psychological, biological and social changes (Katibe[7], 2001).

This is especially important for teenagers who are forced to be away from their families and have close relationships with entities other than their families. This social environment can have many effects on them. Studies have shown that issues such as anxiety, sadness, and social withdrawal may be observed in them. Because the stress level of students who live in boarding schools is higher than those who live with their parents (Chavoshifer [8], 2000). 

How many people have withdrawn from education in the very early stages of high school education due to mental stress and subsequently suffering from mental illnesses, or after entering university due to mental problems that they have suffered from previous years, their intellectual and practical efficiency has decreased, or their mental health has been compromised after leaving school (Hosseini, Mousavi and Rezazadeh[9], 2003).

Boarding schools have had their own supporters and opponents for a long time. Children and teenagers living in boarding schools are more likely to suffer from depression, homesickness and separation anxiety due to long-term separation from their parents and culture (Trober [10], 1999). The behavioral and academic performance of children and adolescents who attend boarding schools is higher than their counterparts who live with their families, and their self-esteem, communication and social skills are also lower. Nowadays, it is noticed that exercise is effective in promoting mental health in addition to physical health. Exercise plays an important role in mental health, so that in 2002 the motto of the World Health Organization[13] was "Exercise is the key to health" (Landers[14], 2005).

Attention to health dimensions is not only effective in improving health, but also provides a favorable environment for the flourishing of hidden talents. As Milanifer (1382), quoting Levinsen [15] and his colleagues, states that mental health is: how a person feels about himself, the world around him, the place where the people around him live, especially with regard to his responsibility towards others, how he compromises about himself and knows his location and time. The majority of psychiatrists consider the ability to compromise with the environment, the flexibility to judge fairly and rationally in the face of deprivations and pressures as criteria for mental health and balance (Milanifer, 2012).

Since the goal of mental health is not only to explain the causes of behavioral disorders, but its goal is to create factors that supplement a healthy and normal life and also treat minor behavioral disorders in order to prevent the occurrence of severe mental illnesses. In general, it can be said that the goal of mental health is "prevention" (Shamlo, 2012).

Therefore, it is necessary to prioritize research on the relationship between mental health and its dimensions in students with sports, especially in the teenage years, so that perhaps through this way, it is possible to provide a small contribution to the improvement of the mental health of these future makers of the country. Therefore, this research is also an attempt to investigate the possible effect of regular physical and sports activities on mental health and its dimensions in students who were studying in boarding schools. 

1-2- Statement of the problem

Recently, researchers in the field of sports psychology [16] have focused their studies on the role of "physical activity" on physical and mental health. (Abdali, 1386). This focus has increased due to the investigations of the World Health Organization and the increase of disorders, especially in the dimensions of mental health (Ministry of Health, 2018). Currently, the role of physical activity and regular exercise on physical and mental health has been proven, so that the results of studies also show the positive role of activity on improving the mentioned dimensions (Festing [17], 1992).