Elite gamers share mental toughness with top athletes
June 11, 2020
Science Daily/Queensland University of Technology
In one of the first studies to investigate mental toughness and stress and coping in high performing esports athletes, researchers have found similarities to traditional elite athletes.
High performing esports professionals may require the same mental stamina it takes to be a top Olympian, according to latest QUT research.
A new study, published in Frontiers in Psychology, indicated an overlap between the mental toughness and stress-coping processes in traditional sports and competitive esports athletes.
Competitive esports athletes appear to cope with stressors similarly to high-performing sports athletes
esports players with higher ranks tended to have higher levels of mental toughness
sports psychology interventions for high-performing sports athletes may also be beneficial to competitive esports athletes.
QUT esports researcher Dylan Poulus said 316 esports players aged 18 and over were studied from among the top 40 per cent of players.
"A disposition considered to be influential in sporting success is mental toughness and it appears to be important for success in esports," Mr Poulus said.
"To be a millionaire esports gamer you deal with stress similar as if you are getting ready to go to the Olympics.
"It is one of the fastest growing sports in the world, and with the coronavirus pandemic there has been huge interest."
The study used athletes who played Overwatch, Counter-Strike: Global Offensive, Rainbow Six: Siege, Defence of the Ancients 2 and League of Legends competitively.
Events can draw more than 60 million online views.
Mr Poulus said the study identified some of the mental skills required for optimal performance among gamers, including high levels of mental toughness, emotional control, and life control.
"Similar to traditional sports athletes, esports athletes with higher mental toughness employed more problem-focused coping strategies which aided in their success," he said.
However, the findings also showed how esports athletes with high mental toughness employed emotion-focused coping strategies like acceptance coping.
"By accepting the elements of their game that are beyond their control could lead to better performance," Mr Poulus said.
"Everything we see in sports psychology interventions that work with traditional sports is likely going to work with esports athletes."
Mr Poulus is completing his PhD at QUT's Faculty of Health school of Exercise and Nutrition Sciences.
The research, titled Stress and Coping in Esports and the Influence of Mental Toughness, was co-authored by Michael Trotter, Dr Tristan Coulter and Professor Remco Polman.
This study was one of the first studies to investigate mental toughness and stress and coping in performing esports athletes.
Further research is investigating what specifically causes stress to high performing esports athletes.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/06/200611104801.htm
Narcissism can lower stress levels and reduce chances of depression
October 29, 2019
Science Daily/Queen's University Belfast
People who have grandiose narcissistic traits are more likely to be 'mentally tough', feel less stressed and are less vulnerable to depression, research led by Queen's University Belfast has found.
While narcissism may be viewed by many in society as a negative personality trait, Dr Kostas Papageorgiou, who is Director of the InteRRaCt Lab in the School of Psychology at Queen's, has revealed that it could also have benefits. He has published two papers on narcissism and psychopathology in Personality and Individual Differences and European Psychiatry.
Dr Papageorgiou explains: "Narcissism is part of the 'Dark Tetrad' of personality that also includes Machiavellianism, Psychopathy and Sadism. There are two main dimensions to narcissism -- grandiose and vulnerable. Vulnerable narcissists are likely to be more defensive and view the behaviour of others as hostile whereas grandiose narcissists usually have an over inflated sense of importance and a preoccupation with status and power."
He adds: "Individuals high on the spectrum of dark traits, such as narcissism, engage in risky behaviour, hold an unrealistic superior view of themselves, are overconfident, show little empathy for others, and have little shame or guilt.
"However, what this research has questioned is -- if narcissism, as an example of the dark tetrad, is indeed so socially toxic, why does it persist and why is it on the rise in modern societies?"
The papers include three independent studies each involving more than 700 adults in total and highlights some positive sides of narcissism, such as resilience against symptoms of psychopathology.
A key finding of the research was that grandiose narcissism can increase mental toughness and this can help to offset symptoms of depression. It also found that people who score high on grandiose narcissism have lower levels of perceived stress and are therefore less likely to view their life as stressful.
The research is a fresh approach to the study of personality and psychopathology, highlighting that there are some positives to be found in terms of potential societal impact.
Dr Papageorgiou comments: "The results from all the studies that we conducted show that grandiose narcissism correlates with very positive components of mental toughness, such as confidence and goal orientation, protecting against symptoms of depression and perceived stress.
"This research really helps to explain variation in symptoms of depression in society -- if a person is more mentally tough they are likely to embrace challenges head on, rather than viewing them as a hurdle.
Dr Papageorgiou says: "While of course not all dimensions of narcissism are good, certain aspects can lead to positive outcomes.
"This work promotes diversity and inclusiveness of people and ideas by advocating that dark traits, such as narcissism, should not be seen as either good or bad, but as products of evolution and expressions of human nature that may be beneficial or harmful depending on the context.
"This move forward may help to reduce the marginalisation of individuals that score higher than average on the dark traits. It could also facilitate the development of research-informed suggestions on how best to cultivate some manifestations of these traits, while discouraging others, for the collective good."
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/10/191029080728.htm