The influence of gender on the relationship between the basic psychological needs and mental health in high school student-athletes

High school sport presents opportunities for adolescents to build a solid foundation for positive mental health. Given recent calls to consider gender as a key variable when studying mental health, the purpose of the study was to investigate the influence of gender on the relationship between the satisfaction/frustration of the three basic psychological needs and mental health in high school student-athletes. A sample of 925 Canadian adolescents completed an online survey, reporting on sociodemographic variables and two scales: the Basic Psychological Need Satisfaction and Frustration Scale and the Mental Health Continuum - Short Form. Analyses included a moderation analysis in which the satisfaction or frustration of each basic psychological need was the independent variable, gender was the moderator variable, and mental health was the dependent variable. The direct relationships between the satisfaction of each basic psychological need and participants' positive mental health were positive and significant. Moreover, the frustration of the three basic psychological needs were significantly associated with lower levels of positive mental health. Gender was found to moderate two out of the six tested relationships (i.e., autonomy frustration and relatedness frustration), with the relationship between the dependent and independent variable being stronger for girls than boys. Results indicate the importance of creating sporting environments that satisfy student-athletes' basic psychological needs. Gender differences suggest that removing from sport participation elements that frustrate basic psychological needs is especially meaningful for girls. Research is also needed to expand conceptualisations of gender beyond a binary construct.