Psychological Resilience in Female Athletes: A Meta-Analytic Review of Individual and Contextual Correlates (2000–2025)

Kadın Sporcularda Psikolojik Dayanıklılık: Bireysel ve Bağlamsal Korelasyonların Meta-Analitik İncelemesi (2000–2025)

Hatice Gezer¹

¹Sarıkamış Meslek Yüksekokulu, Kafkas Üniversitesi, TÜRKİYE, gezerhatice17@gmail.com https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7291-4002

DOI: https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.17682315

https://www.ijoss.org/Archive/issue2-volume2/ijoss-Volume2-issue2-26.pdf

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Received / Gönderim: 08.04.2025 Accepted / Kabul: 19.06.2025 Published / Yayın: 30.06.2025

Abstract

Objective: This meta-analytic review aimed to examine the overall effect of individual and contextual factors on psychological resilience among female athletes.

Method: Systematic review and meta-analysis design was used in this study. A comprehensive literature search was conducted across eight major academic databases (PubMed, Web of Science, Scopus, PsycINFO, SPORTDiscus, ProQuest, PsycARTICLES, and SAGE Journals) for quantitative studies published between 2000 and 2025. The inclusion criteria required that studies focus exclusively on female athletes and report statistically codable data related to psychological resilience or mental toughness. Data were extracted from 39 eligible studies, encompassing a total sample of 6,349 participants. A random-effects model was employed to compute pooled effect sizes (β) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs). Subgroup analyses were conducted based on sport type, competition level, measurement tools, sample size, and age group.

Result: The overall meta-analytic effect was statistically significant and moderate in magnitude (β = 0.403; 95% CI = 0.373–0.433), indicating that various individual and environmental factors are positively associated with psychological resilience among female athletes. Heterogeneity was moderate (I² = 31.2%). Subgroup analyses revealed significantly stronger effects among elite athletes (β = 0.430) and participants aged ≥22 (β = 0.398), compared to their counterparts. Although sport type and measurement tools showed directional differences, the subgroup differences were not statistically significant. The findings underscore the multifactorial nature of resilience in sport contexts. This meta-analysis provides robust empirical evidence for the psychological correlates of resilience in female athletes. The findings suggest that both demographic and methodological variables contribute to the observed variance in resilience levels. Keywords: psychological resilience, mental toughness, female athletes, meta-analysis, sport psychology, elite athletes, individual differences, subgroup analysis

Özet

Amaç: Bu meta-analitik inceleme, kadın sporcular arasında psikolojik dayanıklılık üzerindeki bireysel ve bağlamsal faktörlerin genel etkisini incelemeyi amaçlamıştır.

Yöntem: Bu çalışmada sistematik derleme ve meta-analiz tasarımı kullanılmıştır. 2000 ile 2025 yılları arasında yayınlanmış niceliksel çalışmalar sekiz büyük akademik veritabanında (PubMed, Web of Science, Scopus, PsycINFO, SPORTDiscus, ProQuest, PsycARTICLES ve SAGE Journals) kapsamlı bir literatür taranmıştır. Çalışmaya dahil etme kriterleri, katılımcıların yalnızca kadın sporculara odaklanmasını ve psikolojik dayanıklılık veya zihinsel dayanıklılıkla ilgili istatistiksel olarak kodlanabilir verileri bildirmesini gerektirmiştir. Veriler, toplam 6.349 katılımcıyı kapsayan 39 uygun çalışmadan çıkarılmıştır. Birleştirilmiş etki büyüklüklerini (β) ve %95 güven aralıklarını (GA) hesaplamak için rastgele etki modeli kullanılmıştır. Alt grup analizleri spor türü, yarışma düzeyi, ölçüm araçları, örneklem büyüklüğü ve yaş grubuna göre yürütülmüştür.

Sonuç: Genel meta-analitik etki istatistiksel olarak anlamlı ve orta büyüklükte bulgulanmıştır (β = 0,403; %95 CI = 0,373–0,433), bu da çeşitli bireysel ve çevresel faktörlerin kadın sporcular arasında psikolojik dayanıklılıkla pozitif ilişkili olduğunu göstermektedir. Heterojenlik orta düzeyde tespit edilmiştir. (I² = %31,2). Alt grup analizlerinde, elit sporcular (β = 0,430) ve ≥22 yaşındaki katılımcılar (β = 0,398) arasında, önemli ölçüde daha güçlü etkiler ortaya çıkmaktadır.  Spor türü ve ölçüm araçları farklılıklar gösterse de, alt grup farklılıkları istatistiksel olarak anlamlı bulunmamıştır. Bulgular, spor bağlamlarında dayanıklılığın çok faktörlü doğasını vurgulamaktadır. Bu meta-analiz, kadın sporcularda dayanıklılığın psikolojik korelasyonları için sağlam ampirik kanıtlar sunmaktadır. Bulgular, hem demografik hem de metodolojik değişkenlerin dayanıklılık düzeylerindeki gözlemlenen varyansa katkıda bulunduğunu göstermektedir.

Anahtar kelimeler: psikolojik dayanıklılık, zihinsel dayanıklılık, kadın sporcular, meta-analiz, spor psikolojisi, elit sporcular, bireysel farklılıklar, alt grup analizi

APA 7 Citation

Gezer, H. (2025). Psychological Resilience in Female Athletes: A Meta-Analytic Review of Individual and Contextual Correlates (2000–2025). International Journal of Health, Exercise, and Sport Sciences (IJOSS), 2(2), 294–312. https://www.ijoss.org/Archive/issue2-volume2/ijoss-Volume2-issue2-26.pdf

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