The influence of an esports-adapted coping effectiveness training (E-CET) on resilience, mental health, and subjective performance among elite league of Legends players: A pilot study

Synergistic fields: Unveiling the potential win-win relationship between esports performance and traditional sports participation

This cross-sectional study investigated the association between participation in traditional sports and esports performance, analyzing data from 1,549 survey respondents, with a specific focus on 617 individuals assessed for their esports capabilities. The analysis suggests that participation in traditional sports is associated with enhanced performance in first-person shooters. However, no similar association was observed in multiplayer online battle arena games across various platforms. Furthermore, although no substantial link was found between overall gameplay duration and esports performance for the majority of the games examined, time spent playing Honor of Kings was significantly associated with improved in-game rankings, likely due to its unique matchmaking and rating system. The findings also indicate that participants from different categories of traditional sports show no significant differences in esports performance, suggesting similar physical and athletic requirements across these sports. This underscores the necessity for further exploration and methodological refinement to investigate the associations between specific types of physical exercise and enhancements in esports performance. Additionally, esports participants demonstrated higher levels of engagement in traditional sports compared to their non-esports counterparts, suggesting potential reciprocal benefits between esports and physical exercise. Future research should further investigate these mutual advantages. Conducting additional rigorous empirical research to substantiate these associations is essential for the sustainable development of esports.

Promoting mental health in esports

There is growing recognition of the demands and health challenges experienced by esports athletes. The purpose of this perspective paper is to draw specific attention to the mental health of competitive gamers and spur on both future research and applied initiatives focussing on this important but under-addressed topic. We will briefly discuss the prevalence of mental health concerns, domain-specific stressors, and the need for comprehensive mental health support systems tailored to the esports context. It is our hope that, with this perspective paper, we can help set a new research agenda addressing mental health in esports.