Impact of the Mental Toughness Training Circle on the psychological aspects of athletes in situational sports: a pilot experiment

Purpose. This study aims to evaluate the effect of providing Mental Toughness Training Circle mental training on athletes' mental toughness, performance, religiosity, anxiety, satisfaction, and happiness in life. Material and methods. The randomized experimental design was used to evaluate Mental Toughness Training Circle. A total of 31 college-level athletes were involved and divided into two groups. Six important constructs related to athletes' psychological aspects, including mental toughness, performance, religiosity, anxiety, satisfaction, and athlete happiness are measured using the Mental Toughness Inventory, Self-Assessment of Athletics Performance, Spirituality in Sports Test, Sports Anxiety Scale-2, Social Validation Questionnaire, and Satisfaction with Life Scale. Results. The research findings prove that the Mental Toughness Training Circle mental training program has a significant effect on athletes' mental toughness, performance, anxiety, religiosity, satisfaction, and life happiness. Apart from that, this study also shows that the application of Mental Toughness Training Circle can increase positive emotional dimensions (mental toughness, performance, religiosity, satisfaction, and happiness) and reduce negative emotions (anxiety) in athletes. Conclusions. The implications of this study show that Mental Toughness Training Circle can be used by athletic trainers and mental coaches to improve the quality of athletes, especially in psychological or mental aspects.