This study aimed to assess the effectiveness of online emotional competencies (EC) training, and more specifically the relationships between adherence, confidence, and alliance and the effects of mental training on EC. A longitudinal four-wave measurement design (pre-intervention, post-knowledge development, post-abilities development, and post-disposition phase) was used in the present study. An experimental group (n = 20) received a specific EC training intervention, whereas the control group (n = 20) did not receive this intervention program. These two groups completed self-report questionnaires assessing emotional regulation and EC across four measurement times. Participants of the intervention group also completed a questionnaire measuring the adherence, confidence, alliance between practitioner and athlete. Results of repeated measure ANOVAs showed that the level of EC increased significantly in the intervention group but not in the control group. Moreover, correlation analyses highlighted significant relationships between the scores of adherence, confidence, alliance between the practitioner and the tennis player, and the scores difference of EC between before and after intervention. These outcomes suggest the possibility of improving EC with an online intervention. The online device did not affect the quality of the alliance between the practitioner and the intervention participant. Furthermore, the results showed that a high level of alliance, confidence, and adherence was associated with an improvement in emotional intelligence. This online program would serve psychologists and mental trainers to use an intervention to develop EC adapted to the constraints of the localisation of athletes.

The aim of the study was to identify distinct trajectories of perceived stress and control in athletes across a season of sports competitions and whether these trajectory memberships could be predicted by subdimensions of the emotional intelligence (EI). Latent class growth analyses were performed on a five-stage longitudinal measurement plan (to cover the entire sporting season). Four hundred fifteen athletes answered to the Brief Emotional Intelligence Scale, the Mastery Scale, the Perceived Stress Scale, and the Attainment of Sport Achievement Goal Scale. The analyses revealed two trajectories of perceived stress (one trajectory adapted and one maladapted to performance) and two trajectories of perceived control (one trajectory adapted and one maladapted to performance). Moreover, athletes with higher emotional intelligence emotion regulation scores belong significantly more to performance-adaptive trajectories. The obtained results could contribute to the advancement of emotional intelligence intervention programs to optimize the dynamics of perceived stress and control within the sporting season.

This study examined the effect of a Slow-Paced Breath (i.e., 6 breaths per minute) without Biofeedback (SPB-NoHRVB) protocol on semi-elite adolescent swimmers’ psychological and physiological states during a seven-week ecological training period. A linear mixed-effects multilevel regression analysis approach was used with 13 adolescent national-level swimmers. Athletes were randomly assigned to an intervention group (n = 7) and a control group (n = 6). Seven waves of assessments were completed weekly during a seven-week training preparation in ecological conditions. During the protocol, swimmers completed subjective quantitative measures (RESTQ-36-R-Sport; cognitive perceived stress and control states about the training process, training subjective performance, and subjective internal training load) and physiological heart rate (HR) (HR of exercise, absolute and normalized HR recovery during the first 60 s of recovery; HRR60 and nHRR60) and heart rate variability (HRV) (MeanRR, RMSSD, LFnu and HFnu, LF/HF ration) tests (through a submaximal heart rate (5′-5′ test) once a week. Results revealed that the SPB-NoHRVB protocol significantly predicts biopsychosocial recovery states, cognitive perception of control, and training subjective performance (i.e., a significant effect of the SPB-NoHRVB protocol with the dependent variables simple time trajectories). However, no significant effects were found for biopsychosocial stress scales, cognitively perceived stress, HR, or HRV markers. Our results suggest that SPB-NoHRVB induces simple evolutions over time for crucial variables in athletes’ adaptation to the training process (i.e., cognitive appraisals and biopsychosocial states). In contrast, it highlights that SPB-NoHRVB does not induce better stress states. This specific effect on the resource component is an exciting result that will be discussed in the manuscript.

The aims of this study were: (a) to explore the relationships between adaptive defense mechanisms (ADMs), maladaptive defense mechanisms (MADMs), stress, recovery, resilience, and sport burnout; and (b) to examine resilience, stress, and recovery as mediators of the relationship between defense mechanisms and burnout. One hundred and seventy-five athletes (M = 20.30 years, SD = 3.75) completed self-report questionnaires assessing defense mechanisms, resilience, stress, and recovery. Correlation analysis revealed that MADMs were positively associated with burnout, while ADMs had no significant link with burnout. Concerning mediation analysis, results showed a mediating effect of resilience in the relationship between ADMs and burnout. The findings also demonstrated a mediating effect of resilience and recovery in the relationship between MADMs and burnout. Our study highlighted that certain defenses categorized as adaptive might not be suitable in specific situations, thus underscoring the influence of mediating variables. The findings of mediation analysis demonstrated that resilience appears to serve as a particularly protective factor against burnout. On the contrary, MADMs would have a deleterious influence in the management of stress, which could lead to burnout. Coaches may consider fostering athletes’ resilience in conjunction with ADMs and implementing targeted psychological exercises to reduce the use of MADMs.