Mental Well-Being of Past
Australian Football League
Players
School of Sport Science, Exercise and Health
Background
The Australian Football League (AFL) is
a National sporting body where players
engage in a career as a professional
athlete. Much is known about the
physical attributes of professional
AFL players during their career (Pyne,
Gardner et al. 2006), but limited
information is available on their health
and mental well-being in retirement (King,
Rosenberg et al. 2012).
Australian rules football players are
required to develop mental toughness
during their playing career to cope
better than their opponents in remaining
determined, focused, confident and in
control under pressure (Jones 2002).
Some of this mental toughness extends
to the ability to handle pressure,
stress and adversity with the many
external demands that the sport places
upon them (Goldberg 1998). There is
surprisingly little known about the mental
well-being of AFL players. This is despite
acknowledgement that during their
playing career, Australian footballers
have multiple sources of stress that
extend beyond those associated with
competition and include, difficulty
balancing football, study commitments,
relationships and job insecurity (Noblet
and Gifford 2002).
Once their playing career ends, players
are faced with a period of transition into
other vocational pursuits, a recognised
period of increased stress and anxiety
(Fortunato and Marchant 1999). Beyond
this period, there is very little known
about the mental health and well-being
of past AFL players. Recently, research
has emerged investigating recurrent
concussion and risk of depression in
retired professional football players in
America (Guskiewicz, Marshall et al.
2007). Similar concerns about the impact
of head injuries on retired AFL player’s
mental health is starting to emerge,
although there is no identifiable source
of information on the general mental
well-being among past AFL players.
Therefore, this report is the first to
present findings from a survey of past
AFL players on their mental well-being.
Methodology
In 2011, a health and well-being survey
was conducted comprising past AFL
players (n=592), with an average age of
55.1 y (±15.8) and playing career of 7.7 y
(±4.1). In order to maximise the response
rate, past players were able to complete
the survey either online, by telephone,
or by hard copy. All past AFL players
who were members of the AFL Players
Association (AFLPA) were invited to
participate in the survey.
One component of the survey sought
information on past player’s mental
well-being via the Warwick-Edinburgh
Mental Well-being Scale (WEMWBS)
(NHS Scotland 2006). The WEMWBS is
a 14 item scale that measures aspects
of positive mental health. The scale is
scored by summing responses to each
item answered on a 5 point Likert scale.
The minimum score is 14, the midscore is 42 and the maximum is 70. As
the scale was not designed to identify
individuals with exceptionally high or low
positive mental health, no ‘cut off’ has
been developed (NHS Scotland 2006).
However, in general, a higher score
represents a more positive mental health
status. The Warwick-Edinburgh Mental
Well-being Scale was funded by the
Scottish Executive National Programme
for improving mental health and wellbeing, commissioned by NHS Health
Scotland, developed by the University of
Warwick and the University of Edinburgh,
and is jointly owned by NHS Health
Scotland, the University of Warwick
and the University of Edinburgh (NHS
Scotland 2006).
In order to compare the well-being,
demographic and health behaviour
characteristics of past players,
data from a recent survey of 2000
Western Australians (males n = 1017)
that included the WEMWBS scale
(Pettigrew et al. 2012) was analysed.
To allow for meaningful interpretations
and comparisons of past players
mental well-being, the WEMWBS
scores in the bottom quartile were
compared relative to those in the top
three quartiles. The distribution of
past AFL players is shown in Table 1.
Table 1: AFL past players and general male population mental well-being status
Among past AFL players in this study,
the average well-being score was
53.4 with a 95% confidence interval
of 52.8 to 54.2 (Table 1). This was
equal to the average score among
males in the study of West Australian
Adults (Table 1).
ÌÌ Most
The data were analysed using SPSS
version 19.0. Descriptive statistics
reported on past players’ career
characteristics, demographic and
health behaviours. One-way ANOVA
were conducted to identify significant
associations between career
characteristics and mental well-being
and the Chi-squared statistic was
used to investigate associations
between the demographic and health
behaviour characteristics of past
players and their mental health and
well-being status.
Mean wellbeing score
Poorer mental
well-being
N(%)
Better mental
well-being
N(%)
AFL past players (n=541)
53.4
137(25.3)
404(74.7)
General male population (n=1016)
53.4
239(23.5)
777(76.5)
Key Findings
Career Characteristics
ÌÌ Table 2 presents the career
characteristics of past players.
players had played in one
to 50 (40%) or 51 to 100 (22%)
games during their career.
ÌÌ Almost
half of players cited
personal reasons as why they
retired (46%).
ÌÌ Approximately
one-third of past
players (29%) experienced 1-5
serious injuries during their career.
ÌÌ Almost
two-fifths of past players
(38%) reported experiencing three
or more concussions throughout
their career, followed by no
concussions (27%), two (22%) and
one (13%).
Table 2: Career characteristics of
past AFL players
N
%
Number of serious
injuries
None
131
23.1
1-5
166
29.3
6-10
139
24.5
11-15
70
12.3
16+
61
10.8
Number of
concussions
None
117
26.9
1
58
13.3
2
98
22.5
3+
162
37.2
Number of games
played
1 -50
233
39.5
51-100
127
21.5
101-150
98
16.6
151 to 200
65
11.0
201+
67
11.4
109
18.9
263
45.7
204
35.4
Reasons for retirement
Forced through career
ending injury
Voluntarily due to
personal reasons
Forced through
de-listing by club
*missing values excluded
Past AFL players in
this study, scored
similar levels of
mental wellbing
(53.4) as the general
male population
(53.4)
Almost two-fifths
of past players
(38%) reported
experiencing three
or more concussions
throughout their
career
ÌÌ Figures
1 to 4 show past AFL
players’ average well-being
score by their number of
serious injuries, number of
concussions, number of
games played and reasons
for retirement respectively.
The middle WEMWBS scale
score is (42), showing that
past players displayed mean
well-being scores above
the mid-range in all four
conditions.
increased, small, nonsignificant decreases in
mean well-being scores were
observed.
ÌÌ As
ÌÌ As
shown in Figure 1, as the
number of serious injuries
past players’ experienced
displayed in Figure 2, past
players who sustained two
concussions had a slightly
higher average mental wellbeing score when compared
to those who experienced
none, one or three or more
concussions, however
these differences were not
significant.
Figure 1: Mean well-being score by number of serious
injuries
Figure 2: Mean well-being score by number of
concussions
ÌÌ While
those who reported
playing between 151 and
200 games had the highest
mean well-being score, no
significant differences were
observed by the number of
games played across past
players careers (Figure 3).
ÌÌ As
shown in Figure 4, similar
mean mental well-being
scores were observed
irrespective of the reasons
for retirement.
Figure 3: Mean well-being score by number of games
played
Figure 4: Mean well-being score by reason for retirement
The University of Western Australia
ÌÌ Table
3 presents a
comparison of the
demographic characteristics
of past AFL players and the
general male population
by their mental well-being
status.
ÌÌ Although
a greater
proportion of past AFL
players had completed a
university degree or higher
compared with the general
male population, there
was no significant effect of
education attainment on
mental well-being status .
ÌÌ The
majority of past AFL
players and the general
population, had better
mental well-being, with
no significant differences
between age groups.
players, with no significant
differences observed
between employment status
and mental well-being.
ÌÌ Compared
with the male
general population, a higher
proportion of past AFL
players were overweight,
although fewer were obese.
With the exception of the
small number of underweight
males in the past player and
general popoulation, weight
status was largely unrelated
to mental well-being.
ÌÌ The
majority of past AFL
players and the general male
population were employed,
with a significantly higher
proportion of unemployed
males from the general
population reporting poorer
mental well-being (38%),
compared with those who
were employed or retired
(p<0.05). This was not
found amongst past AFL
ÌÌ Marital
status and whether
or not past AFL players had
children did not result in any
significant differences by
mental well-being.
Table 3: Past AFL players and the general male population’s well-being status by demographic characteristics
Past AFL Players
General Male Population
Total
sample
Poorer mental
well-being
Better mental
well-being
Total
sample
Poorer mental
well-being
Better mental
well-being
(%) n
%
%
(%)n
%
%
20-29
(9.4) 49
26.5
73.5
(29.7) 302
27.5
72.5
30-49
(35.4) 185
28.6
71.4
(41.5) 422
23.7
76.3
50+
(55.3) 289
22.5
77.5
(28.7) 292
19.2
80.8
Age
Children +
Yes
(85.2) 445
24.3
75.7
-
-
-
No
(14.8) 77
29.9
70.1
-
-
-
Marital status +
Single
Married/live with partner
Div-sep-wid
(6.9) 35
28.6
71.4
-
-
-
(84.7) 432
23.8
76.2
-
-
-
(8.4) 43
32.6
67.4
-
-
-
Education
Primary school
(2.2) 12
25.0
75.0
(2.4) 24
41.7
58.3
High school
(37.3) 201
29.9
70.1
(42.8) 422
24.4
75.6
Tafe certificate / diploma
(23.4) 126
27.0
73.0
(24.3) 239
22.2
77.8
University degree or higher
(37.1) 200
19.5
80.5
(30.5) 300
22.7
77.3
(78.3) 423
26.0
74.0
(87.0) 879
22.3
77.7
(2.0)11
36.4
63.6
(5.2) 53
37.7
62.3
(19.6) 106
20.8
79.2
(7.7) 78
23.1
Employment
Employed
Unemployed
Retired
*
BMI
Underweight
76.9
*
0
0
0
(2.2) 22
45.5
Acceptable
(22.7) 103
23.3
76.7
(38.1) 376
22.9
77.1
Overweight
(59.6) 270
26.7
73.3
(40.3) 398
20.9
79.1
(17.7) 80
30.0
70.0
(19.4) 192
25.5
74.5
Obese
+ equivalent general male population data not available, * significant at p<0.05
02 | www.uwa.edu.au
54.5
ÌÌ Table
4 presents a
comparison of the health
behaviours of past AFL
players and the general male
population by their mental
well-being status.
have poorer mental wellbeing (past players 44%;
p<0.01, general male
population 30%; p<0.01)
than past or non smokers.
ÌÌ Few
past players
reported consuming the
recommended amount of
vegetables (6%), although
vegetabel consumption
was unrelated to mental
wellbing amongst past AFL
players. However, among
the general male population,
those who consumed the
recommended serves of
vegetables were significantly
more likely to report better
mental well-being (82%) than
those who did not consume
the recommended amount
(73%; p<0.01).
ÌÌ Among
both samples,
those who consumed the
recommended amount of
fruit were significantly more
likely to have better mental
well-being (past players 80%,
general male population
80%) than those who didn’t
consume recommended
amounts (past players
70%; p<0.01, general male
population 74%; p<0.05).
ÌÌ Compared
with the male
general population, fewer
past AFL players indicated
they were smokers or past
smokers, and more reported
they had never smoked.
ÌÌ Among
both past players
and the general male
population, smokers were
significantly more likely to
Table 4: Past AFL players and the general male population’s well-being status by health behaviours
Past AFL Players
General Male Population
Total
sample
Poorer mental
well-being
Better mental
well-being
Total
sample
Poorer mental
well-being
Better mental
well-being
(%)n
%
%
(%)n
%
%
(7.7) 41
43.9
56.1
(21.8) 222
29.7
70.3
Past smoker
(18.5) 99
29.3
70.7
(24.5) 249
17.3
82.7
Non-smoker
(73.8) 395
22.0
78.0
(53.7) 546
24.0
Smoking status
Smoker
**
Daily fruit consumption
**
**
76.0
*
One piece or less
(46.2) 246
30.5
69.5
(62.5) 636
25.6
74.4
Two or more pieces
(53.8) 286
19.9
80.1
(37.5) 381
20.2
79.8
(93.6) 500
25.4
74.6
(59.6) 606
27.2
72.8
(6.4) 34
17.6
82.4
(40.4) 411
18.2
81.8
Daily vegetable consumption
Less than five
Five or more pieces
**
**
Physical activity
Inactive
(10.8) 58
46.6
53.4
(12.7) 125
28.0
72.0
Insufficient
(21.4) 115
22.6
77.4
(23.9) 236
26.7
73.3
Sufficient
(67.8) 364
22.8
77.2
(63.4) 625
22.1
Weekly fast food consumption
77.9
*
On one or more days
(58.6) 313
29.4
70.6
(51.5) 523
26.2
73.8
Less than once per week
(41.4) 221
19.0
81.0
(48.5) 493
20.7
79.3
**
Alcohol long-term risk
Non-drinker
(6.6) 35
34.3
65.7
(26.7) 272
26.8
73.2
Low risk
(61.9) 327
22.3
77.7
(53.5) 544
21.9
78.1
Risky
(18.2) 96
19.8
80.2
(11.7) 119
22.7
77.3
High risk
(13.3) 70
41.4
58.6
(8.1) 82
25.6
74.4
**
Alcohol short-term risk
Non-drinker
(6.6) 35
34.3
65.7
(26.8) 272
26.8
73.2
Low risk
(63.4) 335
21.5
78.5
(42.6) 433
24.5
75.5
Risky
(21.6) 114
25.4
74.6
(26.0) 264
18.2
81.8
(8.3) 44
45.5
54.5
(4.6) 47
25.5
74.5
High risk
** significant at p<0.01, * significant at p<0.05
The University of Western Australia | 03
ÌÌ Past
players and males
from the general population
reported similar levels of
physical activity. However,
those past players who were
inactive were significantly
more likely to have poorer
mental well-being (47%;
p<0.01) than those who
engaged in higher levels of
activity.
ÌÌ Over
half (58.6%) of past
players ate fast food on
one or more days a week,
although it was unrelated
to their mental well-being.
In comparison males from
the general population
reported similar levels of
fast food consumption
(51.5%), however, higher
consumption among the
general male population
resulted in a significantly
higher level of poorer mental
well-being (26%) than those
who had not consumed fast
food (21; p<0.05).
ÌÌ Those
past players who
were categorised as being
at high risk of both long-term
drinking and short-term
drinking of alcohol were
significantly more likely to
have poorer mental wellbeing (long-term risk 41%,
p<0.01) (short-term risk 46%,
p<0.01) compared with those
past players with lower risk
profiles.
Conclusions
This study found that past AFL
players exhibited similar levels
of mental health and well-being
(WEMWBS) to their non-playing age
cohort. Mental health and well-being
among the past players in this study
was also unrelated to the number
of games played, or the reason for
retiring from the game. While previous
research has shown a dose response
impact on activities of daily living
and the number of serious injuries
(King and Rosenberg et al. 2012),
no such relationship was observed
in this study. Similarly, receiving a
concussion while playing, which in
other research has been associated
with poor mental health outcomes
(Guskiewicz, Marshall et al. 2007),
was unrelated to mental health and
well-being in this study. It is possible
that the WEMWBS scale is not
sensitive enough to detect the impact
of serious injury and concussion on
specific mental illness, but the overall
results suggest that past players
exhibit a relatively similar level of
mental health and well-being to the
general population irrespective of
their age, playing experience, injuries
or reasons for retiring.
The results of this study also show
that the mental health and well-being
of past players was not influenced
by their marital status, education,
employment or current BMI status
and were similar to the general male
population. These results suggest
that playing AFL does not provide any
overall mental health and well-being
benefits was unexpected g given that
AFL players must develop and require
mental toughness to play at the elite
AFL level. In part, mental toughness
may not manifest in general mental
health and well-being, although it
might explain the relatively similar
levels of mental health and well-being
observed across past players despite
their age, games played, injuries and
reasons for retiring.
The results of this study also suggest
that among past AFL players and the
general public, mental health and
well-being is most strongly associated
with meeting recommended health
behaviours. However, past AFL
players were over represented in
the lower mental well-being group
compared with the general male
population if they did not meet health
behaviour recommendations. Past
players who smoked, ate less than
two pieces of fruit each day and
were inactive were significantly over
represented in lower mental health
and well-being. In addition, past
players were over represented in
the poorer mental well-being group
among non-drinkers and the high risk
drinking group. It is unclear why past
players mental health and well-being
were associated with poorer health
behaviours, especially as they were
not associated with the number of
games they played, or their current
age.
When interpreting the results of
this study consideration should be
made for the small chance that the
AFL players who participated in this
study do not represent the mental
well-being of all past players. While
overall, past players in this study
recorded similar levels of mental
well-being as the general population
and the study did not focus on mental
wellbeing, volunteering to participate
in the study may favour past players
with better current mental well-being.
Additionally, the results do not
reflect individual changes in mental
wellbeing over time and consideration
should be given to the cross sectional
nature of the study design.
The findings from this study
indicate that past AFL players
have an average mental wellbeing score similar to that of the
general population indicating that a
professional football career and the
associated injuries and exposure
does not affect mental well-being
status. These results are the first
to explore the mental well-being of
past AFL players and compare them
to the general population. Future
research could focus on the specific
stressors that past players face upon
retirement, how this differs from
stressors during their professional
career, and how it may change during
retirement.
References
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Dawson B. (2012). “Life after the game - Injury profile
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Jones G. (2002). “What is this thing called
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Champagne, IL., Human Kinetics.
Noblet A.J. and Gifford S.M. (2002). “The sourses
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Guskiewicz K.M., Marshall S.W., Bailes J., McCrea
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University of Warwick, 2006.
Pettigrew S., Pescud M. and Ferguson R. (2012)
The mental well-being of Western Australian adults.
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School of Sport Science, Exercise and Health
The University of Western Australia
M408, 35 Stirling Highway
Crawley WA 6009
Tel: +61 8 6488 4654
Fax: +61 8 6488 1039
Email: [email protected]
www.hpeu.com.au
The University of Western Australia | 05
School of Sport Science, Exercise and
Health
The University of Western Australia
M408, 35 Stirling Highway
Crawley WA 6009
Tel: +61 8 6488 4654
Fax: +61 8 6488 1039
Email: [email protected]
www.hpeu.com.au
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