Exploring Esports Players’ Perspectives on Sport Psychology Support An Interview Study

Leis, O, Meichsner, N and Swettenham, LD ORCID: 0000-0002-7010-6543 (2025) Exploring Esports Players’ Perspectives on Sport Psychology Support An Interview Study. Team Performance Management. ISSN 1352-7592

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Abstract

Purpose Acknowledging the prospective role of sport psychology support in esports, current research remains limited, hindering evidence-based practices within esports. This study addresses this gap by exploring players’ awareness, attitudes and expectations toward sport psychology support including their views on sport psychology practitioners (SPPs). In addition, this study aims to understand the players’ perspectives on perceived benefits of sport psychology support. Design/methodology/approach Through criterion-based sampling, semi-structured interviews were conducted with six male professional players (Mage = 23.00; SD = 2.83 years). Thematic reflective analysis was facilitated by the use of MAXQDA Plus 2020 software. Findings The study reveals positive attitudes among esports players toward sport psychology support, despite initial skepticism from one participant. Participants emphasized the importance of addressing esports’ unique challenges and recognized the role of sport psychology in fostering awareness and teamwork, especially in communication. Key elements identified in their engagement with SPPs included trust, empathy and personalized approaches. Participants reported benefits including improved team cohesion, individual performance and well-being, highlighting the perceived positive impact of sport psychology support within esports. Originality/value To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first study to explore esports players’ perceptions and experiences of sport psychology support, shedding light on the potential benefits and challenges. By using qualitative methodologies and focusing on the nuanced perspectives of professional players, this research expands our understanding of the role of sport psychology in esports and its implications for player well-being and performance.

Item Type:	Article
Additional Information:	This author accepted manuscript is deposited under a Creative Commons Attribution Non-commercial 4.0 International (CC BY-NC) licence. This means that anyone may distribute, adapt, and build upon the work for non-commercial purposes, subject to full attribution. If you wish to use this manuscript for commercial purposes, please contact permissions@emerald.com
Uncontrolled Keywords:	3504 Commercial Services; 35 Commerce, Management, Tourism and Services; Clinical Research; 3 Good Health and Well Being; 1503 Business and Management; Business & Management; 3505 Human resources and industrial relations; 3507 Strategy, management and organisational behaviour
Subjects:	B Philosophy. Psychology. Religion > BF Psychology T Technology > T Technology (General) G Geography. Anthropology. Recreation > GV Recreation Leisure > GV561 Sports
Divisions:	Sport and Exercise Sciences
Publisher:	Emerald
Date of acceptance:	3 July 2025
Date of first compliant Open Access:	2 October 2025
Date Deposited:	02 Oct 2025 08:34
Last Modified:	02 Oct 2025 08:45
DOI or ID number:	10.1108/TPM-07-2024-0080
URI:	https://researchonline.ljmu.ac.uk/id/eprint/27241

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