The relationship between parenting style and the stigma of mental illness in adolescent athletes: the chain mediating role of self-esteem and mental toughness

The stigma surrounding mental illness is pervasive among athletes competing at the highest levels, and the adolescent athlete's parenting style, self-esteem, and mental toughness are intimately linked to this stigma. These factors are particularly influential in determining the future career trajectory and athletic pursuits of young athletes. The objective of this study is to examine the correlation between parenting style and the stigma of mental toughness in adolescent athletes, while also confirming the intermediary influence of self-esteem and mental toughness in the relationship between the two variables. A survey was initiated on randomly selected 386 athletes at or above Level I in Guangdong Province through standardized questionnaires based on a parenting assessment scale, self-stigma scale, self-esteem scale, and mental toughness scale. The analysis and experimentation show that parenting style has a significant negative predictive impact on the self-esteem, mental toughness, and mental illness stigma of adolescent athletes. The impact of age and gender on the above factors are also explored. Furthermore, parenting style was also found to indirectly predict mental illness stigma through a chain mediation effect of self-esteem and mental toughness. These results highlight the importance of considering parenting style in improving the self-esteem and mental toughness of adolescent athletes, with the ultimate goal of reducing the stigma of mental illness among this population.