ORIGINAL RESEARCH article
Front. Sports Act. Living
Sec. Sport Psychology
Volume 7 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fspor.2025.1692536
This article is part of the Research TopicCombat Sports and Well-being: Prevention, Protection, and Development Across the Lifespan – Volume IIView all 7 articles
Aggression, Self-Control, Life Satisfaction, and Resilience as Predictors of Mental Health in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Athletes
Provisionally accepted
- Liberty University, Lynchburg, United States
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Brazilian jiu-jitsu has been discussed as an effective type of psychosocial therapy, with the social interactions within the Brazilian jiu-jitsu community serving as a buffer against mental health disorders. However, the psychological variables associated with optimal mental health in Brazilian jiu-jitsu have yet to be explored. This study examined the extent to which resilience, grit, self-efficacy, self-control, aggression, and life satisfaction (IVs) could predict mental health in male and female Brazilian jiu-jitsu athletes. The sample included 420 athletes, representing 331 males (78.8%) and 89 females (21.2%) from 18 to 60 years of age (38.2 ± 8.8), who responded to training-related questions followed by the Mental Health Disorders Screening Instrument for Athletes, Brief Resilience Scale, Grit Scale, General Self-Efficacy Scale, Brief Self-Control Scale, Brief Aggression Questionnaire, and Satisfaction with Life Scale. In males, results revealed that a multiple linear regression was statistically significant, with the IVs accounting for approximately 51.7% of the variance in mental health disorders. Aggression (9.1% variance), self-control (7.3% variance), life satisfaction (5.0% variance), and resilience (1.2% variance) were significantly associated with mental health disorders in male athletes. In females, a multiple linear regression was statistically significant, with the IVs accounting for approximately 45.3% of the variance in mental health disorders. Aggression (6.0% variance), and life satisfaction (3.0% variance) were significantly associated with mental health disorders in female athletes. In conclusion, male Brazilian jiu-jitsu athletes presenting higher self-control, life satisfaction, and resilience, and lower aggression, and female athletes presenting higher life satisfaction and lower aggression were more likely to present better mental health than athletes with opposing characteristics. With the rising popularity of Brazilian jiu-jitsu, these findings may inform clinical professionals when developing treatment plans to address mental health in athletes in this population.
Keywords: Mental Health Disorders, combat sports, Martial Arts, Aggression, Self-Control, life satisfaction, resilience
Received: 25 Aug 2025; Accepted: 20 Oct 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 L., Gaines and Waterbury. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence:
Lorenco-Lima, L., lorenco.leandro@gmail.com
Stacey A Gaines, sgaines18@liberty.edu
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