Psychological interventions reduce the likelihood of doping in British and Greek athletes: a cluster randomized controlled trial

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.psychsport.2021.102099

Commentary

This study was conducted to develop an anti-doping intervention targeting three psychological variables (anticipated guilt, moral disengagement, and self-regulatory effects) and to determine whether it is effective.

A total of 19 sports clubs (208 athletes) in both countries, identified through a screening survey of 934 athletes in the UK and Greece, were randomly assigned to either a psychological or an educational intervention.

The interventions lasted six to eight weeks and consisted of six one-hour sessions delivered. We were measuring athletes' likelihood of doping, anticipated guilt, moral withdrawal, and self-regulation effects before and after the intervention and at 2-month follow-up.

Using a multi-level compartmentalized growth model, analysis of changes in the study results showed that the psychological intervention was more effective than the educational intervention in reducing the likelihood of doping before and after, but the effects of the two interventions were similar at follow-up.

These effects were not affected by country, and both interventions reduced moral disengagement from pre to post, and these effects were maintained at follow-up.

Psychological interventions were also shown to be more effective than educational interventions in increasing anticipated guilt from pre to follow-up.