Abstract
BACKGROUND: High-intensity competition pressure leads to psychological problems for athletes, which need to be improved through intervention. We aimed to explore the influences of PETTLEP (physical, environment, task, timing, learning, emotion, perspective) intervention on the psychological state of athletes, and provide references for their psychological improvement. METHODS: Overall, 120 basketball players were enrolled through the convenience sampling method from Shaanxi, Yunnan, Fujian, and the national basketball team in China from April to June 2022. PETTLEP-based imagery intervention was given to all athletes, and their psychological resilience, training state, psychological skills, anxiety, and depression before and after the intervention were evaluated using a questionnaire survey. RESULTS: The psychological resilience value of athletes after the intervention was higher than that before the intervention (P<0.05). The psychological resilience index of athletes who trained for more than three years was higher than that of athletes who trained for less than 3 years (P<0.05). The athletes who trained for over three years felt better after the intervention concerning good feelings, self-efficacy, self-adjustment, and physical fitness recovery than before the intervention (P<0.05). No statistical differences in self-confidence, coordination ability, and motivation were observed among the athletes trained for different years before and after the intervention (P>0.05). The athletes who trained for over three years have shown better results regarding focal attention and cognitive regulation after the intervention than before the intervention (P<0.05). CONCLUSION: The PETTLEP-based imagery intervention can improve the athletes' psychological skills, relieves anxiety and depression, and enhance their psychological resilience.