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Nevaeh Lanter

Ms. Castro

ENGL 1301

24 September 2023

The Mind Affects the Body

The definition of mental health is the psychological well-being and satisfactory

adjustment to society and to the ordinary demands of life (Kariger). COVID-19 was a turning

point for the world; this pandemic has taken a toll on the mental health of the population. In

response to the pandemic, many mental health professionals found in their research that of the

population affected, athletes stand out from the rest. Aaron Mack, in his article, “The Role of

Mental Health Care in Reaching Optimal Performance in Sports,” discusses how the fostering of

mental health among athletes will increase their performance. The article’s purpose is to

implement mental health awareness in the sports world. In effort to persuade the readers that

mental health is important to athletes, Mack uses logos by providing a plan based off of

extensive research, ethos by including respectable organizations with their credible findings, and

pathos by stepping into the concerns of the athletes and seeking help with their mental health.

Logos is a persuasive technique that uses facts, research, and statistics, also known as

logic, to persuade an audience. The article contains a fully developed plan that has been

constructed based on research that focuses on the effects of mental health in athletes’

performance. The text reads, “To that end, the proposed approach includes the implementation

of two assessments: the Psychiatric Basic Assessment (PBA) and Sports Psychiatric Examination

(SPE) [10];” after this statement, there is a thorough explanation of how and why the
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implementation of these two assessments would benefit athletes in the sports society (Mack 2).

The implantation of these tests will provide a safe and ethical way for sports medicine staff to

properly detect and attend to mental health issues (Mack 3). This text also used information

about the implementation of sports physicians and psychiatrists to the sports medicine

department. In effort to persuade and inform the readers Mack writes,

Sports medicine physicians are essential in helping to maintain athletes’ safety and

physical health, providing comprehensive medical care from injury prevention to

diagnosis and treatment… Sports psychologists have been invaluable in helping athletes

manage the mental and emotional demands of competition and training, providing

support, guidance, and strategies to help athletes stay focused and motivated while

maintaining a healthy balance between sports and life (2).

This is a wonderful use of logos because the author thoroughly explains the use of each

profession. By explaining what each doctor specializes in, the reader can better understand the

benefits that come with their addition to the sports medicine staff. Furthermore, the text explains

that “sports psychiatrists can support athletes and coaches to help them navigate the complex

process of seeking help for mental health issues and ensure that athletes receive the best possible

care” (2). Mack writing this further explains benefits that come with the implementations of the

two assessments.

Mack uses ethos to prove that he is credible, and to strengthen his argument by showing

he is only one of the many other credible sources that has discovered this information. Ethos, or

the use of ethics, is when an author uses their profession to say “I am a credible source;” or

another researcher’s data to say “I found the information I am sharing from a credible source.”

This article was written by candidates from two psychiatry departments in two different
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universities, and cites ten different professional mental health facilities. The research and

development of the plan was all done by the original authors; the only reason there are citations

is to support their initial findings. For example, Mack writes in the article,

Sports psychiatry has advanced significantly over the past few decades, leading to a

greater acceptance of seeking help for mental health issues among high performing

athletes. Evidence suggests that athletes with better mental health are more likely to

perform better than their peers, stay motivated, and show greater resilience in the face of

difficult situations on and off the playing field [2, 3, 4, 5, 6]. Moreover, early

sport-specific mental health interventions can improve an athlete’s performance [4, 5, 7]

(2).

From this we see that the citation of multiple sources is used to highlight that the authors are not

the only ones that have found this information to be true, and it is not to say that this is where the

information was found. In doing this, Mack brings strength to his credibility, and the integrity of

his argument by proving that other credible sources are getting the same results from their own

research.

Finally, Mack uses pathos in his article. Pathos is performed by persuading the audience

through their emotions. The technique is used by reaching into the way athletes think and feel

about mental health issues. The text reads, “Many athletes feel that disclosing mental health

issues evoke feelings of shame and being seen as being not ‘mentally tough’ [8, 9]; further

leading to a culture of silence, continued stigma, and the undervaluing of mental health in the

sports world” (Mack 1-2). From this, he provides an inside look to one of the many factors of

why mental health in athletes is overlooked. “Mentally tough” is the phrase that makes this quote

extremely effective; any coach or player fully understands the weight of this phrase because the
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phrase is used and understood across the sports industry. Coaches preach to be mentally tough,

and athletes work to prove they are mentally tough. In not knowing the weight of the phrase, one

could make an assumption of its power in the sports world because the phrase is used in the

context of “...further leading to a culture of silence, continued stigma, and the undervaluing of

mental health in the sports world” (Mack 1-2). From this, the reader can identify that some

athletes are in a constant state of mental struggle. However, because of the stigma that comes

with realizing that there is a mental health issue, athletes turn away from seeking help. In

consequence, the reader feels empathy towards athletes and will in turn support his solution to

attend to mental health. This is a well thought out and strategic use of pathos; this brings

forward a new perspective on why the author wants to implement this plan into the sports

medicine world.

In conclusion, the author uses all three techniques of persuasion throughout this article.

Logos is shown with detailed explanations providing information about the solution formulated

to attend to the mental health crisis in the sports world. The use of ethos is shown by proving

that they are not the only credible source that believes in the implantation of the two

assessments. Finally, pathos is used by showing the reader the inside view of why mental health

is overlooked in the sports world. All of this information is used in the effort to implement a

plan that Mack has formulated to benefit athletes in the sports industry. The text reads,

“Intentionally addressing mental health in sports is a proactive approach that can shift current

perceptions of remaining reactive to mental health issues,” each use of the persuasive techniques

are geared to strengthen this statement (Mack 1). Mental health issues are real, and they affect

many people in the world. This article took a closer look at those issues in athletes, and argued

for two implementations to help the mind positively affect the performance of the body.
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Works Cited

Kariger, Brian. “Mental Health Definition & Meaning.” Dictionary.Com, Dictionary.com,

14 May 1995, www.dictionary.com/browse/story.

Mack, Aaron A., et al. “The Role of Mental Health Care in Reaching Optimal Performance in

Sports.” Sports Psychiatry: Journal of Sports and Exercise Psychiatry, June 2023.

EBSCOhost, https://doi.org/10.1024/2674-0052/a000050.