Objectives To examine gender differences in the reporting of, and contributors to, mental health symptoms. Methods This was a cross-sectional observational study of adult athletes within a national elite sporting system (n=523; women=292;56%), who completed a battery of assessments including measures of mental health and adverse life events. Group differences across a range of scores were examined, followed by gender-stratified bootstrapped linear regression and meta-regression on measures where gender differences were observed. Results Women athletes reported higher rates of mental health symptoms, and lower rates of mental well-being, although there were no differences in general psychological distress or life satisfaction. Women reported experiencing several adverse life events at higher rates than men; particularly interpersonal conflict, financial hardship and discrimination. Low self-esteem was consistently associated with poorer mental health outcomes for all athletes. While a range of factors were associated with poor mental health in men or women athletes, meta-regression suggested that experiencing financial difficulty and social media abuse were more uniquely associated with mental health symptoms in men. Conclusion Gender differences in mental health in elite athletes are apparent. Approaches to increasing well-being are required in elite sport.

中文翻译：

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澳大利亚优秀运动员心理健康症状和危险因素的性别差异

目的研究精神健康症状的报告和起因中的性别差异。方法这是一项对国家精英体育系统内的成年运动员（n = 523；女性= 292； 56％）进行的横断面观察研究，他们完成了一系列评估，包括心理健康和不良生活事件的评估。检查了一系列分数的组间差异，然后进行了性别分层自举线性回归和关于观察到性别差异的度量的元回归。结果，尽管一般的心理困扰或生活满意度没有差异，但女运动员的心理健康症状发生率较高，心理健康率较低。妇女报告经历了几次不良生活事件，发生率高于男性；特别是人际冲突，财务困难和歧视。自尊心低与所有运动员的心理健康状况均较差有关。尽管一系列因素与男性或女性运动员的心理健康状况不佳相关，但荟萃回归表明，经历财务困难和社交媒体滥用与男性心理健康症状的关系更为独特。结论优秀运动员的心理健康存在性别差异。精英运动需要提高幸福感的方法。元回归表明，经历财务困难和社交媒体滥用与男性的心理健康症状更为独特。结论优秀运动员的心理健康存在性别差异。精英运动中需要增加幸福感的方法。元回归表明，经历财务困难和社交媒体滥用与男性的心理健康症状更为独特。结论优秀运动员的心理健康存在性别差异。精英运动中需要增加幸福感的方法。