Tackling mental health in professional rugby for lasting change

Professional rugby players want to help teammates facing mental health challenges, but greater awareness, tailored support and ongoing engagement is needed for lasting change, new research reveals.

Researchers from Manchester Metropolitan University have collaborated with Rugby Players Ireland and the University of Derby to examine the mental health of male professional rugby union players.

Two studies, which were recently published in PLOS Mental Health and Case Studies in Sport and Performance Psychology, evaluated the ‘5Rs of Rugby’, a collaborative initiative co-developed and delivered by Rugby Players Ireland to build mental health literacy, challenge stigma, and encourage help-seeking within elite rugby environments. 

The 5Rs framework – Recognise, Reach Out, Refer, Remain Supportive, and Realities of Rugby – was introduced through workshops with all four Irish provincial squads during the 2023/23 season when Rugby Players Ireland co-delivered mental health literacy initiatives with academic collaborators. 

Dr Robert Dempsey, Senior Lecturer in Psychology at Manchester Met and an expert in social norms, led the qualitative evaluation of this social norms approach intervention – a strategy that promotes positive behaviours common to most people in a group and challenges misconceptions of what’s considered normal – the first time this approach has been used in a high-performance sports environment.

This unique project explored players’ perceived norms and actual norms around help-seeking for their mental health. 

Key findings revealed that strong social norms already exist, and most players are willing to support teammates facing mental health challenges. However, awareness and confidence in how to support their teammates could be strengthened.

Researchers also found that rugby’s unique high-pressure environment, with short careers, intense competition and changing-room culture, requires more tailored and collaborative support.  

Players and staff also stressed that one-off sessions are not enough and that sustained, ongoing engagement is needed to normalise conversations around mental health. 

Dr Dempsey said: “The 5Rs project was the first use of the Social Norms Approach in a high-performance sports environment, uniquely focusing on players’ perceived and actual norms around help-seeking for their wellbeing. 

“The strength of players’ social norms for supporting their team-mates was very striking and demonstrated how professional rugby can be a highly supportive environment. This collaborative project with RPI and the players shows the potential power of social norms in high-performance settings.”

Dr Deirdre Lyons, Director of Player Development and Welfare at Rugby Players Ireland and co-author on both studies, said: “The 5Rs of Rugby gives players a shared language to look out for each other and to seek help when it’s needed. This research shows the importance of trusted relationships – players are far more likely to open up when support comes from people they know. It underlines our commitment to building environments where players can thrive as people as well as athletes.”

Dr Philip Clarke, Senior Lecturer in Sport, Exercise and Performance Psychology at the University of Derby, and co-author on both studies, commented: “The 5Rs project, underpinned by a Social Norms Approach, offered a shared framework to better understand and support elite Irish rugby players’ mental health literacy and help-seeking behaviours. 

“What made this project distinctive was the genuine collaboration between researchers, practitioners, and players—evident in the co-design of the interventions and resources tailored to both rugby and the provinces respectively. These papers not only capture the lived experience of delivering mental health interventions in high-performance environments but also offer valuable reflections for future research and practice aimed at fostering psychologically safe and supportive cultures in elite sport.”

This research highlights that bridging the gap between academic research and applied practice in elite sport is challenging but vital.

The project also demonstrates the importance of considering social norms and how this unique approach could be applied more widely to other professional sports and high-performance settings to promote healthy environments.