“It is just a bad day”: using Rational Emotive Behaviour Therapy to bolster healthy adaptation in a Paralympic athlete

Turner, Martin J ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1975-5561, Wood, Andrew G, Barker, Jamie B and King, Ailish (2024) “It is just a bad day”: using Rational Emotive Behaviour Therapy to bolster healthy adaptation in a Paralympic athlete. In: Mental Health and Well-being Interventions in Sport: research, theory and practice. Routledge Psychological Interventions . Routledge, London. ISBN 9781032271101 (paperback); 9781032271835 (hardback); 9781003291695 (ebook)

Accepted Version File will be available on: 4 October 2025. Available under License Creative Commons Attribution Non-commercial No Derivatives. Download (833kB)

Abstract

The endorsement of irrational beliefs is detrimental to the psychological health of an athlete and hinders psychological resilience, that is, ability to respond to adversity in a functional and adaptive manner. In Rational Emotive Behaviour Therapy (REBT), there are some core irrational beliefs that underlie mental illness, and there are some core rational beliefs that underpin mental health. The application of clinical psychotherapeutic frameworks marks a shift in psychological interventions in sport. This chapter presents an approach that moves beyond typical psychological-skills training as would be found with the Canon of sport psychology, and expands the library of approaches from which sport psychologists are able to draw upon. It discusses intervention effects, professional competence, blurred boundaries between therapy and mental skills training, consultant’s experience, and professional practice guidelines. REBT practitioners are focused on exploring the breadth of adversities athletes may encounter, and whether their behaviours help or hinder goal achievement.