Perceived Stressors Experienced by Competitive Esports Athletes

Competitive esports athletes face a distinctive but structured set of psychological stressors, according to a study of 270 top-40% players across five games. The research examines what athletes perceive as stressful, with the central finding that a small number of categories account for most reported stressors. Teammate-related and performance-related stressors together made up roughly 79% of all reports, a pattern the authors note closely mirrors what has been observed in traditional sport. The study thus positions esports as a domain where established stress frameworks largely apply, while still warranting attention to its specific demands.

Beyond these dominant categories, four themes emerged that are particular to esports: technical issues, balancing life commitments, anti-social behaviour, and performance during critical moments. Anti-social behaviour, including in-game toxicity, was the single most frequently reported second-order stressor, accounting for 21.6% of reports. Achievement level also shaped the stressor profile in a statistically significant way (χ²(8) = 18.80, p = .016). Elite athletes in the top 1% more often cited performance pressures, while sub-elite athletes in the 60th to 99th percentiles more often identified teammates as a source of stress.

The study's scope is defined by its cross-sectional, exploratory design, its focus on five titles, and its sample of competitive players rather than the broader gaming population. These features limit causal inference and generalisability. The concluding section offers preliminary recommendations rather than new evidence, proposing achievement-tailored psychological interventions such as esports-adapted mindfulness-acceptance-commitment training, along with coping strategies matched to specific stressor types.