Effectiveness of Sports Activities on Cognitive Emotion Regulation Strategies, Perceived Psychological Stress, and Psychological Hardiness of Veterans and the Disabled

Aims: Adequate physical activity and mobility positively affect the mental health of people, especially people with special needs. This study aimed to investigate the effectiveness of sports activities on cognitive emotion regulation strategies, perceived psychological stress, and psychological hardiness of veterans and the disabled.  Instrument & Methods: The statistical sample included 100 people (50 athletes and 50 non-athletes) of veterans and the disabled in Yazd city selected by the convenience sampling method. The Cognitive Emotion Regulation Strategies Scale, the Perceived Stress Scale, and the Ahvaz Psychological Hardiness Questionnaire examined research variables. Data were analyzed using the analysis of variance test through SPSS 25 software with a significance level of 0.05. Findings: there was a significant relationship between the perceived physiological stress, uncompromising emotion regulation strategies, and psychological hardiness in athletes and non-athletes’ veterans and disabled (p≤0.05). There was no significant difference in adapted emotion regulation strategies between the two groups. Conclusion: The results showed lower scores of perceived stress and uncompromising strategies of emotion regulation and a higher score of psychological hardiness in athlete veterans and disabled than non-athletes. It is suggested to use appropriate planning for the active participation of veterans in regular physical activity to reduce perceived stress, increase psychological hardiness, improve emotion regulation strategies, and increase the quality of life by the authorities.