Internet cognitive behaviour therapy for perfectionism in athletes

Feasibility and acceptability of unguided internet cognitive behaviour therapy for perfectionism in young competitive athletes: a pilot randomised controlled trial

Status

Active, not recruiting

Phases

Unknown

Study type

Interventional

Source

ISRCTN

Registry ID

ISRCTN83049713

Enrollment

104

Registered

2025-11-21

Start date

2026-10-01

Completion date

Unknown

Last updated

2026-06-29

For informational purposes only — not medical advice. Sourced from public registries and may not reflect the latest updates. Terms

Conditions

Perfectionism and associated psychological difficulties in young competitive athletes, including symptoms of anxiety, depression, burnout, disordered eating, and compulsive exercise. Mental and Behavioural Disorders

Interventions

Participants will be randomly allocated to either an intervention or waitlist control group using a random allocation software. Intervention group: Participants will complete an athlete-specific Inte

Eligibility

Sex/Gender

All

Age

13 Years to 21 Years

Inclusion criteria

Inclusion criteria: 1. Aged 13–21 years. 2. Lives in Australia or the United Kingdom. 3. Trains = 3 times per week in a competitive sporting program (school, state, or national level). 4. Self-reports experiencing perfectionism. 5. Has reliable internet access. 6. Provides informed consent (and parent/guardian consent for those < 18 years).

Exclusion criteria

Exclusion criteria: 1. Currently receiving psychological counselling or therapy. 2. Experiencing a high level of suicidal thoughts or feelings as identified by the Columbia Suicide Screening Questionnaire (CSS; Posner et al., 2011). High risk is defined as a score of 16 or above on the suicidal behaviours subscale. 3. Under 13 years or over 21 years of age. 4. Parents do not provide consent for participants under 18 years. 5. Does not train at least three times per week in a competitive sport program. 6. Does not have reliable internet access. 7. Does not live in Australia or United Kingdom.

Design outcomes

Primary

Measure	Time frame
Clinical perfectionism, measured using the Clinical Perfectionism Questionnaire (CPQ; Fairburn et al., 2003) at baseline, weekly during treatment, post-treatment (4 weeks), and three-month follow-up.	—

Secondary

Measure	Time frame
1. Perfectionistic strivings – Personal Standards subscale of the Frost Multidimensional Perfectionism Scale (FMPS-PS; Frost et al., 1990) at baseline, 4 weeks, 3 months. 2. Perfectionistic concerns – Concern Over Mistakes subscale of the FMPS (Frost et al., 1990) at baseline, 4 weeks, 3 months. 3. Anxiety – Generalized Anxiety Disorder-7 (GAD-7; Spitzer et al., 2006) at baseline, 4 weeks, 3 months. 4. Depression – Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9; Kroenke et al., 2001) at baseline, 4 weeks, 3 months. 5. Burnout – Athlete Burnout Questionnaire (ABQ; Raedeke & Smith, 2001) at baseline, 4 weeks, 3 months. 6. Disordered eating – Eating Disorder-15 (ED-15; Tatham et al., 2015) at baseline, 4 weeks, 3 months. 7. Compulsive exercise – Compulsive Exercise Test (CET; Plateau et al., 2014) at baseline, 4 weeks, 3 months. 8. Treatment acceptability and usability – 7-item questionnaire based on the Theoretical Framework of Acceptability (TFA; Sekhon et al., 2017) at 4 weeks.	—

Measure

Time frame

1. Perfectionistic strivings – Personal Standards subscale of the Frost Multidimensional Perfectionism Scale (FMPS-PS; Frost et al., 1990) at baseline, 4 weeks, 3 months. 2. Perfectionistic concerns – Concern Over Mistakes subscale of the FMPS (Frost et al., 1990) at baseline, 4 weeks, 3 months. 3. Anxiety – Generalized Anxiety Disorder-7 (GAD-7; Spitzer et al., 2006) at baseline, 4 weeks, 3 months. 4. Depression – Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9; Kroenke et al., 2001) at baseline, 4 weeks, 3 months. 5. Burnout – Athlete Burnout Questionnaire (ABQ; Raedeke & Smith, 2001) at baseline, 4 weeks, 3 months. 6. Disordered eating – Eating Disorder-15 (ED-15; Tatham et al., 2015) at baseline, 4 weeks, 3 months. 7. Compulsive exercise – Compulsive Exercise Test (CET; Plateau et al., 2014) at baseline, 4 weeks, 3 months. 8. Treatment acceptability and usability – 7-item questionnaire based on the Theoretical Framework of Acceptability (TFA; Sekhon et al., 2017) at 4 weeks.

—

Countries

Australia

Contacts

Public ContactEve Wakeb

eve.wakeb@postgrad.curtin.edu.au+61 8 9266 9266

Outcome results

None listed

Source: ISRCTN (via WHO ICTRP) · Data processed: Jul 3, 2026