Mental skills among football players in the teams of southern and middle Euphrates universities a comparative study

To assess the level of mental skills among football players of the university teams from Southern and Middle Euphrates regions (Dhi Qar, Muthanna, Qadisiyyah, Babylon). The research problem that the researcher aims to address determines the appropriate methodology to be adopted in order to obtain the desired results. Therefore, the researcher used the descriptive method with a comparative study approach. The research population was defined as the basketball players of the university teams from Southern and Middle Euphrates regions (Dhi Qar, Muthanna, Qadisiyyah, Babylon), with a total of 77 players. Samples were drawn from this population using the stratified random sampling method with equal allocation. Table (1) presents the distribution. The researcher used the Mental Skills Scale as the primary tool for data collection to identify strengths and weaknesses in athletes’ mental abilities and to monitor their development. The original version of this scale was developed by two British researchers in sports psychology at the University of North Wales. The questionnaire consists of 28 items measuring seven key mental aspects of sports performance. Scoring is based on the following dimensions: In light of the research results and within the limits of the statistical population, the researcher reached the following conclusion: No significant differences were found among the university teams (research groups) across all dimensions of the scale, indicating that no single team outperformed the others in terms of mental skills.