Mindfulness and psychological distress among Chinese taekwondo athletes: the mediating roles of stress, self-management, and brooding

Introduction Taekwondo athletes are frequently exposed to intensive training demands, competitive pressure, and injury-related stress, all of which may increase their vulnerability to psychological distress. Although mindfulness has been widely recognized as a protective psychological resource, less is known about how it is associated with psychological distress among taekwondo athletes, particularly through self-regulatory and cognitive mechanisms. Therefore, this study examined the association of mindfulness with psychological distress among taekwondo athletes and further explored the mediating roles of stress self-management and brooding. Methods A cross-sectional survey was conducted in March 2026 among 346 taekwondo athletes recruited using a convenience sampling approach from university teams, sports schools/professional training teams, and competitive clubs in China. Participants completed measures of mindfulness, stress self-management, brooding, and psychological distress. Data were analyzed using IBM SPSS 26.0 and AMOS 26.0. Structural equation modeling was employed to test the hypothesized relationships, and bootstrapping was used to examine the indirect effect. Results The structural model showed a good fit to the data. After controlling for training frequency and sports injury experience, mindfulness was positively associated with stress self-management (β = 0.435, p < 0.001) and negatively associated with brooding (β = −0.258, p < 0.001). Stress self-management was negatively associated with both brooding (β = −0.351, p < 0.001) and psychological distress (β = −0.290, p < 0.001), whereas brooding was positively associated with psychological distress (β = 0.335, p < 0.001). The standardized indirect effect of mindfulness on psychological distress through stress self-management and brooding was significant (β = −0.264, SE = 0.040, 95% CI [−0.342, −0.187], p < 0.001). The model explained 19.3% of the variance in stress self-management, 26.9% of the variance in brooding, and 28.7% of the variance in psychological distress. Discussion Mindfulness was associated with lower psychological distress among taekwondo athletes, both directly and indirectly through higher stress self-management and lower brooding. These findings highlight the importance of mindfulness as a psychological resource in athletic settings and suggest that interventions aimed at improving stress self-management and reducing maladaptive rumination may help promote athletes' mental wellbeing.