Abstract
T4Us is an athlete-led intervention designed to strengthen team identity in youth sport teams. High team identification has been associated with positive developmental outcomes (Bruner et al., 2018; Vella et al., 2021). Previous studies have demonstrated the efficacy of T4Us through feasibility testing and proof-of-concept evaluation (Bruner et al., 2025). This study assessed the effectiveness of the T4Us intervention on enhancing team identification, moral behaviour, and mental health across a sport season. As part of a cluster-randomized control trial (RCT) design, five teams (n=90, Mage= 13.29 years) completed T4Us, and five teams (n=74, Mage = 13.59 years) received an athlete-focused mental performance session. The RCT had three time points: pre-season, post-intervention, end-of-season. A longitudinal mixed effects model found no significant Condition*Time interaction for team identification, F(2, 293)=1.82, p=.16. However, pairwise comparisons indicated a significant increase in team identification in the T4Us condition from pre- (Time 1, M=5.88) to post- (Time 2, M=6.13) intervention (p=.004), while no change occurred for control teams. For those in the T4Us condition, a significant Condition*Time interaction highlighted a maintenance of lower anti-social behaviour toward teammates during competition (p=.006) and socially (p=.001), and also increased perceptions of resilience (p=.04). Pairwise comparisons for mental health demonstrated significant improvements for T4Us teams across time points Time 1-2 (p=.002) and Time 1-3 (p<.0001). Together, these findings support T4Us as a promising group-based intervention to enhance team identification and promote positive developmental and mental health outcomes in youth sport.
