Researchers from Sheffield Hallam University’s Advanced Wellbeing Research Centre (AWRC) interviewed men aged 45-64 from across Ireland who regularly participated in weekly parkruns*.
Findings highlighted how the parkrun events helped them to develop new friendships, strengthen existing friendships and had a positive impact on their overall mental wellbeing.
Men in middle-age is a population demographic that is recognised as being at risk of social isolation and poor mental wellbeing.
Many of the men in the research said that parkrun felt welcoming and inclusive and provided opportunities to socialise before, during and after the event if they wanted to.
Allison Dunne, who led the research from Sheffield Hallam University, said: “The results from this research show that parkrun is more than just a run or walk. It’s a local meeting place where people can socialise every Saturday morning and build a network of friends.
“These social connections are important to support mental wellbeing. Recommending community initiatives like parkrun is an excellent health promotion strategy for everyone in the community and is particularly valuable for preventing mental health conditions in the long term for those at high risk.”
In the study, the men interviewed highlighted how parkrun gave them a choice of social interactions.
Some of the men developed deeper connections over time as they regularly attended parkruns. They spoke about how this helped their mental wellbeing and were able to openly talk about personal issues, such as cancer treatment, as well as become friends outside of parkrun.
Derek, aged 60, who took part in the research said: “Definitely the social side of it and being able to talk about stuff and actively talking about stuff, it's a positive in terms of mental wellbeing.”
Another participant, Pat aged 59, said: “The buzz is the connection with all the different people. That's the key for parkrun. All the different people, all the new friends I've met.”
It was also recognised that having casual ‘parkrun friends’, a separate friend group that the men only saw at the parkrun, was beneficial to mental wellbeing. These more casual friendships comprised of light-hearted conversation which took place at parkrun events.
Men in the study described both types of social interaction as being good for their mental wellbeing.
“It's actually created a kind of a separate friend group or peer group for me. There are parkrun friends who are only parkrun friends.” (Finbarr, 49.)
“I met nobody the first time, you know, but you know how it is, you go and you talk to one or two people, you run with people, you complain about the hills … and you get to know people.” (Dylan, age 64).
Findings could help inform social prescribers and other healthcare professionals who wish to recommend a community initiative for middle-aged men at risk of social isolation and poor mental wellbeing.
*parkrun is stylised with a lower-case p
