Athletic Involvement Research Articles

Democratization and governance in international sport: addressing issues with athlete involvement in organizational policy

Leaders of national and international sport organizations are increasingly recognising the importance of involving stakeholders in the development of policies. In the governance of international high performance sport, an important group of stakeholders includes athletes. The purpose of this paper is to highlight and discuss the increasing role high performance athletes are playing in the development of policies in international sport organizations.1 We examine how representation and deliberative participation in policy-making allow high performance athletes to not only be represented at policy meetings, but also be involved in the formation of policies that affect them. To showcase athletes' representation and participation in sport policy, a number of international sport examples are presented (i.e. winter and summer Olympic international sport federations as well as the International Olympic Committee, the International Paralympic Committee, and the World Anti-Doping Agency). Several organizations have incorporated more athlete-centred practices that have allowed for greater involvement from athletes. In investigating these cases, we discuss and critique issues, and provide practical recommendations surrounding athlete representation and participation in deliberations and their impact on the policy and decision-making processes of their international sport federation.

Exploring the Influence of Mediated Beauty: Examining Individual and Social Factors in White and Black Adolescent Girls' Appearance Evaluations

This project explored media exposure, self-esteem, and the role that sports participation might play in cultivating perceptions and expectations of ideal beauty and attractiveness in others using a sample of girls who have varying degrees of athletic involvement. The study objective was to assess the factors that were stronger predictors of more favorable appearance estimates of others based on involvement in sports, race, age, media exposure and self-esteem. This study of 117 adolescent Black and White girls measured media use and media preferences, their beliefs about the importance of appearance attributes and self-esteem to determine if these factors shaped the way they viewed attractiveness in others. Findings from this survey yielded interesting but conflicting results with regard to potential correlates of higher or lower appearance evaluations. Type of sport played, time spent viewing thin-ideal media content, and self-esteem were the strongest predictors of higher or lower appearance evaluations of others. Participants' ethnicity was not a significant predictor of higher or lower appearance evaluations; however, differences in athletic participation and self-esteem did vary by ethnicity. These and other findings are discussed.

Prevalence of Depressive Symptoms in Male Intercollegiate Student-Athletes and Nonathletes

This study examined the athletic status differences in reported depressive symptoms between male intercollegiate team sport athletes (n= 66) and male nonathletes (n = 51) enrolled at one of two public universities in the Southeastern United States, while controlling for preferred (task-oriented and emotion-oriented) coping strategies. Analysis of covariance (ANCOVA) revealed that the athletes reported significantly fewer depressive symptoms than nonathletes while controlling for coping strategy selection (p< .05). In terms of the actual prevalence rates of depressive symptoms, 29.4% of the nonathletes met the criterion for possible depression compared with only 15.6% of the athletes. Overall, athletic participation in an intercollegiate team sport appears related to lower levels of depression. The potentially distress-buffering aspects of athletic involvement and implications for future research are discussed.

Health-Related Quality of Life Differs Between Adolescent Athletes and Adolescent Nonathletes

Patient-oriented outcome measures such as the Medical Outcomes Short Form (SF-36) and the Pediatric Outcomes Data Collection Instrument (PODCI) are important tools for determining the impact of events like sport-related injury on health-related quality of life (HRQoL). Unfortunately, there are no published studies using these instruments that compare adolescent athletes with their nonathlete peers, making interpretations of these measures in this population difficult. To compare HRQoL in adolescent athletes and nonathletes using 2 common instruments. Cross-sectional. 7 high schools. 219 athletes and 106 nonathletes. None. The SF-36 and the PODCI were completed in a counterbalanced manner during 1 session. Dependent variables included the 8 subscale and 2 composite scores of the SF-36 and the 5 subscale scores and 1 global score of the PODCI. On the SF-36, athletes reported higher scores on the physical function, general health, social functioning, and mental health subscales and the mental composite score and lower scores on the bodily pain subscale than nonathletes. On the PODCI, athletes reported higher scores on the sport and physical function and happiness subscales and lower scores on the pain/comfort subscale. Athletes reported higher scores on a number of SF-36 and PODCI subscales related to mental, emotional, and physical well-being than nonathletes. Our findings suggest that athletic involvement may be a benefit to the overall health status of adolescents and imply that athletes may be a distinct adolescent group requiring their own normative values when using the SF-36 and PODCI.

Curettage and Graft Alleviates Athletic-Limiting Pain in Benign Lytic Bone Lesions

Solitary bone cysts (SBC), nonossifying fibromas (NOF), and fibrous dysplasia (FD) create benign intramedullary lytic bone lesions. They are typically asymptomatic and treated conservatively. We present a series of lesions that caused performance-limiting pain in young athletes, a symptom phenomenon and possible treatment indication that has been poorly described in the literature. We asked whether intralesional curettage and defect grafting of these lesions would alleviate pain in young athletes and permit their return to unrestricted athletic activities. We retrospectively identified 29 patients (30 lesions) who underwent curettage and grafting for SBC (12 patients), NOF (nine), or FD (eight). All patients had pain predominantly with athletic involvement. The mean age of the patients was 18 years (range, 12-31 years). Tumor locations were the femur (eight lesions), humerus (seven), tibia (six), fibula (five), pubic ramus (two), ulna (one), and calcaneus (one). Signs/symptoms were pain alone (24 patients) and pain plus fracture (five). Surgery involved curettage and packing with allograft cancellous chips, bone substitute, or demineralized bone matrix. Two patients required internal fixation. The mean followup was 21 months (range, 2-114 months). Twenty-four patients had no pain and five had occasional mild pain at last followup. All patients resumed full activity at a mean of 3.3 months (range, 1.5-8.3 months), excluding two who required repeat surgery. Our observations suggest curettage and packing with bone graft/substitute can provide pain relief and allow full athletic recovery for young athletes with benign lytic bone lesions. Level IV, therapeutic study. See Guidelines for Authors for a complete description of levels of evidence.

Introduction to the minisymposium on sports imaging in children

The importance of children’s involvement in athletics has been emphasized in recent years by The President’s Council on Physical Fitness and Sports through the United States Department of Health and Human Services, representing one of many countries seeking to improve the health of children through physical activity [1]. The benefits of organized sports for young people are well recognized, including increasing physical conditioning, improving skills, acquiring confidence, gaining a healthy attitude toward competition, winning and losing as well as learning to participate as a team member. Injuries do occur and are part of athletics. The minisymposium on sports imaging in children addresses a variety of events arising from the participation of youngsters in basketball, football, soccer and gymnastics. Understanding the patterns and mechanisms of injury in each sport is important in knowing when and how to use imaging in the young athlete’s care. Not every injury merits imaging, and learning this is also key. For the radiologists, we wish to emphasize that, as in other areas of pediatric imaging, the patterns of biomechanical susceptibility in response to stresses upon the immature musculoskeletal system may be quite different from those in adults. Each of the authors is also a parent who has had to consider allowing a child to participate in various sports. Part of our aim is to provide a resource, not only for healthcare personnel, but also for parents searching for information about injuries and risks in considering their own child’s athletic participation. Accordingly, some of the comments address entities that are not directly related to imaging but were thought by authors to be relevant to a complete discussion of the sport and the young people who participate. The authors have had the experience and pleasure during several years of working together as a team on this project, having been invited to present versions of this symposium as an organized course at a number of meetings. During the last few years, we have learned much from one another and have modified our material in response to comments from our audiences. We are very happy that Pediatric Radiology has chosen to preserve our efforts as a resource that others may find helpful for some years to come.

The influence of student status on student interactions and experiences during a sport education unit

Background: Curriculum models that include group work and allow student decision-making and responsibility within physical education classes have become increasingly popular. Models such as Sport Education are likely to facilitate different and potentially better quality experiences for students. One of the underlying premises of Sport Education is that it requires social interaction among students during group activities because of the many roles and responsibilities involved. Elizabeth Cohen has extensively studied group work in classroom curriculum models. Although group work is widely viewed as a strategy for teaching that promotes learning, Cohen found disparities in participation and achievement of students during group work relative to student status. Aims: Given the proliferation of curriculum models utilizing group work in physical education and the research from classroom settings on the role of status in group work, the purpose of this study was to explore students' social interactions and their perspectives on what happened during a Sport Education unit. More specifically, we sought to explore the influence of student status, if any, on group interactions and decisions. Method: Because our intent was to study students' social interactions at a micro-level across an entire Sport Education unit, one focus team of five boys and five girls aged 11–12 years were selected from a physical education class of 80 students. The Sport Education unit consisted of 26 lessons of modified soccer taught by the physical education teacher. Qualitative methods of research were employed to explore students' experiences and perceptions while working in groups. Data collection included: a student questionnaire; videotapes and observations; group and individual interviews with students; informal interviews with the physical education teacher; informal interviews with the students' classroom teachers; student journals; and field notes. Analysis was completed by transcribing, labeling, and copying all data. Patton's methods of content analysis were applied to all data by coding and categorizing patterns in the data to produce more comprehensive themes. The credibility of the data was checked to minimize personal bias. Results: Students in this setting specifically defined status based on four characteristics: economic level, attractiveness, athletic involvement, and personality. It was evident that status did influence students' social interactions during group work in terms of whose opinions were acknowledged and which students were silenced. Student status also influenced decisions about playing time during the Sport Education unit based on skill level and gender of the students. Conclusions: As is evident from this study, it is important to understand the role status plays during group work, how to recognize the negative impacts of status, and how to prevent these problems when students are working in groups. Also, we should note that status is specific to the environment and defined by the student culture in which the group work is taking place. Curriculum models such as Sport Education provide us with a medium for addressing the influence of status during group work, as long as we recognize it and value its importance.

Campus Involvement, Perceived Campus Connection, and Alcohol Use in College Athletes

This research study examined the relationship of college athletes' levels of campus involvement and campus connection to their alcohol use. A survey measuring alcohol use, campus involvement and campus connection was administered to 720 athletes at nine institutions. Participants who reported having 5 or more drinks on one occasion in the past two weeks had higher levels of campus connection than those who did not report that level of alcohol consumption; but, conversely these college athletes also reported lower levels of campus involvement. It is suggested that increasing campus involvement of college athletes could be an effective strategy to reduce high-risk alcohol use by college athletes and possibly even college students as a whole.

Mental Well-Being and Sport-Related Identities in College Students

Past research has linked physical activity and sports participation with improved mental and social well-being, including reduced risk of depression and suicidality. In this study we examined relationships among several dimensions of athletic involvement (team sport participation, individual sport participation, athlete identity, and jock identity), gender, and depression and suicidal behavior in a sample of 791 undergraduate students. Both participation in a team sport and athlete identity were associated with lower depression scores. Athlete identity was also associated with lower odds of a past-year suicide attempt, whereas jock identity was associated with elevated odds of a suicide attempt. The findings are discussed in light of the relationship between mental well-being and a larger constellation of health-risk behaviors linked to a "toxic jock" identity.

Educating Students on Athletic Training Political Involvement

Educating Students on Athletic Training Political Involvement

FACTORS THAT INFLUENCE THE DECISION TO PARTICIPATE IN YOUTH ORGANIZATIONS IN RURAL HIGH SCHOOLS IN THREE STATES

This study sought to determine the factors that influenced student decisions to participate in FFA in a rural school and their level of involvement as an FFA member. Data was collected from 2,111 high school students in 41 rural high schools in Arizona, Florida, and Texas. Discriminant analysis identified four factors that influence participation in FFA in the respondents: high school GPA, participation in on-campus (non-Career/Technical organizations) activities, agreement with the statement “Leadership activities have made me a more confident person,” and the student’s year in school. Factors identified that influenced the level of involvement in FFA by the respondents were: involvement in on-campus athletics, involvement in on-campus (non-Career/Technical organizations) activities, high school GPA, and agreement with the statement “My friends would think less of me.” Future research is recommended, including a replication of this study with urban students.

All-stars & movie stars: sports in film & history

Sports films are popular forms of entertainment around the world, but beyond simply amusing audiences, they also reveal much about class, race, gender, sexuality, and national identity. In All-Stars and Movie Stars, Ron Briley, Michael K. Schoenecke, and Deborah A. Carmichael explore the interplay between sports films and critical aspects of our culture, examining them as both historical artifacts and building blocks of ideologies, values, and stereotypes. The book covers not only Hollywood hits such as Field of Dreams and Miracle but also documentaries such as The Journey of the African American Athlete and international cinema, such as the German film The Miracle of Bern. The book also explores television coverage of sports, commenting on the relationship of media to golf and offering a new perspective on the culture and politics behind the depictions of the world's most popular pastimes. The first part of the book addresses how sports films represent the cultural events, patterns, and movements of the times in which they were set, as well as the effect of the media and athletic industry on the athletes themselves. Latham Hunter examines how the baseball classic The Natural reflects traditional ideas about gender, heroism, and nation, and Harper Cossar addresses how the production methods used in televised golf affect viewers. The second section deals with issues such as the growth of women's involvement in athletics, sexual preference in the sports world, and the ever-present question of race by looking at sports classics such as Rocky, Hoosiers, and A League of Their Own. Finally, the authors address the historical and present-day role sports play in the international and political arena by examining such films as Visions of Eight and The Loneliness of the Long Distance Runner. This important and unique collection illuminates the prominent role that sports play in society and how that role is reflected in film. Analysis of the depiction of sports in film and television provides a deeper understanding of the appeal that sports hold for people worldwide and of the forces behind the historic and cultural traditions linked to sports.

Critical Comments About Body Shape and Weight: Disordered Eating of Female Athletes and Sport Participants

This investigation explored the role of critical comments about weight and body shape and disordered eating symptoms of female athletes (N = 157) and sport participants (N = 63). Results revealed that both athletes and sport participants who recalled critical comments, compared with those who did not, and those who recalled more severe critical comments, reported greater disordered eating (controlling for depression). Although greater degree of athletic involvement was associated with greater frequency of recalled critical comments, athletes and sport participants did not differ on disordered eating. Consistent with objectification theory, those who recalled critical comments had more intense negative emotions (shame, anxiety) than positive emotions associated with the recalled comment; but not more so for athletes than sports participants.

Role of Special Olympics for Mothers of Adult Athletes With Intellectual Disability

The role of Special Olympics in the lives of mothers of adult athletes was examined. Forty-six mothers participated in a longitudinal study, completing a parenting stress questionnaire, a measure of their child's maladaptive behavior, and a survey of athlete involvement in Special Olympics at two time periods, 42 months apart. Results confirm that involvement in Special Olympics is negatively correlated with mothers' role restriction, isolation, depression, and problems with competence and attachment. Involvement in Special Olympics fully mediated the effect of child social maladjustment on maternal role restriction and depression and partially mediated its effect on maternal problems with competence. Taken together, these findings suggest that Special Olympics can function as a formal support for mothers.

Unnecessary Roughness? School Sports, Peer Networks, and Male Adolescent Violence

This article examines the extent to which participation in high school interscholastic sports contributes to male violence. Deriving competing hypotheses from social control, social learning, and masculinity theories, I use data from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health to test if (1) type of sport and (2) peer athletic participation, contribute to the risks of male serious fighting. Contrary to social control expectations, analyses suggest that athletic involvement fails to inhibit male violence. Moreover, there is a strong relationship between contact sports and violence. Football players and wrestlers, as opposed to baseball, basketball, tennis, and other athletes, are significantly more likely than nonathletic males to be involved in a serious fight. Additionally, the direct effect of football is explained by the football participation of individuals' peers. Males whose friends play football are more likely to fight than other males, supporting perspectives that emphasize peer contexts as important mediators. Overall, findings are consistent with the expectations of social learning and masculinity arguments. The theoretical and policy implications of these results are discussed.

Reassessing the Relationship Between High School Sports Participation and Deviance: Evidence of Enduring, Bifurcated Effects

Despite its long-standing popular appeal, the idea that athletic activity is a deterrent to crime and delinquency suffers from a distinct lack of empirical support. This article tests the hypothesis that the relationship between high school sports participation and deviance varies by both type of deviant behavior and level of athletic involvement. The analysis is based upon longitudinal data focusing on the effects of involvement in high school sports, the country's largest institutional setting for youth sports participation, in early adulthood. We find that the relationship between athletic involvement and deviance varies significantly depending upon the deviant behaviors examined. Specifically, we find that shoplifting decreases with sports participation, while drunken driving increases. Moreover, these effects extend further into the life course (age 30) than has been demonstrated in any previous study and hold across all our measures of sports participation. Several potential explanatory mechanisms are evaluated. The implications of these enduring, bifurcated effects are discussed.

Alcohol Use among College Students: A Comparison of Athletes and Nonathletes

This study examines alcohol use among college students, focusing on variation in binge drinking based on involvement in athletics. Prior research indicates that college students who participate in athletics are more likely to report binge drinking than are students who are not involved in athletics. However, existing research has not offered an explanation why college athletes are at a greater risk for binge drinking. Using data from the 1999 Harvard School of Public Health College Alcohol Study, a national study examining substance use and other health risk behaviors of college students in the United States, the current research examines social norms as a possible source of the elevated levels of binge drinking among college athletes. Findings indicate that athletes are more likely to report binge drinking, in part, because they view alcohol use as being more normative. The limitations of the study are noted.

Understanding and Promoting College Student-Athlete Health: Essential Issues for Student Affairs Professionals

Collegiate student athletes are faced with the same developmental challenges and stressors as their nonathlete peers, but they are also expected to deal with the challenges of athletic involvement (e.g., time demands, physical demands, travel schedules). Such additional demands may put athletes at greater risk for experiencing physical and psychological health problems. The current article was written for student affairs administrators as an overview of the current knowledge about several healthrelated issues commonly faced by collegiate student athletes (i.e., training and overtraining, alcohol, drug use and drug testing, depression and suicidality, dysfunctional eating behaviors, injury, and hazing), and to provide assistance to these administrators for making decisions about the best practices for dealing with such issues.

Athletic Involvement and Adolescent Delinquency

Athough conventional wisdom suggests that organized sport deters delinquency by building character, structuring adolescents' time, and providing incentives for socially approved behavior, the empirical evidence to date has been mixed. Based on a sample of approximately 600 Western New York adolescents, the present study examined how self-reported jock identity, school athlete status, and frequency of athletic activity differentially influenced a range of delinquent behaviors. Neither athlete status nor frequency of athletic activity predicted these behaviors; however, jock identity was associated with significantly more incidents of delinquency. This finding was robust across both gender and race. Follow-up analyses indicated that jock identity facilitated both minor and major delinquency, with major delinquency effects for white but not black adolescents.

Substance use by college students: The role of intrinsic versus extrinsic motivation for athletic involvement.

Certain types of athletic involvement may confer risk for substance use by college students. This study investigated whether motivational factors play a role in the relationship between athletic involvement and substance use. Intercollegiate athletes (n=98) and exercisers (n=120) were surveyed about substance use and motivation for athletic involvement. Athletes and exercisers who were extrinsically motivated had significantly higher rates of alcohol use than their intrinsically motivated counterparts. Results suggest that college students who are extrinsically motivated for involvement in physical activity/athletics--particularly those involved in team sports--may be in need of targeted prevention efforts.