Sport Experience Research Articles

Relational Ethics of Care in Pandemic Research: Vulnerabilities, Intimacies, and Becoming Together-Apart

In this article, we draw upon the ethico-onto-epistemology of feminist new materialisms to reflect on our experiences as feminists doing research on women’s embodied experiences of sport, fitness, and well-being during the COVID-19 pandemic. For qualitative researchers around the world, COVID-19 presented a radically changed research environment. For many, the shift to doing digital interviews required the navigation of unfamiliar technologies and experimenting with different strategies for establishing connections through computer screens. As feminist scholars, working together and with the participants during times of increased stress and uncertainty prompted us to reimagine our ethical research practices. In this article, we engage and extend Rosi Braidotti’s writing on affirmative ethics and offer our personal experiences of grappling with the affective intensities of pandemic while doing ethical feminist research. Through this creative inquiry, we describe supporting one another through research and illustrate how the unique intersections of work, family, health, isolation, and exhaustion were influencing our own and participants’ lives differently. Engaging with Braidotti’s writings on affirmative ethics in the posthuman convergence, we illuminate the ways that our digital-material experiences and the human/nonhuman aspects of the research processes were re-turning our ethical considerations. Researching together, with a focus on creating space for the voices of women who have been disproportionately affected by COVID-19, we found moments of hope and joy as we creatively imagined expansive potentials for feminist research, fostered through caring collaborations.

What is real?

In sport pedagogical contexts, body, movement and experience can be seen as fundamental issues. The conceptualization of these issues—often based on anthropological, phenomenological, or otherwise philosophical considerations on how human beings act and perceive the world—is crucial for sport pedagogical work on the theoretical, practical, and empirical levels. The authors’ thesis is that, in an increasingly digitized world, body, movement, and experience are gaining more and more new meanings. Therefore, this paper seeks to (re-)locate body, movement, and experience in a digitized world, confronting traditional sport pedagogical conceptualizations with philosophical and sociological considerations on digitality. The aim is to build a solid base and to open new doors for sport pedagogical work in the 21st century.

Deploying Cultural Knowledge of Nature to Construct the Nature Sports Experience

A tourist’s cultural construction of nature can shape their nature sports experience. It can also impact how they perceive the destinations where they engage in nature sports. This ethnography identifies how international tourists on a surfing trip in Australia draw on their cultural knowledge of nature to assign meaning to their experiences and surroundings. The nature sports experience is influenced by three types of cultural knowledge applied to nature: declarative, evaluative, and procedural. Interaction with nature activates that knowledge. Theoretical contributions include offering a comprehensive explanation for how cultural knowledge of nature can transform the nature sports experience and providing a more complete picture of how cultural knowledge impacts the tourist’s interpretation of a destination. Applied implications involve drawing on different types of cultural knowledge to create compelling nature sports and destination promotion campaigns.

Evaluation of Posturographic and Neuromuscular Parameters during Upright Stance and Hand Standing: A Pilot Study

Upright bipedal posture is the physiological human posture; however, it is not the only possible form of human standing; indeed, an inverted position, a handstand, is required during gymnastics or other sports. Thus, this study aimed to understand the differences between the two standing strategies from a postural and neuromuscular perspective. Thirteen gymnasts with at least three years of sports experience underwent a baropodometric assessment and a surface electromyography (sEMG) examination in a standard upright bipodalic stance and during a handstand. The sEMG examination was performed on the gastrocnemius during an upright stance and on the flexor carpi radialis during the handstand. Limb weight distribution presented differences between the two vertical stances (p < 0.01). During the handstand, the weight ratio was prevalently observed on the palm of the hand for both hands with a significant difference between the front and rear aspect of the hand compared to the standing tasks (p < 0.01). Normalized sEMG amplitude showed significant differences during bipedal standing and hand standing; however, over a 5 s period, the normalized median frequency (MDF) value was similar for the two tasks. Both standing tasks presented similar postural weight managing patterns when analysed on the frontal plane, but they were different on the sagittal plane. In addition, the neuromuscular patterns during a 5 s window differ in amplitude but not for the frequency domain.

Sources of Sport Satisfaction and Perceived Self-Efficacy Among Youth in a Competitive Environment.

Young people's sources of satisfaction in sport are an important indicator of their long-term sport participation. Contextual factors and an individual's internal dispositions act synergistically to determine a positive experience. We studied sources of sport satisfaction and perceived self-efficacy of 1,151 male and female youth athletes (M age = 14.72, SD = 1.56years) in Brazil who were engaged in school state level competition. The participants responded to questionnaires on their sport satisfaction and perceived self-efficacy. We considered sex, training time, and last game results as independent variables in accessing participant differences in perceived satisfaction. We observed an increasing trend toward more significant satisfaction as sport experience increased. Perceived self-efficacy was a moderator for young participants' self-reported positive experience in sports. Thus, in our offer of evidence on sources of satisfaction in sport and perceived self-efficacy among youth in competition, we found the extent of the sport experience and self-efficacy to be important factors in the developmental pathway.

Return to racket sports after shoulder arthroplasty: performance and outcome scores

HypothesisTennis and other racket sports remain popular among active patients considering shoulder arthroplasty. While the ability to return to tennis following hip and knee arthroplasty has been previously studied, the capacity to participate following shoulder arthroplasty is less well known, especially following reverse shoulder arthroplasty (RSA), which alters shoulder kinematics. The purpose of this study is to characterize the return to racket sports following both total shoulder arthroplasty (TSA) and RSA. The secondary objectives were to evaluate: 1) performance; 2) change in patient-reported outcome measures; 3) range of motion (ROM); and 4) satisfaction of patients who returned to racket sports after TSA. MethodsThis is a retrospective cohort study of 43 patients identified as playing a racket sport before undergoing either anatomic TSA or RSA. All patients were cleared to return to racket sports activities beginning 3 months following surgery. Patients were contacted by phone or email and a racket sport-specific questionnaire was administered, focusing on their experience returning to racket sports. The results following TSA were compared with those who received RSA. ResultsThe median age at surgery was 71 (66-75) years, with 26 TSA and 13 RSA patients. Of the 43 patients, 90% were able to return to sport, 4 (3 RSA, 1 TSA) stated that they were unable to return due to a shoulder-related complaint. Of the 39 patients still playing, 19 (49%) returned within 6 months and 33 (85%) returned within 12 months, with no differences among cohorts (P = .344). Overall perceived performance following surgery stayed the same or improved in 90% of the patients. Similarly, overall enjoyment of racket sports either improved or stayed the same in 98% of patients. Pain experienced during sport improved significantly from a median Visual Analogy Scale pain score of 5-0 (P < .001) with no significant difference seen when comparing RSA and TSA. The dominant arm was treated in 14 (54%) TSA and 8 (62%) RSA patients with minimal impact on outcomes. ConclusionReturn to racket sports following both reverse and anatomic TSA is a realistic expectation, along with significant improvements in both pain and sport-specific function while playing. Patients treated with anatomic and RSA can expect similar recovery and racket sport experiences following surgery, with no significant differences between either surgery.

Practical, professional or patriarchal? An investigation into the socio-cultural impacts of gendered school sports uniform and the role uniform plays in shaping female experiences of school sport

ABSTRACT This paper reports the findings of a mixed-methods study which investigates the socio-cultural impacts of UK gendered school sport uniform and the role uniform plays in shaping female school sport experiences. Drawing on an extensive analytical survey with over 400 women of all-ages and 8 interviews with women aged 18–24, it explores how school sport uniform directly impacts female sporting experiences and participation in physical activity, and how uniform policy could be changed to promote greater female sport participation. Gendered school sport uniform continues to operate as a socio-spatial mechanism that names, frames and positions young people in heteronormative school sport spaces. This paper assesses how gendered school sport uniform contributes to the disciplining of the ‘ideal feminine body’ in schoolgirls and the construction of behavioural gender binaries in sport. The data reveal gendered sport uniform influences the development of a ‘fear of masculinisation’ in sport and common athletic-feminine identity tensions in teenage girls. The research finds gendered school sport uniform plays a major role in the high drop-out rates of teenage girls in school sport and offers practical insight into how policy could be changed to promote inclusivity, comfort and greater female sport participation. This paper proposes redesigning traditional gendered school sport policy to focus on ‘enabling’ participation has huge potential to transform female embodied and psychological experiences of school sport and increase school sport participation and enjoyment.

Investigation of Physical Activity Levels of Eligible Students in Terms of Various Variables

This study aimed to examine the physical activity levels of the eligible students to study at the Faculty of Sports Sciences in the current academic year. A total of 200 students participated in the research as a result of the removal of the erroneous questionnaires from the questionnaires applied to 224 students who were eligible to attend the Faculty of Sports Sciences. The "International Physical Activity Questionnaire (IPAQ) short form was applied to the participants. While there was no significant difference according to the gender and body mass index variables values of the students who were entitled to study (p&gt;0.05), a significant difference was found according to the sports branches, sports experience, and the departments they attend (p&lt;0.05). As a result, a significant difference was found according to the departments of the students studying at the faculty of sports sciences according to their physical activity levels, sports experience, and the sports branches.

An autoethnographic account and interpretation of sport related life skills and personal development

ABSTRACT An authoethnographic case study of the first author’s personal experience of psychosocial development and life skills transfer across his high school sport experience and over his four-decade career as a sport psychology researcher and consultant is presented. Adopting a story-analytic and teller-mode approach, the first author (Dan) conveys and interprets his own story of personal and life skill development via sport and integrates his experiences with findings from qualitative interviews he conducted with nine classmates who were also varsity athletes in 1969 at the same high school [Gould et al., under review. Former scholastic athletes views of sport-based life skills learning: A 50 year retrospective study. Manuscript Submitted for Review]. The interviews were designed to describe and systematically analyse how Dan and his former classmates’ experiences resonate with the sport-based life skills development literature. Dan’s sport-related personal and life skill development story centred on six overarching themes. These included: (1) openness to personal development because of his drive to excel and need to feel worthy; (2) “not a Tabula Rasa athlete”; (3) coaches as mentors but his mother was his greatest influence; (4) high school sport helping make him who he is; (5) high school sport serving as an incubator for self-regulation and personal growth; and (6) depositing and withdrawing from his “experience bank” to help himself and help others over the course of his life. Dan’s experiences are interpreted relative to the existing personal and life skill sport-based development research and theory.

Former scholastic athletes perceptions of sport-based personal development: A 50 year retrospective case study

This investigation was designed to explore sport-related personal development of former high school athletes and to understand the perceived influence of their high school sport experience on their lives over five decades. A retrospective case study design was employed with nine former male varsity athletes from the same small town high school representing a variety of sports in the 1968–1969 scholastic sport season. Findings revealed that scholastic sport experience was perceived to contribute to (1) learning the value of “me” (e.g., developed individual achievement skills like hard work, time management, self-regulation) and (2) learning the value of “we” (e.g., group/team understanding and interpersonal skill development such as understanding roles and teamwork). While some unique personal development characteristics were felt to be learned through sport, the majority were perceived to be established by the athletes’ families and reinforced and further developed via sport participation. Lay Summary: Sport-related personal development of former high school athletes was studied via interviews for the purpose of understanding the perceived influence of the high school sport experience on former participants across their lives. Respondents reported that they (1) learned the value of “me” (e.g., time management, self-regulation) and (2) learning the value of “we” (e.g., group/team understanding, teamwork) via their sport experience with 8 of the 9 respondents indicating that these transferred to their adult lives. IMPLICATIONS FOR PRACTICE Coaches must make efforts to become aware of the psychosocial attributes their athletes bring to the sport context. Former athletes clearly remember specific sport experiences and coaching actions that they believe are tied to psychosocial development over five decades after they happened emphasizing the importance of coaches being aware of their attitudes and behaviors toward their athletes.

Fight or flight mechanism and sports activities: psychophysiological aspects

IntroductionSpecialists in biology, medicine, and psychology need to pay special attention to theoretical and practical research on the implementation of the fight or flight mechanism in humans in conditions of war and hostilities. Adaptation mechanism of fight or flight is related to individual and social forms of behavior among people and animals, and is aimed at the homeostasis preservation in difficult living conditions. The evolutionary fight or flight mechanism in the functional connection with stress as a general adaptation syndrome and stress reactivity has individual features due to the strengthening of the functions of certain body systems. The systemic mechanism of fight or flight is accompanied by the corresponding functional and clinical symptoms and significantly influences physical and mental health of a person in various conditions of activity.ObjectivesIn this regard, the main goal of this work was to determine the relationship between the behavioral strategy of fighting or escaping under stress and during sports activities.MethodsThe following research methods were used to realize the goal of the work: theoretical analysis and generalization of literary sources and Internet data.ResultsIn our opinion, possible versions of Walter Cannon’s concept of the fight-or-flight mechanism are: 1) attack-or-flight mechanism; 2) defense or escape mechanism; 3) pursuit or escape mechanism. At the same time, it is advisable to consider aggression as a struggle, and escape as a struggle. In addition, in line with the concept of Walter Cannon and Hans Selye, it is possible to distinguish the stress of struggle and the stress of flight. Any intense muscle activity is accompanied by changes in the hormonal and nervous regulation of metabolism, as a result of which the body adapts to a certain physical load. In the athlete, these functional changes are observed even before the start of physical exercises, in particular, in the conditions of the pre-start and start state. The nature and reaction of neuro-endocrine mechanisms in the pre-start state depend on the nature of the load, as well as on the individual characteristics of the athlete (age, gender, type of nervous system, temperament, character, training, sports experience, etc.). It is important that the pre-start changes in metabolism contribute to the mobilization of the athlete’s functional potential even before the start of the corresponding physical activity. Moderate activation of the neuro-endocrine mechanisms of the athlete’s body (“combat readiness” state) is optimal. Functionally, it is less beneficial for the athlete’s body to have a sharp strengthening of neuro-endocrine mechanisms (“pre-start fever” state) or their paradoxical inhibition (“pre-start apathy” state).ConclusionsThus, in humans, sports activities include a behavioral mechanism of fight or flight in combination with physiological and psychological stress.Disclosure of InterestNone Declared

Croatian Combat Athletes’ Attribution Patterns for Their Successes and Failures

Successes and failures are integral outcomes to the sport experience. Based on decades of research, how athletes process both outcomes influence their thoughts, emotions, and subsequent achievement endeavors. Attribution theory details three dimensions as to the causes of success and failure. Since the 1980s, attribution theory has found a home in sport psychology literature. However, research across countries requires valid and reliable questionnaires. One such country is Croatia where attribution research is scant. Thus, in a Croatian combat athlete sample, we examined athletes’ attributions for the most and least successful performances via retrospection. Croatian athletes (N = 154) from three combat sports (judo, karate, and taekwondo) who all competed at least once on an international stage completed the Croatian Causal Dimension Scale-II, answered in reference to a specific reason for their best and worst competitive experience. Results showed that the combat sport athletes attributed their most and least successful competitive achievement to psychological reasons more than other reasons (i.e., general preparation and physical preparation). Furthermore, based on a series of two-tailed paired samples t-tests and the nonparametric equivalent, Wilcoxon signed rank test, the participants made, from small to medium in meaningfulness (Cohen’s d), more internal (d = 0.30), stable (d = 0.56), personal (d = 0.30), and external (d = 0.21) controllable attributions for success than for failure (all t-test p-values &lt; 0.01). Our results suggest the athletes made the self-serving attribution bias across both the success and failure competitive events. Our results contribute to better understanding of specific reasons for success and failure and the attribution dimensions explaining the competitive outcomes in competitive combat sport. Specific to Croatian sport, our results provide Croatian combat sport with theory driven research applicable to improving development of Croatian combat athletes on the international stage.

The Role of a Forensic Expert in the Field of Self-Defense Under Current Legislation and Beyond

A forensic expert in the field of self-defense is a specialist with extensive knowledge in defence methods, close combat, defensive means, or coercive means. The core of the forensic expert's work in this field is the assessment of the facts of conflict situations in which physical violence between two or more persons has been used. The role of a forensic expert is to answer questions related to the parties' roles in the conflict, factors that influenced the conduct of the fight, the course of the fight and the possibility of resolving the conflict situation. Self-defense expertise is sometimes associated or confused with martial arts or combat sports expertise. This judgment is based on the assumption that most forensic experts in the field of self-defense also have experience or expertise in martial arts and combat sports. Such knowledge is an advantage for the profession of forensic expert in the field of self-defense, similar to knowledge in the field of weapons and ammunition, but it is not the same area as expertise in the field of self-defense or a condition for the exercise of this profession. The new Act No. 254/2019 Coll., on forensic experts, expert offices and expert institutes, faces professional criticism in several areas (expert duties, sanctions, division of specializations, etc.) and is likely to lead to pressure for further amendments. The article deals with these changes and the perspective in the coming years with the expert opinion of current forensic experts on the field of self-defense on the appropriate inclusion of this specialization in the future categorization of specializations.

Character Changes Related to Sports Participation and Contextual Factors Among Secondary School Students

Sports participation is hailed as one of the effective ways of nurturing positive character among the youth. However, some studies have also indicated that sports may lead to undesirable behavior when conducted under certain uncontrolled conditions. The purpose of this study was to assess the influence of selected contextual factors on character changes related to sports participation among secondary school students. The study focused on level of sports participation, gender, age, type of sport, school category, school status, school type, and class level of students as independent variables with potential to influence character changes related to sports participation. A Quasi-experimental research design was utilized, with the dependent variable of character traits assessed at the pre and post three months competitive games season. Purposive sampling was used to select 336 student-athletes from 24 (9.3%) of secondary schools in Nairobi city county. A close-ended questionnaire on character which was adapted from Individual and Team Character in Sport Questionnaire (ITCSQ) and Arizona Sport Summit Accord (ASSA) was utilized for data collection at the pre-and posttests. Matched Sample Wilcoxon Signed Rank test showed significant negative change in honest /integrity character component scores between pre-test and post-test (p=0.006). Multinomial Logistic Regression Analyses showed that boarding status, school category and type of sport can significantly (p&lt;0.05) influence character changes among competitive student-athletes. Therefore it is concluded that boarding status, school category and type of sport can influence outcomes of sports experiences leading to positive or negative character change. It is therefore recommended that curriculum developers and implementers should consider contextual factors to optimize sports experiences and outcomes to promote desirable character changes and development.

‘Close, but not always close enough to come out to': a large-scale online qualitative study of interpersonal relationships experienced by LGBTQ + individuals in sport

ABSTRACT Despite concerted efforts, LGBTQ + inclusivity is not fostered across all sporting contexts. Interpersonal relationships with teammates and coaches are particularly significant when it comes to cultivating positive and inclusive LGBTQ + experiences within sport. Using online qualitative data collected from 741 LGBTQ + adults, this study examined how relationships with coaches, teammates and sport-related staff impacted sport experiences and participation. Participant responses were independently coded using reflexive thematic analysis. Data were used to develop a new visual model to understand different types of relationships LGBTQ + individuals experience in sport and how this impacted their sport experiences. Exclusive sport relationships were characterised by experiences of discrimination and were found to greatly influence how participants viewed sport and physical activity contexts as adults. Inert or neutral sport relationships were maintained through protective self-distancing techniques. Inclusive relationships with coaches and teammates were primarily based on acceptance and associated with viewing physical activity positively. Identity-concealment strategies and athletic ability were identified as factors that impacted LGBTQ + adults’ relationships within sport. Our overall findings demonstrate how discrimination in the form of overt or subtle sexual and gender prejudice can thwart feelings of relatedness among LGBTQ + athletes.

Unified Sports, Social Inclusion, and Athlete-Reported Experiences: A Systematic Mixed Studies Review

AbstractInclusive sports have emerged as a potential tool for building social inclusion within diverse populations. The Special Olympics Unified Sports programs are an example of inclusion initiatives specific to students with intellectual disability and sports that can be reevaluated with new understandings of inclusion. This systematic mixed studies review aimed to capture athlete Unified Sports experiences and identify what athletes reported about their participation. The systematic review identified nine original studies conducted by six unrelated research groups. Results across the studies are synthesized and suggestions for future research are presented. Athletes in all nine studies reviewed reported positive experiences with Unified Sports leading to increased social inclusion and/or self-concepts.

The impact of folk games on primary school students

Kazakhstan's efforts to expand its physical culture have brought tremendous benefits. However, there are still unresolved issues in the teaching of physical education in our country's schools. Despite many ethnic and cultural traditions, combining learning opportunities in the classroom is ineffective. Domestic experience in sports is underutilized due to a lack of educational literature and scientific evidence that supports the use of traditional outdoor sports. The purpose of this study is to improve the motor abilities of young children by using carefully selected traditional outdoor sports. A study on the use of folk games in working with children in primary schools found that teachers' knowledge of the possibilities of folk games is inadequate. Finally, the findings suggest that incorporating traditional games into the physical education curriculum for students in lower grades can serve as a model for healthy lifestyles. Various types of games and exercises help to improve physiological systems, physical development and physical fitness in children and foster positive moral and volitional qualities.

Exploring the influence of personal factors on physiological responses to mental imagery in sport

Imagery is a well-known technique in mental training which improves performance efficiency and influences physiological arousal. One of the biomarkers indicating the amount of physiological arousal is skin conductance level (SCL). The aim of our study is to understand how individual differences in personality (e.g. neuroticism), general imagery and situational sport anxiety are linked to arousal measuring with SCL in situational imagery. Thirty participants aged between 14 and 42 years (M = 22.93; SD = 5.24), with sport experience ranging between 2 and 20 years (M = 10.15; SD = 4.75), took part in our study. Participants listened to each previously recorded script and then were asked to imagine the scene for a minute. During the task SCL was monitored using the Biofeedback Expert 2000. Machine learning predictive models based on artificial neural networks have been trained for prediction of physiological response, as a function of selected psychological tests. We found an association among neuroticism, prestart anxiety, and general tendency to use imagery with SCL. From a practical point of view our results may help athletes, coaches, and psychologists to be more aware of the role of individual differences in sport.

Proximal Hamstring Ruptures: Treatment, Rehabilitation, and Return to Play

To assess the current literature surrounding the treatment and rehabilitation strategies surrounding proximal hamstring rupture injuries, along with comparative return to sport and patient-reported outcomes. A high degree of variability exists in protective and rehabilitation strategies after both operative and non-operative proximal hamstring rupture management. Acceptable outcomes after both operative and non-operative management have been observed but may vary greatly with injury chronicity, severity, and surgical technique. The high complication rates observed after surgical treatment, along with poor functional outcomes that may occur in the setting of non-operative treatment or delayed surgery, highlight the importance of early injury evaluation and careful patient selection. Further high-quality research elucidating clearer indications for early operative management and an optimized and standardized rehabilitation protocols may improve outcomes and return to sport experience and metrics for individuals sustaining proximal hamstring ruptures.

Task and Social Determinants of Coaches’ Reports of Leader-Member Exchange

Leader-member exchange theory (LMX) has proliferated as a framework for understanding coach-athlete interactions, as the exchanges of communicative resources greatly influence athletes’ sporting experiences. The current study uses coaches’ perceptions of task and social determinants of LMX to reveal comparative insights about forming low- and high-quality exchanges. Data collected from 380 coaches, spanning 14 different sports, at 160 high schools indicated that high-quality exchanges are solely determined by athletes’ abilities. In contrast, low-quality exchanges are determined by coaches’ negative affect towards athletes, and to a lesser extent, athletes’ poor performances and lack of competitiveness. Findings contribute to sports communication literature by examining LMX from coaches’ perspectives and identifying the unique determinants of various groupings within LMX. Both coaches and athletes may find utility in the current findings as they look to create meaningful relationships and positive sporting experiences.