Although it is advocated that end-users are engaged in developing evidence-based injury prevention training to enhance the implementation, this rarely happens. The € Implementing injury Prevention training ROutines in TEams and Clubs in youth Team handball (I-PROTECT)' uses an ecological participatory design incorporating the perspectives of multiple stakeholders throughout the project. Within the I-PROTECT project, the current study aimed to describe the development of holistic injury prevention training specifically for youth handball players through using knowledge from both end-users (coaches and players) and researchers/handball experts. Employing action evaluation within participatory action research, the cyclical development process included three phases: research team preparation, handball expert-based preparation and end-user evaluation to develop injury prevention training incorporating both physical and psychological perspectives. To grow the knowledge of the interdisciplinary research team, rethinking was conducted within and between phases based on participants' contributions. Researchers and end-users cocreated examples of handball-specific exercises, including injury prevention physical principles (movement technique for upper and lower extremities, respectively, and muscle strength) combined with psychological aspects (increase end-user motivation, task focus and body awareness) to integrate into warm-up and skills training within handball practice. A cyclical development process that engaged researchers/handball experts and end-users to cocreate evidence-based, theory-informed and context-specific injury prevention training specifically for youth handball players generated a first pilot version of exercises including physical principles combined with psychological aspects to be integrated within handball practice. © 2022 BMJ Publishing Group. All rights reserved. © 2022 BMJ Publishing Group. All rights reserved.

Background: The number of adolescents that drop out of soccer has increased the last decades. As soccer participation may represent a substantial part of adolescents’ physical activity, efforts to reduce drop-out are important. To develop effective prevention programs, knowledge about why adolescents drop out is needed.

Purpose of the study: Using a prospective design, over three consecutive seasons, we investigate differences in motivation and coach autonomy support between adolescents that stay in soccer and adolescents that drop out.

Methods: Participants were 738 adolescents (462 males and 275 females), 11-17 years old (M = 13.72, SD = 1.77) from soccer clubs in Sweden. Data about demographics, motivational regulations and coach autonomy support was collected in 2019, drop-out data at the end of seasons in 2019-2021. We used Mann-Whitney u-test to analyse potential differences between the two groups. A p-value <.05 was considered a statistically significant result. Cohen’s d effect size was calculated for each comparison.

Findings: Of the participants, 256 (34,7%) dropped out until the end of the 2021 season. Dropouts experienced lower intrinsic motivation (U=55263, N1=479, N2=253, p=.006, d=0,15), more amotivation (U=66358, N1=482, N2=256, p=.042, d=0,13) and less coach autonomy support (U=49566, N1=479, N2=253, p=<.001, d=0,30). Regarding identified motivation (U=57329, N1=482, N2=255, p=.13, d=0,11) and introjected motivation (U=64628, N1=482, N2=256, p=.25, d=0,08) no statistically significant differences were found.

Conclusion: To facilitate motivation and continued soccer participation we propose theoretically informed education programs to help coaches adopt autonomy-supportive coaching strategies.

During the last decades, an increased drop-out rate in adolescents’ team sport participation is observed. Given the potential adverse consequences of drop-out from team sport more information about risk factors for drop-out is warranted. The objectives of this systematic review were to (1) synthesise the literature on factors associated with future drop-out from team sport among adolescents and (2) investigate the strength of associations between drop-out and related factors with meta-analysis. The databases Academic Search Elite, ERIC, PsycINFO, PubMed and SPORTDiscus were searched for relevant publications from the earliest reported date until October 8, 2021. Articles were included if: (1) data about drop-out was collected; (2) the focus was on adolescents; (3) the context was team sport and (4) studies were of prospective design. We used the Risk of Bias Assessment Tool for Non-randomized Studies (RoBANS) to assess the risk of bias in included studies. A narrative synthesis was conducted according to the reporting guideline of synthesis without meta-analysis. Studies that presented statistical data necessary for the calculation of Hedge’s g effect sizes were included in the meta-analysis. In total, 16 studies met the inclusion criteria and were included in the narrative synthesis. The meta-analysis included 12 of the studies. Altogether, 6304 adolescent team sport players participated in the selected studies. Of those studies, most had a focus on intrapersonal factors relationship with drop-out. The results showed that constructs related to motivation as well as sport experience had the strongest relationships with drop-out. To prevent drop-out from adolescents’ team sport, organisations and clubs are recommended to focus on developing a high-quality motivation climate that facilitates motivation and enjoyment. © 2022 The Authors

In recent years an increased drop-out rate in adolescents’ soccer participation has been observed. Given the potentially adverse consequences of drop-out from soccer, more information about risk factors for drop-out is warranted. In the current study, Classification and Regression Tree (CRT) analysis was used to investigate demographic and motivational factors associated with an increased risk of drop-out from adolescent soccer. The results of this study indicate that older age, experiencing less autonomy support from the coach, less intrinsic motivation, being female, and lower socioeconomic status are factors associated with an increased risk of drop-out. An interpretation of the results of this study is that coaches play a central part in creating a sports context that facilitates motivation and continued soccer participation. Based on the findings of the current study we propose that soccer clubs implement theoretically informed coach education programs to help coaches adopt autonomy-supportive coaching strategies. © 2022 by the authors.

Research shows that high-level military and sport leaders share a high-stress and high-stakes leader role due to similar experiences of demanding conditions mainly manifested in psychological burden. This raises research questions about leaders' psychological strategies to maintain their mental health and performance under demanding conditions. Thus, the current study investigated how experienced demanding conditions were related to self-rated leader performance level and mental health indicators among high-level military and sport leaders and whether the application of psychological skills by these leaders moderated these relationships. A composite questionnaire was used to collect data longitudinally, once a week for four consecutive weeks. Fifty-two Swedish high-ranking military officers and executives in elite team sport organizations completed the questionnaire. Multilevel analysis revealed no effect of demanding conditions on leader performance, but they harmed leader vitality and were associated with higher stress symptoms. Moreover, psychological skills did not moderate the relationship between demanding conditions and leader performance. However, motivational and instructional self-talk negatively moderated the relationship between demanding conditions and vitality. In contrast, emotional regulation, comprised of mindfulness and cognitive reappraisal, positively moderated vitality. Emphasizing the nuanced application of psychological skills is crucial while avoiding one-sided beliefs about their positive effects. Interventions are suggested to focus on vitality and related psychological skills to ensure leaders feel good while performing under demanding conditions. More cross-contextual leadership research, suggestively applied research, is needed to better understand the links between high-level military and sport leaders' psychological skills, leader performance, and mental health under demanding conditions. © 2024 The Author(s). Published with license by Taylor & Francis Group, LLC.

All rights reserved.The aim of this study was to examine the perceptions of within-career transition, as experienced by student-athletes striving to reach the international level. Interviews were used to examine the perceptions of 26 Swedish student-athletes with a mean age of 22.5 years practicing individual sportsa the national elite level, involved in a career assistance program. Categories identified through them at iccontent analysis were changes experienced in the transition, the career assistance program, resources to adjust to the new level in sport, satisfaction with their current situation, and strategies to adjust to the new level in sport. The athletes highlighted the value of interpersonal support and commitment, and recognized the need to develop further coping strategies, such as stress and time management. Practical implications for promoting successful within-career transitions are discussed. © 2013 by Nova Science Publishers, Inc. 

The aim of this study was to examine the perceptions of within-career transition, as experienced by student-athletes striving to reach the international level. Interviews were used to examine the perceptions of 26 Swedish student-athletes with a mean age of 22.5 years practicing individual sportsatthe national elite level, involved in a career assistance program. Categories identified through thematiccontent analysis were changes experienced in the transition, the career assistance program, resources to adjust to the new level in sport, satisfaction with their current situation, and strategies to adjust to the new level in sport. The athletes highlighted the value of interpersonal support and commitment, and recognized the need to develop further coping strategies, such as stress and time management. Practical implications for promoting successful within-career transitions are discussed © 2013 by Nova Science Publishers, Inc. All rights reserved.

The purpose of the present study was to identify which psychological features characterize competitive and recreational athletes suffering from a long-term injury. Moreover, the purpose was also to investigate psychosocial differences between athletes going through postsurgery rehabilitation and conservative rehabilitation, as well as to examine differences in gender. Participants (men=106, women=52) were distributed a questionnaire assessing hedonic tone and four sub categories of coping strategies (self-confidence, problem solving, seeking social support, and wishful thinking) and sociodemographic data. The results revealed that athletes in the post-surgery group were significantly higher on hedonic tone, self-confidence, and problem solving. Men counting for all groups scored higher on hedonic tone and self-confidence whereas women scored higher on seeking social support. These findings are not congruent with earlier studies and will be discussed. 

Research has shown that high levels of stress and stress responsivity can increase the risk of injuries. However, most of the research that has supported this notion has focused on between-person relationships, ignoring the relationships at the within-person level. As a result, the objective of this study was to investigate if within-person changes in perceived stress symptoms over a 1-month time period could predict injury rates during the subsequent 3 months. A prospective design with two measurement points (Time 1—at the beginning of the season and Time 2—1 month into the season) was utilized. A total of 121 competitive soccer players (85 males and 36 females; M_age = 18.39, SD = 3.08) from Sweden and the United States completed the Kessler Psychological Distress Scale (KPDS) and a demographic sheet at Time 1. The KPDS was also completed at Time 2, and all acute injuries that occurred during the subsequent 3-month period were recorded. A Bayesian latent change scores model was used to determine whether within-person changes in stress symptoms could predict the risk of injury. Results revealed that there was a credible positive effect of changes in stress symptoms on injury rates, indicating that an increase in reported stress symptoms was related to an increased risk for injury. This finding highlights the importance of creating caring and supportive sporting environments and relationships and teaching stress management techniques, especially during the earlier portion of competitive seasons, to possibly reduce the occurrence of injuries. © 2018 John Wiley & Sons A/S.

The creation of risk profiles using the model of stress and athletic injury1 represents a proposed shift from the reductionism paradigm to the complex sport approach in an attempt to formulate prevention strategies to combat the increasing number of injuries being reported in sporting populations. As a result, the primary purpose of this study was to: a) identify different risk profiles based on psychosocial factors associated with the Williams and Andersen’s model of stress and athletic injury model; and b) examine potential differences in the frequency of injuries across these risk profiles. A prospective research design was utilized with a sample of 117 competitive soccer players (81 males and 36 females) from Sweden and the United States of America. Data was collected at two time points over the course of three months. At time 1 (beginning of the season) - a demographic information sheet, the Life Event Survey for Collegiate Athletes (LESCA), Sport Competitive Anxiety Test (SCAT), and Brief Cope were administered. At time two (T2), three months after the initial data collection, participants’ traumatic injuries were recorded. Latent profile analysis (LPA) showed that 3 profiles solution showed best fit to data. Players in profile 1 and 2 reported fewer injuries compared to players in profile 3. However, whereas individuals in profile 1 had a lower predictive risk of sustaining an injury when compared to those in profile 3, both profiles had similar anxiety levels and use of coping strategies with differing stress levels. These findings suggest that the interaction between different proposed risk factors might influence injury risk. © 2021 John Wiley & Sons A/S. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Athletes participating in sport are exposed to a relatively high injury risk. Previous research has suggested that it could be possible to reduce sports injuries through psychological skills training. The purpose of this study was to examine the extent to which a cognitive behavioural biofeedback intervention could reduce the number of sports injuries in a sample of players in Swedish elite football high schools. Participants from four elite football high schools (16-19 years old) were divided into one experiment (n = 13) and one control group (n = 14). Participants were asked to complete three questionnaires to assess anxiety level (Sport Anxiety Scale), history of stressors (Life Event Scale for Collegiate Athletes) and coping skills (Athletic Coping Skills Inventory - 28) in a baseline measure. Mann-Whitney Utests showed no significant differences in pre-intervention scores based on the questionnaires. The experimental group participated in a nine-week intervention period consisting of seven sessions, including: somatic relaxation, thought stopping, emotions/problem focused coping, goal setting, biofeedback training as well as keeping a critical incident diary. A Mann-Whitney U test showed no significant difference between the control and experimental group U (n1 = 13, n2 = 14) = 51.00, p = 0.054. However, considering the small sample, the statistical power (0.05 for present study), to detect effects was low. The results of the study are discussed from a psychological perspective and proposals for future research are given. © Journal of Sports Science and Medicine.

It has been suggested that psychological skills training interventions, organized in an experimental design, can reduce injury risk in football populations (Edvardsson et al, 2012). In the preparation phase of an intervention study it is valuable to analyze reflections and comments from participants and sport psychology practitioners involved in earlier interventions. The aim of the study was to summarizing these considerations in a structured applicable frame work. In the study young Swedish football players (16–19 years old), organized in an experimental group (n = 13), took part in seven individual meetings. Focus of the intervention was education in somatic relaxation, thought stopping, emotions/ problem focused coping, goal setting, biofeedback training and also how to use a critical incident diary. After the completion of the intervention program participants were asked to answer a questionnaire concerning the content of the intervention. Positive support for the overall procedure was expressed and recommendations for future interventions were suggested. Both strong points (e.g. use of biofeedback) and suggestions for future development (e.g. location of consultation sessions) were communicated. A variety in preference was found in regards to what was perceived as most valuable lessons learned such as “learning how to tackle stressful situations”. The sport psychology practitioner providing the intervention reflects on important consultation situations documented with systematic DART (Description, assessment, response, treatment) notes.

Edvardsson, E., Ivarsson A., & Johnson U. (2012). Is a cognitive-behavioural biofeedback intervention useful to reduce injury risk in junior football players? Journal of Sports Science and Medicine, 11, 331-338.

Psychological interventions with elite athletes should benefit from the developmental and preventive perspectives (Stambulova, 2016) keeping in mind the highly stressful nature of elite sports and potential threats for athletes’ mental health (Schinke, Stambulova, Si, & Moore, 2017). The authors of this presentation (2018) explored 18 Swedish professional handball players’ career experiences with foci on major stages and transitions in their athletic and non-athletic developments. The players’ information was consolidated into an empirical career model of Swedish handball players, covering several stages and layers in players’ development with relevant transitions, pathways, and themes describing content of each stage. This empirical model served a basis for planning the intervention study with professional handball players aimed at helping them to develop resources and strategies to meet elite career demands and maintain health and wellbeing. The presentation will focus on development of a career training program (CTP) for 16 professional players (age 18-35) representing an elite handball club in the South of Sweden. The CTP is structured into eight workshops with their content derived from major demands and stressors of handball players during the mastery stage of their careers. After the CTP kick off, major topics of the workshops include: professional players’ values and committed actions, training, performance, lifestyle, and recovery issues, injury prevention, the future and athletic retirement. The content of the workshops guided by a combination of concurrent and proactive approaches will include acceptance and commitment training, life skills development, pre-transition planning, monitoring assessment, and creating a personal development plan.

This study is part of the PhD-project aimed at examining Swedish professional handball players’ career experiences and developing an applied framework to improve career assistance. Inspired by the cultural praxis of athletes’ careers (Stambulova & Ryba, 2013; 2014) we blend theory, research, and practice with the athletes’ cultural and sporting contexts. In the previous part, the author and three co-authors (2018) developed an empirical career model (ECM-H) describing players’ changing demands across career stages from the holistic perspective (Wylleman, Rosier, & De Knop, 2015) and showing that they need different types of career assistance at different stages. This second part study aims to develop and validate an applied framework – the career-long psychological support services (CLPSS). To create the initial version of the CLPSS a heuristic approach combining the ECM-H with the author’s applied sport psychology experiences was used. Then the initial version was validated in two focus groups with elite handball coaches (n=4) and experienced sport psychology consultants (n=3) following Kreuger and Casey’s (2015) recommendations. The participants were positive to the initial version and suggested several improvements. The validated CLPSS implements the whole career and whole person perspectives with the four career stages aligned with age markers and three layers of career assistance issues derived from the Swedish handball context, athletes’ perceived demands, and desirable support from relevant stakeholders (e.g., coaches, parents). The CLPSS helps to understand, what issues to address and when in a career to facilitate players’ coping, reduce unnecessary stress, and promote sustainable careers in elite handball.

The authors of this paper share how they developed and validated an applied framework termed the career-long psychological support services in Swedish handball (CPS-H). The CPS-H is grounded in career research within Swedish handball and examples of efficient career assistance practice complemented by applied experiences of the first author. The authors used a heuristic approach to sketch the CPS-H initial version, which later was validated in three focus groups with end-users (handball players, coaches, and sport psychology practitioners) and transformed into the validated CPS-H. Promoting a combination of the proactive, educational, whole career, whole environment, and whole person approaches, the framework is structured as having interrelated parts addressing questions: where (changes in the contexts), when (ages, career stages), what (athletes’ needs and potential working issues), who (support providers), why (philosophy shared by the stakeholders), and how (forms of services) of psychological support. The authors further reflect on the CPS-H and its implementation and provide general and stage-specific recommendations for support providers. Although the CPS-H is contextualized in a specific sport and culture, some lessons can be applicable across countries and sport boarders. © 2020 The Author(s). Published with license by Taylor & Francis Group, LLC

The study was aimed at developing the empirical career model of Swedish professional handball players by means of exploring their career experiences in athletic and non-athletic developments through the lens of the holistic athletic career model. Eighteen Swedish professional handball players (nine men and nine women), who had recently terminated or were finishing their careers took part in semi-structured interviews about their careers from the beginning to the end with an interest in both athletic and non-athletic developments. Thematic analysis initially focused on identifying the handball career structure (i.e. stages and sub-stages). Then, the interviews were analysed inductively to identify shared themes in the players’ experiences relevant to each career stage. These themes were incorporated in the relevant stages, and the empirical career model of Swedish professional handball players (further – the empirical model) was finalised. The empirical model describes careers of Swedish handball players as having four athletic stages – initiation, development (with three sub-stages), mastery (with four sub-stages), and discontinuation – complemented by players’ psychological, psychosocial, academic/vocational, and financial developments. Each stage is also aligned with age markers and contains themes describing players’ career experiences from the holistic perspective. The empirical model contributes to contextualised career research and serves as a basis for developing career-long psychological support services in Swedish handball including player/coach/parent education organised by the Swedish Handball Federation.© 2018 The Author(s). Published by Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group

The aim of this study was to describe gender-specific career paths of Swedish professional handball players. A reanalysis of Ekengren et al. (2018) career interviews with nine male and nine female players led to creating two composite vignettes using the athletes’ own words, accounted for typical features in the male and female players’ career paths. Seven themes were identified in the analysis of the men’s transcripts and eight themes derived from the women’s transcripts. Further, the themes of both vignettes were aligned with career stages described in our previous study (Ekengren et al. 2018). The male players’ vignette is interpreted as a performance narrative congruent with elite handball culture that promotes performance success and profitable professional contracts. The female players’ vignette is more holistic, embracing handball, studies, motherhood, and how they ought to be as Swedish women. Recommendations for future research are provided. © 2019 The Author(s). Published by Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group

In this paper we share how a career assistance program (CAP) was developed, implemented, and evaluated with a Swedish elite handball team. Within this case study the initial version of the CAP’s content was created based on the career-long psychological support services in Swedish handball framework and the first author’s applied experiences. During implementation the head coach terminated unexpectedly and the team appeared in a crisis. This transitional situation led to modification of the CAP to help the players cope with changes. Eighteen players took part in eight workshops dealing with various aspects of their sport and non-sport life (e.g., performance, training, lifestyle, recovery, future planning) with crisis-related issues (e.g., coping with uncertainty) incorporated. Mixed-methods evaluation revealed the players’ perceived increase in personal resources (awareness, skills) and decrease in stress and fatigue. Reflections on working in applied sport psychology from a holistic perspective in a dynamic real-life setting are provided.

The purpose of the European Master’s Programme in Sport and Exercise Psychology (EMPSEP) is to pool expertise of 12 European universities within one Master’s programme (see http://www.fepsac.com/). The 60 ECTS European programme provides students with advanced knowledge and skills. The EMPSEP comprises a joint intensive course, a study module similar in all the participating universities, lectures and seminars, a Master’s thesis, and a mobility period of 4-5 months at an EMPSEP host university. Ten years after the graduation of the first students the EMPSEP consortium conducted an online survey. Seventy of the invited 174 former students participated in the study (mean age 31.5 years, SD= 4.7). The aim of the survey was to discover the participants’ employment status and how their participation in the master’s program was related to this. Results indicate that 86% of the participants have started working since they completed their degree. Forty percent of those participants who have started working in their first job have managed to receive a permanent position, 27% a fixed term or temporary job, 25% a part time job, 6% are self employed and 1 person (2%) was employed by subsidies in his/ her first job after graduation. On a scale from extremely dissatisfied (1) to extremely satisfied (6), the participants rated their satisfaction with the program in relation to their career as 4.72 (SD=1.13) on average. Sixty nine of the participants felt that they had benefited from the international network provided by the students and teachers within the programme, and 94% would recommend the European Master’s program to other students in their field.

The aim of the study was to examine if parental support could predict elite academy participation in an adolescent football population. The participants were 767 adolescent male football players, where 443 represented an academy team and 324 represented lower ranked teams, in age between 11 and 18. The participants were classified into three groups; a) children (11-12 years), b) youth (13-15 years) and c) junior (16-18 years). The questionnaire used was the Swedish health survey developed by the Swedish Health Institute with a number of football specific items added. Parental support was measured with six items that all measured emotional support (for example if the player experience that his parents understand, listen to, and treat him fair).One way ANOVA showed that academy players reported significant higher level of parental support then the non–academy players in children (F(1, 196)= 7,071, p = 0,008) and junior ages (F(1,194) = 10,830, p = 0,001). A logistic regression showed that parental support predicted approximately 68% of the players belonging accurate both in the children- (68,2%) and junior (67,9%) sample.The result supports previous findings showing that adaptive coping resources, such as social support seeking, could predict athletic success (Yperen, 2009). One recommendation for football clubs with youth academies is to involve parents in the social support network in order to give the players more adaptive coping resources. Further, educating parents about demands and career transitions that the players are exposed to in an elite academy could be beneficial in a developmental perspective.

Objective: The primary aim of this study was to determine the prevalence and one-season incidence of symptoms of common mental disorders (CMD; distress, anxiety/depression, sleep disturbance, eating disorders, adverse alcohol use) among European professional football referees. A secondary aim was to explore the view of European professional football referees on consequences, support and needs related to these symptoms.

Methods: An observational prospective cohort study with three measurements over a follow-up period of one season (2015-2016) was conducted among central or assistant professional football referees from Belgium, Finland, France, Germany, Norway, Russia, Scotland and Sweden. Using validated questionnaires to assess symptoms of CMD (self-reported and not clinically diagnosed), an electronic questionnaire in English and French was set up and distributed by the eight football federations involved.

Results: A total of 391 referees (mean age of 33 years old; mean career duration of 7 years) were enrolled, of which 292 completed the follow-up period. Baseline 4-week prevalence rates were 6% for distress, 12% for anxiety/depression, 9% for sleep disturbance, 19% for eating disorders and 17% for adverse alcohol use. The one-season incidence of symptoms of CMD was 10% for distress, 16% for anxiety/depression, 14% for sleep disturbance, 29% for eating disorders and 8% for adverse alcohol use.

Conclusion: While symptoms of CMD occur among professional football referees and can influence negatively refereeing performances, the development of specific support measures for referees are needed in order to manage properly these symptoms of CMD. © 2016 Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group

Objectives: We examined the manner in which age, participation in other sports, socioeconomic status, perceived sport competence, achievement goal orientations, and perceived motivational climate may interact to predict the risk of dropout among adolescent female soccer players.

Methods: Self-reported data from 519 female soccer players between 10 and 19 years of age (M = 13.41, SD = 1.77) were analysed using a person-centred approach to uncover the interactions among risk factors and their relative predictability of dropout.

Results: Perceived motivational climate was identified as the main predictor, where relatively lower levels of mastery climate were associated with a higher dropout tendency (absolute risk reduction [ARR] = 12.2% ±6.1% [95% CL]). If combined with relatively lower levels of mastery climate, then relatively lower levels of perceived sport competence were related to higher dropout risks (ARR = 16.5% ±9.5%), whereas, in combination with relatively higher levels of mastery climate, then relatively lower levels of ego-orientated achievement goals were associated with higher dropout rates (ARR = 10.8% ±12.6%).

Conclusions: Our findings afford novel insights into the interactions between, and the relative importance of, various risk factors for dropout in adolescent female soccer. This knowledge may be useful for soccer associations, clubs, and coaches when developing guidelines and strategies that aim to foster young females' sustained participation in organised soccer. © 2022 The Author(s). Published by Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group.

Globally, educational systems were thoroughly affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. Upper-secondary students were faced with school closures and distance education. For student-athletes, the COVID-19 pandemic, besides academic stress, also contributed to sports-related stress. In this paper, we explore upper-secondary school student athletes’ experiences of schoolwork and sport during two phases of the pandemic. A qualitative research design was used, and 53 student-athletes participated in focus group interviews. Three themes appeared: Struggling to cope with the new life situation, Reevaluating and longing for social life, and Speeding up the transition to adulthood. The themes were elucidated from temporal perspectives. The students experienced challenges in handling school, sports, and social life, but they also experienced opportunities for personal development. Student-athletes are a common responsibility between schools and sports, and, based on the results, schools and sports in collaboration need to increase readiness for action when major societal challenges, such as pandemics, occur. © 2023 The Author(s). Published by Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group.

The first purpose of this study was to longitudinally examine achievement goals in youth sport. The second purpose was to examine the within-person effects of perceived motivational climates by coaches, peers, and parents on achievement goal orientation. Participants were 78 young student-athletes, representing a variety of sports. The student-athletes completed a multi-section questionnaire, six times over a three-year period, assessing the study variables. Multilevel modelling analysis revealed that both task orientation and ego orientation decreased for this age group over the three-year period. Furthermore, perceived task-involving peer climate was significantly and positively related to task orientation, and perceived ego-involving coach climate was significantly and positively related to ego orientation. The results from this study provides insights regarding developmental changes in achievement goals and the importance of certain social agents in that specific developmental stage.

This study examined (a) the developmental trajectories of student-athlete burnout perceptions and (b) the within-person relationship between achievement goals and burnout perceptions. A three-year and six-wave longitudinal study was conducted with 78 student-athletes (30 young women and 48 young men, M_age at T1 = 12.7 years, SD = 0.44), attending a sport compulsory school. The Athlete Burnout Questionnaire and the Task and Ego Orientation in Sport Questionnaire were used. The results from multilevel growth models revealed that burnout perceptions increased for this age group over the three-year period. Furthermore, task orientation was significantly and negatively related to a reduced sense of accomplishment and sport devaluation. The results from this study underline the advantage of considering developmental processes when studying burnout. Furthermore, by focusing on the within-person effect of achievement goals, this study provides findings that support a motivational approach to the longitudinally study of burnout propensity among young student-athletes. The current study suggests that sport school staff should be aware of their student-athletes’ burnout perceptions and that these could change over time. Results also highlights that task-oriented goals might help decrease burnout perceptions, specifically reduced sense of accomplishment and sport devaluation. © 2018 International Society of Sport Psychology

Using a sample of student-athletes’ (N=64) first year (seventh grade) enrolled at a school with a sport profile, the aim of this longitudinal study was to investigate (a) levels and changes as regards to worry about sport performance, perception of peer climate, and perceived competence; and (b) the relationship in levels and changes between these studied variables. The primary results from latent growth models (LGMs) and parallel process LGMs revealed that, during their first year, the student-athletes’ level of worry and perceived ego-oriented peer climate increased, whereas perceived competence decreased. Further, the results showed that perceived competence was negatively associated with worry at the beginning of the students’ first year. The slope of perceived ego-oriented peer climate was positively associated with the slope of worry. Future research in relation to the findings is discussed, and recommendations for future actions are given.

The overall aim of this paper is to study and discuss student-athletes’ beliefs about athletic ability. Specifically, the aim is to analyze and problematize athletic ability longitudinally and with a gender perspective as it is perceived, discussed, and valued by student-athletes. A three-year and six-wave study was conducted on 78 student-athletes (30 females and 48 males; Mage at T1 = 12.7, SD = 0.44) attending a compulsory school with a sport profile. Additionally, semi-structured interviews were conducted with 27 of the student-athletes (16 female and 11 male) during their second and third school year. Based on a parallel mixed-data analysis with cross-talks and meta-inferences, the two main results of this study are as follows: (1) entity beliefs increase and incremental beliefs decrease during the three-year period, and (2) gender add a further understanding of the student-athletes’ beliefs about athletic ability. 

The findings are discussed in terms of their implications for the potential influence of the socialization processes on beliefs of athletic ability, and suggestions for future research are provided.

Objectives: The main objectives of this article are to: (a) investigate if there are any meaningful differences between adjusted and unadjusted effect sizes (b) compare the outcomes from parametric and non-parametric effect sizes to determine if the potential differences might influence the interpretation of results, (c) discuss the importance of reporting confidence intervals in research, and discuss how to interpret effect sizes in terms of practical real-world meaning.

Design: Review.

Method: A review of how to estimate and interpret various effect sizes was conducted. Hypothetical examples were then used to exemplify the issues stated in the objectives.

Results: The results from the hypothetical research designs showed that: (a) there is a substantial difference between adjusted and non-adjusted effect sizes especially in studies with small sample sizes, and (b) there are differences in outcomes between the parametric and non-parametric effect size formulas that may affect interpretations of results.

Conclusions: The different hypothetical examples in this article clearly demonstrate the importance of treating data in ways that minimize potential biases and the central issues of how to discuss the meaningfulness of effect sizes in research. © 2012 Elsevier Ltd.

Null hypothesis significance testing (NHST) is like an immortal horse that some researchers have been trying to beat to death for over 50 years, but without any success. In this article we discuss the flaws in NHST, the historical background in relation to both Fisher’s and Neyman-Pearson’s statistical ideas, the common misunderstandings of what p < .05 actually means, and the APA Manual’s (2010) clear, but most often ignored, instructions to report effect sizes and interpret what they all mean in the real world. Also, we discuss how Bayesian statistics can be used to overcome some of the problems with NHST. We then analyze quantitative articles in two of the highest impact factor journals in sport and exercise psychology in the last three years (2012–2014) to determine if we have learned what we should have learned decades ago about the use and meaningful interpretations of the statistics we use. © 2015 Human Kinetics, Inc.

Data in sport and exercise psychology research are often analyzed based on the assumption that the relationships between two or more variables are linear in nature. But are all relationships in sport and exercise settings linear? The aim of this paper is to: a) discuss the potential shortcomings with using linear regression analysis, b) introduce quantile regression analysis (Q-regression) as an alternative to linear regression, and c) give examples of how to use Q-regression analysis in order to overcome some of the shortcomings of linear regression analysis. A comparison between the results from a linear regression analysis and a Q-regression analysis shows differences between the two methods. More specifically, the independent variables in the results of the Q-regression analysis were shown to have non-linear relationships with the dependent variable in given examples. Researchers are encouraged to consider using Q-regression analysis in studies where non-linear relationships could be expected.

Being injured is often associated with undesirable consequences, such as negative emotions, pain, and increased risk of career termination. When considered alongside high risk of injuries within sport, sport injury prevention should be considered paramount in any sport. This chapter aims to provide an overview of the biopsychosocial risk factors associated with sport injury. The chapter outlines the existing theoretical models explaining biopsychosocial injury risk factors, summarizes the most common biopsychosocial sport injury risk factors, and synthesizes research evidence in support of existing injury prevention programs. © 2024 Taylor and Francis.

During the last three decades, increased attention has been devoted towards psychological variables influencing injury risk (Hackfort & Kleinert, 2007). Of these prediction studies, a majority have used prospective designs with one single measurement point and continuous injury recording over a number of weeks. In order to grasp the changes in those variables, the use of repeated measure designs with multiple measurement points is warranted. Obtaining data from multiple points will enable use of advanced statistics, such as latent growth curve analysis. Unlike regular analyses (e.g., ANOVAs), growth curve analyses focus on within-person change and how within-person changes in state variables could affect injury risk. Based on findings from injury prediction research, investigators have targeted such variables (e.g., daily hassles, coping) in experimental studies aimed at preventing injuries. A meta-analysis, covering seven experimental studies, showed most studies to be effective in decreasing the number of injuries in the experimental groups (overall Hedges g Effect size = .81; Tranaeus, Ivarsson & Johnson, submitted). Even if the experimental studies have used true or quasi-experimental designs, several methodological issues can be addressed. First, in most of the studies a number of different mental skills are included in the intervention approach leading to difficulties in differentiating which specific mental skills may be responsible for producing reductions in injury. Second, since most of the experimental studies conducted used no-attentional control groups (i.e., the participants in these groups will not be given a placebo treatment), it is likely that large effects could be explained by the Hawthorn effect. Third, in most studies, researchers discuss the importance of their results based on suggested cut-off criteria for the p-values and/or effect sizes (ES). This procedure could be addressed as a limitation since p-values and/or effect sizes do not indicate anything about the results’ clinical significance (e.g., Ivarsson, Andersen, Johnson & Lindwall, 2013). Also, the fact that non-adjusted ES, which were reported in all studies providing ES, are positively biased due to sampling error (Synder & Lawson, 1993) might have led to overestimation of the intervention effects. This presentation will (a) highlight the designs of previous prediction studies while focusing on advantages of longitudinal repeated-measure designs (b) discuss different experimental designs that have been used in injury prevention research and, (c) suggest methodological and statistical considerations for future research on injury prevention.

The probably most frequently cited model in sport injury prediction from a psychological perspective is Williams and Andersen's (1998) “stress injury model”. In the model it is suggested three categories of psychological factors, i.e. personality, history of stressors and coping will influence the athletes’ response to a potentially stressful situation. Most research attention the last 10 years has focused on the category history of stressors. This category includes different types of stressors such as negative life event stress, positive life event stress, hassle and previous injuries. Given that history of stressors has gained most attention in sport injury research the aim of the study was to, in meta-analysis, investigate the joint as well as separate effects of published studies aimed to investigate history of stressors impact on injury occurrence. The literature review resulted in 49 included articles. Of these 49 articles, 36 provided sufficient information for calculation for an r to z-transformation. In the total sample of selected studies, 67 different effect sizes could be calculated. The overall correlation effect size for the relationship between Stressors and injury occurrence were .129 (p<.001), 95 % CI (.096,-.161) using a random effect model. The results indicated heterogeneity between studies (Q = 214.41, df = 66, p < .001). Moreover, the results showed that negative life event stress (r = .184) and previous injuries (r = .225) displayed the strongest correlation with injury occurrence while positive life event stress showed the weakest (r = .023). Last, the result from a meta-regression confirmed that high methodological quality was related to higher correlational effects (β = .018 (.005), p < .001, 95 % CI = .009 - .03). Even if the correlational coefficient only showed a low to moderate overall effect it is suggested that stressors have an important impact on injury risk. This line of argument is for example supported by the calculated fail-and safe number indicating that 3,196 studies with zero effect results would be necessary to decrease the effect to zero. Given that stress seems to influence injury risk athletes are recommended to take part in life style interventions (e.g. mindfulness), to develop effective strategies for decrease their stress levels.

It is reported that between 65–91% of elite soccer players in Sweden have at least one injury per year (Hägglund, 2007). Several studies define different physiological and psychological factors affecting athletic injury-risk. A number of models contain proposals that specify relationships between psychological factors and an increased athletic injury-risk. Examples include Williams and Andersen’s (1998) stress-injury model and Johnson and Ivarsson’s (in press) empirical model of injury risk factors which proposes that factors such as trait anxiety and ineffective coping skills are influential. The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between (a) personality factors, b) coping variables, and (c) stress and injury risk. Participants were 48 male soccer players from 3 Swedish teams ranging in age from 16 to 36 years (M = 22 years). Participants completed 5 questionnaires: Football Worry Scale, Swedish universities Scales of Personality, Life Events Survey for Collegiate Athletes, Daily Hassle Scale and Brief COPE. Information on injuries was collected by athletic trainers of the teams over 3-months. Results suggest injury was significantly predicted by 4 personality trait predictors: somatic trait anxiety, psychic trait anxiety, stress susceptibility, and trait irritability. Collectively, the predictors self-blame and acceptance could explain 14.6% of injury occurrence. More injuries were reported among players who score high in daily hassles. These results support previous findings (e.g. Fawkner et al., 1999). Recommendations are given for both the athletes and the trainers on working to prevent sport injuries.

Involvement in competitive soccer is associated with high injury rates (Hägglund, 2007). In an attempt to identify psychosocial injury risk factors, several conceptual models have been developed, for example, Williams and Andersen Stress Injury Model (1998). The aim of the present study was to prospectively examine whether personality variables, stress and coping styles predicted injury occurrence in an elite soccer population. Fifty six soccer players competing in the Swedish Premiere Division completed four questionnaires prior to the start of the competitive season. These included: the Swedish University Scale of Personality, Life Events Survey for Collegiate Athletes, Football Worry Scale, and Brief COPE. Subsequent to the initial data collection, participants completed the Daily Hassle and Uplift Scale, once per week for a 13-week period, and all injuries requiring a minimum 1-day absence from competition were recorded by team physiotherapists. A path analysis was conducted to investigate the influence of specific personality (e.g., somatic trait anxiety), stress and coping variables on injury frequency. Results suggest a model in which daily hassles mediate the relationship between anxiety, negative life event stress, social worry and injury, accounting for 24% of the variance in injury occurrence. This finding supports previous research highlighting the role of anxiety and chronic stress in injury vulnerability (Johnson & Ivarsson, in press). Findings suggest the need for players, coaches and physiotherapists to address both major negative life events and daily hassles in minimizing injury risk. It is also recommended that coaches develop individualized stress monitoring programs for diminishing injury occurrence.

Between 65 – 91 % of elite soccer players have at least one injury / year (Hägglund, 2007). Several researches have established models that specify psychological factors that could predict sport injuries. Two examples are Rogers and Landers (2005) stress – coping model and Williams and Andersen´s (1998) stress – injury model. The main purpose of the study was to single out significant psychological factors that could lead to an increased injury risk among soccer players. The participants were 152 male and female soccer players (m = 17, 6) studying at soccer high schools in southwest Sweden. Five questionnaires were used STAI, SAS, LESCA, ACSI – 28 and SSP. Continuously injury record was collected by athletic trainers at the school, during a period of six months. The result suggested that there are four significant predictors that in all could explain 23 % of the injuries. The main factors are life event stress, somatic trait anxiety, mistrust and negative coping. These findings are in unison with for example Williams and Andersen´s (1998) stress – injury model and should be considered by coaches when it comes to preventing sport injuries among their athletes.

The aim of this study was to examine the extent to which a mindfulness-based program could reduce the number of sports injuries in a sample of soccer players. A total of 41 junior elite soccer players were randomly assigned to the treatment or the attentional control group. The treatment group took part in a 7-session program based on the mindfulness, acceptance, and commitment (MAC) approach (Gardner & Moore, 2007). The attentional control group was offered 7 sessions of sport psychology presentations with a particular focus on soccer. There were no statistically significant differences in injury rates between the two groups (U (39) = 149.50, z= −1.77, p = .077), but there was a medium effect size (adjusted Cohen´s d = −0.59, approx. 80% CI for d = −0.37 – −0.74). Moreover, 67% of the players in the mindfulness group remained injury-free in comparison to 40% in the control group. This result suggests that an intervention program focusing on strategies for improving attention could decrease injury risk. Recommendations include applying mindfulness exercises in athletes’ daily training to help lower injury risk. © 2015, Copyright © Association for Applied Sport Psychology.

Sport injury prediction research has traditionally focused on physiological and physical factors. Nevertheless, during the last 30 years there has been increased interest in psychosocial factors related to sport injuries. The most cited theoretical model developed to explain psychosocial variables’ influences on injury risk is the model of stress and athletic injury (Williams & Andersen, 1998). The model, suggests that personality (e.g., anxiety, hardiness), history of stressors (e.g., life event stress, daily hassles), and coping (e.g., social support resources) will influence athletes’ stress responses (e.g., physiological, attentional changes) that, in turn, are related to injury risk. The aim of the study was to examine the past research on the relationships of the psychosocial variables in the model (i.e., personality, history of stressors, coping, stress responses) on sport injury rates. The literature review resulted in 47 published studies and 180 effect sizes. The results showed that stress responses (r = .22, 80% CI = .14 - .30) had the strongest associations with injury rates. Moreover, history of stressors (r = .12, 80% CI = .11 - .13) and coping (r = -.05, 80% CI = -.03 - -.08) had smaller relationships with injury rates. Finally, the associations of positive (r = .01, 80% CI = -.03 - .04), as well as negative (r = .01, 80% CI = -.01-.03) personality variables on injury rates was marginal. The results support the model’s suggestion that stress responses have a direct relationship with injury, whereas other variables potentially have indirect relationships with injury rates. In line with these findings it is suggested that intervention programs should focus on helping athletes decrease the magnitude of their stress responses. © 2015 University of Bern, Institut of Sport Science 

Background: Several studies have suggested that psy- chosocial variables can increase the risk of becoming injured during sport participation.

Objectives: The main objectives of these meta-analyses were to examine (i) the effect sizes of relationships between the psychosocial variables (suggested as injury predictors in the model of stress and athletic injury) and injury rates, and (ii) the effects of psychological interven- tions aimed at reducing injury occurrence (prevention).

Methods: Electronic databases as well as specific sport and exercise psychology journals were searched. The literature review resulted in 48 published studies containing 161 effect sizes for injury prediction and seven effect sizes for injury prevention.

Results: The results showed that stress responses (r = 0.27, 80 % CI [0.20, 0.33]) and history of stressors (r = 0.13, 80 % CI [0.11, 0.15]) had the strongest associations with injury rates. Also, the results from the path analysis showed that the stress response mediated the relationship between history of stressors and injury rates. For injury prevention studies, all studies included (N = 7) showed decreased injury rates in the treatment groups compared to control groups.

Conclusion: The results support the model’s suggestion that psychosocial variables, as well as psychologically, based interventions, can influence injury risk among athletes. © Springer International Publishing Switzerland 2016 

Several studies have found that stress increases the risk for sport injuries. It is therefore suggested that psychologically based intervention programs, targeting perceived stress, could decrease injury risk. The objective of the study, using a meta-analysis procedure, was to evaluate the effect of psychologically based interventions, performed in football populations and based on documented injury rates. A literature search founded on the electronic databases; PsycINFO, Web of Science, Web of Knowledge, PubMed, Science Direct and Google Scholar were examined using combinations of key words, such as ‘sports injury’, ‘psychology’, ‘intervention’ ‘prevention’ ‘soccer’ and ‘football’. The literature review resulted in three studies that together contained 100 participants. The interventions were based on different approaches such as mindfulness, and mental skills training. All studies, included in the analysis, reported fewer injuries for the experimental groups in comparison to the control groups (Cohen’s d effect sizes 0.89, 0.59, and 1.27). The overall results correspond to a Cohen’s d effect size of 0.86, p <.001, (95 % CI 0.44-1.28). The result indicated that psychologically based intervention programs have potential to decrease the risk of sport injuries in football populations. These results are in line with intervention studies performed within others sports (e.g. floorball). One reason for the effectiveness of the intervention could be that all three were offering stress management education. Because sport injuries have a negative impact on athletes, teams and communities, athletes are recommended to work with psychological training programs as a part of their injury prevention work. © The WCSF2015 Scientific Committee