Chapter 5
The Psychology of
Athletes and Sports
Injury
Psychology of Injury
• The relationship between psychological
variables and sports injuries is
_______________ being investigated. The
following have been identified as areas that
MIGHT affect ______ the mental and physical
health of an athlete:
• _________________ __________
• Life Stress
• Depression
• Competitive Stress
• ____________ ____________
Personality Variables
• Characteristics that may be related to sports
injuries include:
• General personality – 5 traits; extraversion,
agreeableness, conscientiousness,
neuroticism, and openness
• Trait anxiety – predisposition to perceive a
situation or respond with anxiety
• Locus of control – internal or external
• Self-concept – self-belief, similar to selfesteem
• Stress response – reaction to stressful
situations
Self Concept and Injury
• Theory that athletes with a low self-concept are
________ able to deal effectively with the stress of
competition.
• Though a true relationship has yet to be defined.
(Kleinert, 2002)
• Inability to cope may even result in behavior that
_________ to injury.
• Injury gives the athlete a legitimate excuse to
_________ playing.
• Tennessee Self-Concept Scale (TSCS) may be
given for screening.
Life Stress in Injury
• Convincing findings have been produced from research
examining the relationship between psychosocial factors
(e.g., social environment, life stress, and mood) and injury
rates (Wiese-Bjornstal , 2010)
• Evidence suggests that when an athlete is experiencing
significant personal changes, especially those seen as
negative, the chances of injury ________________.
• Two psychosocial variables; history of stressors and
___________ resources play a significant role in the
cognitive appraisal and physiological responses to
stressful situations and may influence the occurrence of
_________________.
Psychosocial Variables
and Injury
• Psychosocial variables develop through interaction
between individual and a changing social
environment.
• Athletes with higher degrees of coping skills are
_______ likely to get injured.
• Life events can be stressful either ___________ or
_______________.
• A __________ relationship exists between negative
events and increased injury risk.
Personality
Possibly
Stressful
Situation/
Stimuli
History of
Stressors
Stress Response
Cognitive Appraisal
Physiological/ Attentional
Changes
Interventions
Coping
Resources/
Responses
Injury
Life Event Questionnaires
A variety of scales can be used to assess life stress.
• Athletes with high life-stress scores might
benefit from referral to a counselor in an effort
to improve coping skills.
• Social Readjustment Rating Scale (SRRS)
• Social and Athletic Readjustment Rating Scale
(SARRS)
• Life Event Scale for Adolescents (LESA)
• Life Event Questionnaire (LEQ)
• Life Event Survey for Collegiate Athletes (LESCA)
• Athletic Life Experience Survey (ALES)
Depression and Athletes
• Major depression, dysthymia, and bipolar disorder
are the most common types of depression.
• Identification in athletes may be tough.
• Seeking help is often seen as a sign of ____________
or _____________ rather than a sign of strength (NCAA,
2012)
• Common signs and symptoms
• Indecisiveness, feeling sad, difficulty concentrating, loss
of interest in things once found interesting, frequent
feelings of worthlessness, significant weight loss/gain,
decreased performance in school/sports, recurrent
thoughts of death or suicide
Competitive Stress and
Adolescents
• As more adolescents participate in sports,
there are more concerns regarding the
psychological impact of competition:
• Intensity of competition has ___________.
• Pressure to win has ____________.
• Coaches and parents must take care to avoid
forcing children beyond their ability to _____.
• Young athletes may be more prone to
__________, psychosomatic illness, burnout,
and other stress-related problems.
Competitive Stress and
Adolescents
• According to the Association of Applied Sport
Psychology concern should be raised if:
• Conversations at home are dominated by sport
discussions.
• Child is allowed little time to spend with his friends.
• Child’s education becomes a distant second priority
to competition and talent development.
• Child is overly nervous about competing especially
when parents are watching.
Competitive Stress and
Adolescents
• Do allow children to be interested and want to
play whatever sport he or she chooses.
• Do teach children to respect his/her coach.
• Do be willing to let children make his/her own
mistakes and learn from them.
• Do be interested and supportive, light and
playful, understanding.
• Do model flexibility of your own opinions.
Competitive Stress and
Adolescents
• Don’t try to relive your youth through children.
• Don’t blame the equipment, coach, other
players, referees or even the weather if the
team does not do well or win.
• Don’t push, push, push….Children who are
pushed beyond their capabilities may lose
their self-confidence.
• Don’t expect perfection or tie your ego or
image to the children’s performance.
Psychology of Injury
• Injury is a psychological stressor for athletes.
• According to Weiss & Troxel:
• Phase 1 –The athlete adapts to activity
restriction and situation.
• Phase 2 – The athlete appraises short- and
long-term significance of the injury.
• Phase 3 – The athlete experiences
emotional responses.
• Final stage – The athlete copes with longterm consequences.
Psychology of Injury
• 5 Stages of Grief
• Denial
• Anger
• Bargaining
• Depression
• Acceptance
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BXDkg
6iiB5c
Psychology of the Injured
Athlete
• Recommendations involve:
• Treating the _______, not just the injury.
• Treating the athlete as an ____________.
• Keeping in mind the importance of
communication skills.
• Remembering the relationship between
physical & psychological skills.
• Seeking the help of a sports psychologist.
Eating Disorders
Why are eating disorders prevalent in athletics?
• Majority of sports have narrow parameters
for appropriate body type for athletic
success.
• Specific sports require specific body types.
• Media exposure focuses on __________
_______________, especially for females.
• Emphasis on the ideal body has
___________ effects on the athletes and can
lead to serious diseases.
Types of Eating Disorders
• Anorexia nervosa – self-starvation motivated by
obsession with thinness and overwhelming fear of fat
• Bulimia nervosa
– repeated bouts of binge eating followed by some form
of purging
• Subclinical Disordered Eating
• Dieting obsessively when not overweight
• Preoccupation with food, calories, nutrition, and
cooking
• Excessive exercising
• Frequent weighing
Risk Factors
(Monsma, 2006)
• Sport task - revealing uniforms or being
physically evaluated
• Sport environment - comments from
teammates, coaches, parents or judges
• Biological characteristics - metabolism and
physical size
• Psychological characteristics - __________,
body image and anxiety.
Research of Eating Disorders
(Rosen et al, 1986; Sanford-Martens, 2009; Greenleaf et al, 2009)
• More than 1/3 of athletes have
reported to use at least one extreme
dieting method.
• 25-32% of female athletes were
classified as having symptoms and
patterns of clinical disordered eating.
• 2-3.4% were classified as having a
clinical diagnosis of an eating disorder
Sport Specificity and
Eating Disorders
• Female athletes (5%) are more likely to
practice pathogenic (unhealthy) dietary habits
than males (2%). (Sanford-Martens et al, 2005)
• More research is needed into the pathogenic
eating disorders in male athletes. For
example, making weight in wrestling.
• Are males susceptible to the same pressures
as female counterparts?
• Is there underreporting in the male
population?
Sport Specificity and
Eating Disorders
• Female athletes involved in sports that place a
premium on physical appearance (aesthetic
sports) demonstrate a significantly higher
prevalence of eating disorder symptoms than
do female nonathletes (Hausenblas & Carron, 1999)
• 33-40% of aesthetic and power sports had
symptomatic athletes
• 21-28% of cross country, ______________,
________, and ball sports had symptoms
Consequences of Eating Disorders
• Dehydration; gastric upset; esophageal
inflammation; erosion of tooth enamel;
hormone imbalances, amenorrhea; _______
and ________ problems; depression and
anxiety are often co-morbid syndrome in
people with eating disorders.
• female athlete triad links disordered eating
with osteoporosis and amenorrhea (Nattiv et. al,
2007)
• male athlete triad links energy deficits, bone
loss, and low sperm counts to hormonal
changes (Chatterton & Petrie, 2013).
Prevention
• Placing ______ emphasis on weight.
• Avoid referral to weight in a negative manner.
Avoid ostracizing an athlete for being
overweight.
• Avoid mandatory weigh-ins.
• Coaches and parents need to be alert for early
warning signs of eating disorders.
• Screening or clinical interviews with athletes
during ______.
Treatment
• Ranges from counseling and education
to hospitalization.
• May include psychological counseling as
eating disorders can be symptoms of
severe psychological problems such as
_______________.
• ______ of all cases do not respond to
therapy.