Ansgar Thiel

Characteristics of Voluntary Sports Clubs Management: a Sociological Perspective

Abstract The voluntary sports club constitutes an organization that differs considerably in its structural condition from economic enterprises. The aim of this paper is to discuss the general characteristics of voluntary sports club management. For this purpose, using a sociological management approach, the paper attempts to analyze the organizational structures of sports clubs. The analysis shows the following: the absence of explicit organizational objectives makes it very difficult to validate successful development. The incongruity of power and professional competence, and the ambiguous distribution of tasks hampers well-grounded decision making. Furthermore, recruiting managerial staff from within the club is a major factor that prevents organizational change. Consequently, specific management concepts for voluntary sports clubs need to be developed. In doing so, blindly transferring economic concepts must be avoided in order to ensure that public utility is not jeopardized in the long run.

Stigmatization of obese individuals by human resource professionals: an experimental study.

BackgroundWeight-related stigmatization is a public health problem. It impairs the psychological well-being of obese individuals and hinders them from adopting weight-loss behaviors. We conducted an experimental study to investigate weight stigmatization in work settings using a sample of experienced human resource (HR) professionals from a real-life employment setting.MethodsIn a cross-sectional, computer-based experimental study, a volunteer sample of 127 HR professionals (age: 41.1 ± 10.9 yrs., 56% female), who regularly make career decisions about other people, evaluated individuals shown in standardized photographs regarding work-related prestige and achievements. The photographed individuals differed with respect to gender, ethnicity, and Body Mass Index (BMI).ResultsParticipants underestimated the occupational prestige of obese individuals and overestimated it for normal-weight individuals. Obese people were more often disqualified from being hired and less often nominated for a supervisory position, while non-ethnic normal-weight individuals were favored. Stigmatization was most pronounced in obese females.ConclusionsThe data suggest that HR professionals are prone to pronounced weight stigmatization, especially in women. This highlights the need for interventions targeting this stigmatization as well as stigma-management strategies for obese individuals. Weight stigmatization and its consequences needs to be a topic that is more strongly addressed in clinical obesity care.

Weight Bias in Work Settings - a Qualitative Review

Background: Studies have repeatedly demonstrated the influence of physical appearance on behavior and treatment of individuals in work settings. A high proportion of obese individuals in the USA have reported perceived discrimination in the work place due to their body weight. The present review examines the specific kind, context and extent of a weight bias in work settings. Methods: We performed a literature search in the scientific databases PubMed and PsychINFO to identify studies which have investigated aspects of a potential weight bias in the occupational context. Results: There is evidence from self-report data, surveys, and laboratory research for a weight bias in five aspects of work life. Evidence shows that obesity is a general barrier to employment, certain professions and professional success. Obese individuals are at higher risk of encountering stereotypes concerning their work-related qualities and for general unequal treatment in the work place. Conclusion: Current evidence reveals a weight bias in several areas in the work place. The ecological validity of results is limited due to the predominant reliance on laboratory studies with student samples. Field studies are needed to examine weightbased discrimination in actual work environments as well as to uncover underlying mechanisms.

Understanding the reward system functioning in anorexia nervosa: crucial role of physical activity.

Hyperactivity is a potential neurobiological marker and a core psychopathological trait in anorexia nervosa (AN). We investigated the processing of hyperactivity-related information in fifteen AN patients, 15 athletes and 15 non-athletes to examine if they represent disorder-related reward information using eye tracking. We assessed the extent of individually performed physical activity, mood, trait reward sensitivity and serum leptin levels. Results revealed a pronounced bias in overall attentional engagement toward stimuli associated with physical activity in patients and athletes as compared to non-athletes. In patients, relevant correlations were found: trait reward sensitivity and attentional orienting were strongly correlated and amount of physical activity correlated with attentional orienting and engagement. Compared to non-athletes, patients and athletes rated exercise stimuli as more pleasant. Findings suggest that exercise-related stimuli are perceived as rewarding by AN patients. Positive motivational valence of physical activity might contribute to disorder development and maintenance.

Impaired inhibitory control in anorexia nervosa elicited by physical activity stimuli

Besides food restriction, hyperactivity is considered a key behavioral trait of anorexia nervosa (AN), playing a major role in the pathogenesis and progression of the disorder. However, the underlying neurophysiology remains poorly understood. We used functional magnetic resonance imaging during two affective go/no-go tasks to probe inhibitory control in response to stimuli depicting physical activity vs inactivity and food vs non-food in AN patients compared with 26 healthy athlete and non-athlete controls. We hypothesized that neural correlates of behavioral inhibition are biased by the emotional information of the stimuli in AN patients, leading to a differential neural inhibitory pattern during the two tasks. Indeed, we found reduced response inhibition for food and non-food images in the putamen, while stimuli depicting physical activity resulted in an exaggerated response of the prefrontal cortex (PFC) and cerebellum in AN patients. However, both AN patients and athletes revealed an increased response in the somatosensory cortex to physical activity stimuli. These results suggest that physical activity stimuli might place an increased demand on the inhibitory control system in AN patients. The resulting hyperactivity of the PFC and cerebellum may lead to altered executive function and motor control, sustaining increased physical activity in AN patients.

Aberrant network integrity of the inferior frontal cortex in women with anorexia nervosa.

Neuroimaging studies investigating the neural profile of anorexia nervosa (AN) have revealed a predominant imbalance between the reward and inhibition systems of the brain, which are also hallmark characteristics of the disorder. However, little is known whether these changes can also be determined independent of task condition, using resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging, in currently ill AN patients. Therefore the aim of our study was to investigate resting-state connectivity in AN patients (n = 12) compared to healthy athlete (n = 12) and non-athlete (n = 14) controls. For this purpose, we used degree centrality to investigate functional connectivity of the whole-brain network and then Granger causality to analyze effective connectivity (EC), to understand directional aspects of potential alterations. We were able to show that the bilateral inferior frontal gyrus (IFG) is a region of special functional importance within the whole-brain network, in AN patients, revealing reduced functional connectivity compared to both healthy control groups. Furthermore, we found decreased EC from the right IFG to the midcingulum and increased EC from the bilateral orbitofrontal gyrus to the right IFG. For the left IFG, we only observed increased EC from the bilateral insula to the left IFG. These results suggest that AN patients have reduced connectivity within the cognitive control system of the brain and increased connectivity within regions important for salience processing. Due to its fundamental role in inhibitory behavior, including motor response, altered integrity of the inferior frontal cortex could contribute to hyperactivity in AN.

A systems theoretical approach to online knowledge building

This article describes the phenomenon of knowledge building in online environments. Knowledge building is a process within a community, which leads to the development of knowledge. In order to analyze this process, we will look into the ways in which individuals interact with the collective as a whole. For this purpose, the psychic and social systems, which are involved here are regarded as meaning-based systems in the sense of Luhmann’s systems theory—open to the environment, but operatively closed. The respective modes of operation of psychic and social systems will be examined, and “structural coupling” between these systems described. Another characteristic of knowledge-building communities is self-organization, which is described here in the sense of autopoiesis. A pivotal task, which knowledge-building communities have to tackle, is to handle complexity and reach common understanding. These aspects will also be described using conceptualizations of Luhmann’s systems theory, illustrated by many examples.

Substance use among elite adolescent athletes: Findings from the GOAL Study

Elite athletes often find themselves in a dilemma between maintaining optimal health to be successful and accepting health risks by pushing their physical limits. For elite adolescent athletes, this dilemma becomes a trilemma as they are also confronted with developmental challenges typical for adolescence. As many adolescents encounter different substances during this critical period of development, we analyzed prevalence of substance use to identify determinants related to these behaviors and to compare the prevalences with nonelite athletes. Our main data were drawn from the German Young Olympic Athletes’ Lifestyle and Health Management Study (GOAL Study) including 1138 elite adolescent athletes (14–18 years). For comparisons, the data were combined with data from the German Health Interview and Examination Survey for Children and Adolescents (KiGGS). Beside uni‐ and bivariate analyses, we conducted (conditional) logistic regression analyses. Eighty‐six percent had consumed alcohol at least once. Binge drinking was performed by 24% during the last month. Alcohol consumption was positively associated with age, education, technical sports, lower squads, and attending boarding schools. Binge drinking was higher in males, older adolescents, and in technical sports. Smoking (3%) and marijuana use (3%) were less prevalent. Compared with nonelite athletes, they showed less risky behavior except for binge drinking. As we could identify risk groups, prevention and health promotion programs could be developed for this specific target group.

Altersstereotype und Sportaktivität in der Generation 50

ZusammenfassungAltersstereotype wirken sich auf die Aktivität im Alter aus. Bis dato fehlen aber repräsentative Studien zum Einfluss solcher „Bilder vom Alter“ auf das Sportengagement. In einem Telefonsurvey wurden 2002 Personen der Generation 50+ zu sportlichen Aktivitäten sowie zu ihren Ansichten über das Alter befragt. Eine Faktorenanalyse der erfragten Einstellungen ergab fünf Dimensionen von Alternsbildern; eine anschließende Clusteranalyse identifizierte drei Typen von Alternsorientierungen: Die „fitten Leistungshungrigen“, die „Klassischen“ und die „unbekümmert Engagierten“. In allen Clustern wurde körperliche Aktivität als die wichtigste Voraussetzung für Gesundheit im Alter bezeichnet. Weiterhin zeigte sich zwischen der Clusterzugehörigkeit und dem Sportumfang ein signifikanter Zusammenhang. So ist der Anteil der Sportabstinenten im Cluster 1, bei den „fitten Leistungshungrigen“, am niedrigsten (29,4%), im Cluster 3, bei den „unbekümmert Engagierten“, am höchsten (51,6%). Insgesamt werden vor allem Gesundheits- und Trendsportarten bevorzugt, an klassischen Sportarten besteht eher wenig Interesse.AbstractStereotypes of ageing affect activity in older adults. However, no representative studies on the impact of “images of ageing” on sporting activity existed until now. In a telephone survey, 2002 over-50s were asked about sporting activity and their opinions about ageing. A factor analysis of the queried attitudes disclosed five dimensions of ageing stereotypes. A subsequent cluster analysis identified three categories of attitudes towards ageing: “fit and performance-hungry”, “conventional”, and “easy-going and committed”. Physical activity was described as the key criterion for a healthy old age in all clusters. Analysis also revealed a significant correlation between cluster affiliation and amount of sporting activity. The percentage of nonexercisers is lowest in Cluster 1, the “fit and performance-hungry” category (29.4%), and highest in Cluster 3, the “worryfree committed” (51.6%). Sports for health and trendy sports are the sports of choice, while conventional sports attract little interest.

Growth problems in youth elite sports : social conditions, athletes' experiences and sustainability consequences

In elite sports, growth and maturation are important preconditions for advancing performance and athletic development. However, intensive training at an early age may contribute to the occurrence of growth problems in adolescent athletes. In the elite sport context, growth problems are most often considered biomedical phenomena or reduced to individual disposition. Consequently, their social origins have gone unexamined. Drawing on interviews with German youth elite athletes, we outline how social conditions (e.g. discipline-specific body ideals and early selection) contribute to the genesis of growth problems. Furthermore, we offer insight into athletes’ problematic growth experiences and analyze them as a risky condition for successful socialization into elite sports. In adopting the language of sustainability, we understand growth problems as an example of ‘unsustainability’. We examine how they affect athletes’ individual sustained development, safety, well-being and capacity building, and also question the organizational sustainability of high performance sports. We conclude by outlining the implications for coaching practices and the adjustments needed in the organization of youth elite sports.