J. Robert Grove

Coping with retirement from sport: The influence of athletic identity

Abstract Competitive athletes are confronted with a number of adjustments during the career ambition process. In the present study, 48 former elite-level athletes sup plied information about their financial, occupational, emotional, and social adjustment to retirement from sport. Athletic identity at the time of retirement was also assessed, along with self-reported use of various coping strategies and the perceived quality of adjustment to retirement. Results indicated that acceptance, positive reinterpretation, planning, and active coping were the most frequently used coping strategies during the career transition process. At the same time, athletic identity at the time of retirement exhibited significant relationships to coping processes, emotional and social adjustment, pre-retirement planning, and anxiety about career decision-making. Implications for career transition programs are discussed. along with suggestions for future research.

Retirement from sport and the loss of athletic identity

Abstract The purpose of this study was to examine how a sample of elite athletes coped with distressful reactions to retirement from sport. As part of a larger research project, 15 former elite athletes were identified as having experienced severe emotional difficulties upon athletic career termination. Through use of a micronarrative methodology, it was determined that account making can be a significant moderator of distress during the career transition process. In addition, the quality of the account making was found to be related to present affect and overall success in coping with athletic retirement. Finally, changes in athletic identity were found to be significant determinants of adjustment for athletes upon career termination. Suggestions are presented for future research on treatment strategies for distressful reactions to retirement from sport.

Changes in Athletic Identity Following Team Selection: Self-Protection versus Self-Enhancement

Self-protection and self-enhancement were investigated in a field study of female athletes who were vying for selection in state all-star teams. Participants completed the Athletic Identity Measurement Scale (AIMS; Brewer, Van Raalte, & Linder, 1993) on three occasions, and changes over time were compared for players who made the team and players who did not make the team. Findings revealed similar AIMS scores in the two groups prior to selection, no change over time for selected players, and a significant decrease over time for the players who were not selected. These findings are consistent with predictions derived from self-categorization theory, and they suggest that self-protection processes may be related to short-term changes in domain-specific self-concept measures such as athletic identity.

Success/Failure Bias in Attributions Across Involvement Categories in Sport

Studies addressing success/failure biases in attributions for sport performance have produced equivocal results. The traditional hypothesis that success will be internalized and failure externalized has been supported in some studies but not in others. A few investigations have indicated that winners do, however, make more stable and controllable attributions than losers. This study examined the generality of this effect among II 0 players, coaches, and spectators in recreational basketball competitions. Results indicated that winning outcomes were indeed attributed to more stable and controllable causes than losing outcomes. These findings were consistent across all categories of involvement (players, coaches, spectators) and were not affected by outcome margin (game close, game not close). Discussion focuses on the operation of situational norms in sport that may have contributed to these effects.

Blood pressure rise with swimming versus walking in older women: the Sedentary Women Exercise Adherence Trial 2 (SWEAT 2).

Objective Swimming is often recommended in the prevention and treatment of hypertension. Few studies have investigated the effect of swimming training on blood pressure (BP). Our objective was to evaluate 6 months of supervised moderate swimming or walking on BP in previously sedentary, normotensive, older women. Design Women aged 50–70 years (n = 116) were randomly assigned to a supervised 6-month swimming or walking programme. They were further randomized to receive usual care or a behavioural intervention package. Methods Exercise comprised 3 sessions/week with a warm-up, cool down, and 30-min of moderate intensity walking or swimming. BP was recorded for 20 min supine, and 5 min standing. Assessments were made at 0 and 6 months. Results At baseline, mean supine BP (± SD) was 115.7 ± 1.3/66.8 ± 0.7 mmHg. Swimming improved swim distance by 78.1 m (29.3%) [95% confidence interval (CI); 66.7, 89.4] and walk time by 0.58 min (3.8%) (0.41, 0.74). Walking decreased walk time by 1.0 min (6.5%) (0.81, 1.19). After adjustment for initial BP, age, hypertension treatment status and change in weight, swimming increased supine and standing systolic BP relative to walking by 4.4 mmHg (1.2, 7.5) (P = 0.008) and 6.0 mmHg (2.6, 9.5) (P = 0.001), respectively. Supine and standing diastolic BP increased by 1.4 mmHg (−0.14, 3.0) (P = 0.07) and 1.8 mmHg (−0.02, 3.5) (P = 0.05), respectively. Conclusion Relative to moderately paced walking, regular swimming significantly elevates BP in previously sedentary, normotensive, older women. This finding may have important implications for exercise prescription in older subjects.

Self-Presentational Issues in Competition and Sport

This paper critically reviews self-presentational behavior, cognition, and affect in competition and sport. It is subdivided into three main sections. The first section focuses on self-handicapping behavior, describing what it is and why it occurs. Self-handicapping research is reviewed followed by suggestions for future study. In section two, cognitions related to stereotypes about individuals who play certain sports are discussed. The third and final section examines demographic, environmental, and physical self-perception correlates of social physique anxiety as well as the tenability of Learys (1992) conceptualization of competitive anxiety.

The causes of career termination from sport and their relationship to post-retirement adjustment among elite-amateur athletes in Australia

Former athletes (N = 48) from a variety of sports provided information about the primary reason for their athletic retirement and the degree of adjustment required. Content analysis of reasons for retirement indicated that this sample of athletes retired from competitive sport for numerous reasons, including age, injury, deselection, and voluntary career termination. Subsequent comparisons between athletes who retired for voluntary and involuntary reasons indicated that involuntary retirement was associated with significantly greater emotional and social adjustment on career termination. In addition, the former athletes who experienced the greatest adjustment difficulty perceived the least personal control over the reasons for retirement. Implications for professional and applied work in the area are discussed, and suggestions are made regarding future research on career transitions from sport.

Relationship between inflammatory cytokines and self-report measures of training overload

It has been purported that inflammatory cytokines may be responsible for the aetiology of overtraining. The aim of the present study was to investigate the relationship between self-reported measures of overtraining and inflammatory cytokines. Eight elite male rowers were monitored in their natural training environment for 8 weeks prior to the 2007 Rowing World Championships. During this period of intense endurance training, self-report measures of overtraining and inflammatory cytokines (Interleukin (IL)-1β, IL-6, IL-8, IL-10, IL-12p70, and Tumor Necrosis Factor (TNF)-α) were assessed fortnightly. Consistent with previous findings, proinflammatory cytokines IL-1β and TNF-α were significantly associated (p ≤ 0.05) with measures of depressed mood, sleep disturbances, and stress. Similarly, IL-6 was significantly associated (p ≤ 0.01) with measures of depressed mood, sleep disturbances, and fatigue. These results are consistent with previous hypotheses describing how overtraining may be caused by excessive cytokine release, and lend further support for a cytokine hypothesis of overtraining.

A multi-component assessment model for monitoring training distress among athletes

Abstract We report the initial validation of a multi-component assessment model for monitoring training distress among athletes. The model combines measures of mood disturbance with measures of perceived stress and symptom intensity. Altogether, 492 athletes completed the 10-item Perceived Stress Scale (PSS-10; Cohen et al., 1983), the 24-item Brunel Mood Scale (BRUMS; Terry et al., 2003), and a checklist of 19 symptoms associated with acute overtraining (Fry et al., 1994). Six training distress factors were identified by an exploratory factor analysis: “depressed mood”, “perceived vigour”, “physical symptoms”, “sleep disturbance”, “perceived stress”, and “general fatigue”. Comparisons of group means of these factors with a previously validated inventory were consistent with theoretical predictions and provided evidence of construct validity. Internal consistency of the subscales was also confirmed, with Cronbach alphas ranging from 0.72 to 0.86. Together, these findings suggest that this multi-component model provides a sound conceptual basis for the assessment of training distress among athletes.

Relationship of Fan Identification to Determinants of Aggression

Abstract Fan identification refers to the psychological connection that individuals have with sport teams. This study sought to determine whether fans possessing different levels of identification respond differently to the antecedents to aggressive spectator behaviors that are addressed by the theory of planned behavior. Fans of four professional sport teams (N = 231) were placed in one of three groups based on their scores for fan identification strength. Consistent with hypotheses, highly identified fans felt less control over their behavior at games than moderately identified fans and lowly identified fans. Contrary to hypotheses, however, neither attitudes towards aggression nor subjective norms on aggression differed between identification levels. Discussion centers on the relevance of the findings for the control of different types of aggression.