Social psychological determinants of the use of performance-enhancing drugs by gym users

Characteristics of Gym-Goers Performance-Enhancing Substance Use

The use of prohibited performance-enhancing substances (PES) in fitness and gym settings is a public health concern as knowledge concerning its short-term and long-term adverse health consequences is emerging. Understanding the underlying psychosocial mechanisms of PES use and the characteristics of the gym-goers who use PES could help identify those who are most vulnerable to PES use. The aim of this study was to investigate the profile (e.g., sociodemographic factors, exercise profile, gym modalities, peers, and social influence) and psychosocial determinants (e.g., attitudes, subjective norms, beliefs, and intentions) of PES users in gym and fitness contexts. In total, 453 gym-goers (mean age = 35.64 years; SD = 13.08) completed an online survey. Neural networks showed a global profile of PES users characterized by a desire to increase muscle mass, shape their body, and improve physical condition; being advised by friends, training colleagues and coaches or on the Internet; less formal education, and more positive beliefs for PES use. These results may support public health and clinical interventions to prevent abusive use of PES and improve the health and well-being of gym-goers.

The Motivational Underpinnings of Intentions to Use Doping in Sport: A Sample of Young Non-Professional Athletes

Doping use is considered as a deviant behavior in sport contexts, and it is necessary to recognize preventive factors to shut down the negative consequences. We proposed that athletes experiencing loss of personal significance would be more prone to doping use intentions. This pathway should occur through the effect of the enhanced predominance of obsessive (vs. harmonious) passion that such athletes experience concerning their sport activity, which, in turn, facilitates the adoption of moral disengagement strategies to find justifications for it, when they perceive that significant others approve their intention. The study relied on a cross-over design, with a convenience sample of 437 athletes recruited at four sports sciences Universities evenly distributed in Italy. Questionnaires administered contained a validated tool based on Kruglanski’s theorizing on radical and deviant behavior (e.g., Loss of Significance, Obsessive, and Harmonious passion) and deriving from social cognitive theory (e.g., Moral disengagement). Results of the study tested a serial mediation moderated model, which links the different variables to explain the influence they have on the intentions to use doping. Overall, this research suggests a motivational dynamic that may be at the heart of illicit behaviors in sport, such as using drugs-enhancing performance potentially among athletes of all kinds.

Doping Use in High-School Students: Measuring Attitudes, Self-Efficacy, and Moral Disengagement Across Genders and Countries

The main aim of this research was to test the factorial validity and measurement invariance across genders and countries of a set of instruments designed to assess high-school students’ attitudes, self-regulatory efficacy, and moral disengagement with regard to doping. A second aim was to examine the criterion and predictive validity of these scales. In total, 402 high-school students from Italy, Romania, and Turkey (40.0, 25.1, and 34.9%, respectively; M age 14.78 years old; SD = 1.04; 52.8% females) completed questionnaires measuring attitudes toward doping, self-regulatory efficacy in refraining from doping, doping-specific moral disengagement, and intention to use doping substances. A confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) supported our expectations with regard to the factor structure of the scales. Multigroup CFAs provided evidence for the full equivalence of the measures across males and females and partial equivalence of the measures across the three countries. The results of the latent mean comparison showed that male students had lower levels of self-regulatory efficacy than females and that Romanian and Turkish students had higher levels of moral disengagement and lower level of self-regulatory efficacy than Italian students. Finally, the results of a structural equation modeling supported the hypothesis that the proposed model predicted students’ intentions to use doping, thus generally confirming the criterion and the predictive validity of the measures. These findings suggested the validity of a set of instruments measuring attitudes toward doping, self-regulatory efficacy to refrain from doping, and doping-specific moral disengagement in high-school students from a cross-gender and a cross-cultural perspective and provided meaningful estimates of the differences in the three factors between males and females as well as between Italian, Romanian, and Turkish high-school students.

Doping in sports among Malaysian universities athlete: survey of the knowledge, beliefs, and perception during Malaysian universities games in Kuala Lumpur 2014

BACKGROUND

Doping in young athletes at present is on escalation. A few doping cases involving athletes from South East Asia (SEA) countries have been reported. The objective of this study is to determine current perceived doping and antidoping climate in Malaysia through an exploration of doping-related knowledge, perception and beliefs among the university athletes.

METHODS

A survey was conducted during the Malaysian Universities Games in Kuala Lumpur 2014. A total of 614 athletes completed the questionnaires on perception, specific knowledge, environment, behavior and beliefs towards doping.

RESULTS

From this survey, we found that their knowledge about doping and antidoping was poor, they have misguided beliefs and perception about doping, and their environment seems to be favorable for performance enhancing substances usage in the future. We grouped the athletes based on their doping's environment into ultraclean, potential and high-risk group; and the results showed that they have a significant relationship with their knowledge, beliefs and perception about doping in sports, P<0.001. About 1.5-1.8% of the studied athletes have positive behavior towards doping practice; doping use, χ2 =24.6(2) P<0.001 and doping willingness, χ2 =17.15(2) P<0.001.

CONCLUSIONS

Doping behavior and doping risks in this region are still under-studied. Hence, we recommended that every South East Asia countries would identify the potential risks of doping among their young athletes, and collectively collaborating in managing doping issues involving this region. Special attention should be given to doping environment as it has negative influences on athletes behavior towards doping.

Cannabis Use and Sport: A Systematic Review

CONTEXT

Cannabis use has increased, in large part due to decriminalization. Despite this increase in usage, it remains unclear what proportion of athletes use cannabis and what effect it has on athletic performance and recovery.

OBJECTIVE

To systematically review cannabis use among athletes, including epidemiology, effect on performance and recovery, and regulations for use in sport.

DATA SOURCES

PubMed, MEDLINE, and EMBASE databases were queried from database inception through November 15, 2018. A hand search of policies, official documents, and media reports was performed for relevant information.

STUDY SELECTION

All studies related to cannabis use in athletes, including impact on athletic performance or recovery, were included.

STUDY DESIGN

Systematic review.

LEVEL OF EVIDENCE

Level 4.

DATA EXTRACTION

Demographic and descriptive data of included studies relating to epidemiology of cannabis use in athletes were extracted and presented in weighted means or percentages where applicable.

RESULTS

Overall, 37 studies were included, of which the majority were cross-sectional studies of elite and university athletes. Among 11 studies reporting use among athletes (n = 46,202), approximately 23.4% of respondents reported using cannabis in the past 12 months. Two studies found a negative impact on performance, while another 2 studies found no impact. There was no literature on the influence of cannabis on athletic recovery. Across athletic organizations and leagues, there is considerable variability in acceptable thresholds for urine tetrahydrocannabinol levels (>15 to 150 ng/mL) and penalties for athletes found to be above these accepted thresholds.

CONCLUSION

Overall, these results suggest that approximately 1 in 4 athletes report using cannabis within the past year. Based on the available evidence, cannabis does not appear to positively affect performance, but the literature surrounding this is generally poor. Given the variability in regulation across different sport types and competition levels, as well as the growing number of states legalizing recreational cannabis use, there is a need to improve our understanding of the effects of cannabis use on the athlete and perhaps adopt a clearer and overarching policy for the use of cannabis by athletes in all sports and at all levels.

Determinants of the Intention to Use Performance-Enhancing Substances Among Portuguese Gym Users

The purpose of this study is to examine the determinants of the intentions to use prohibited performance-enhancing substances (PES) and to test the Theory of Planned Behavior's usefulness in predicting self-reported PES use in both genders. A convenience sample of Portuguese gym users (n = 453) completed an anonymous web-based survey. Structural equation modeling, multigroup analysis, and t-test with the Welch correction for heterokedastic variances were used. At the structural level, results support attitudes, beliefs, and subjective norms in predicting intentions to PES use in gym users, with subjective norms being its strongest predictor. Moreover, results showed a significant association between self-reported PES use and intentions to use. The predictive model was invariant across genders; however, compared to males, females believed less in the performance-enhancing effects of PES, were less prone to the influence of significant others, and had weaker intentions to use these substances. Psychological strategies should be based on subjective norms, alongside beliefs and attitudes, toward PES use as these variables influence the intention to use PES in this particular population.

Exploring the Progressive Use of Performance Enhancing Substances by High-Performance Athletes

Background: Given implications associated with the use of performance-enhancing substances (PESs), stakeholders must remain informed about usage precipitants and anticipate conditions signaling athlete vulnerability to hazardous exposures. Objectives: To gain deeper qualitative insight into high-level athlete PES usage; explore the variables leading them to escalate their PES use regimens; reveal PES experiences during their careers and, unlike other studies, not to focus exclusively on "doping" as measured by the use of WADA-banned substances. Methods: A macro life course-based framework from which the data could emerge through a thematic coding analysis was utilized. Sixteen narrative life course histories of recently retired high-performance athletes report on the factors impelling their escalation in PES use, including for some, the first use of banned PES. Results: Informant reports, thematically coded, reveal performance maximization urgency to be a central factor in escalating PES use, driven by four variables: Requirements, Opportunities, Influencers and Outcomes. These variables each comprise two key components that stimulate an urgency ecosystem affecting an athlete's proximity to an escalation threshold. Conclusions/Importance: Such a comprehensive investigation of PES use precipitants has not previously been undertaken. Advances in PES use were instantiated by a substantive, sometimes radical and often sudden increase in urgency to improve performance related to output requirements, specific demands, knowledge and access, timing windows, the competitive landscape, loyalty to coaches, efficiency expectations and likelihood of detection. This study informs incremental models of doping, the use of which is encouraged in order to analyze life course narratives to better understand athlete behaviors.

Toward Prevention of Doping in Youth Sport: Cross-Sectional Analysis of Correlates of Doping Tendency in Swimming

Doping is recognized as one of the most important problems in sports, but a limited number of studies have investigated doping problems in youth athletes. This study aimed to evaluate doping tendency (potential doping behavior (PDB)) and correlates of PDB in youth age swimmers. The participants were 241 competitive swimmers (131 females; 15.3 ± 1.1 years of age, all under 18 years old). Variables included predictors and PDB (criterion). Predictors consisted of sociodemographic factors (gender and age), sport-related variables (i.e., experience in swimming and sport achievement), variables explaining coaching strategy and training methodology, consumption of dietary supplements (DS), knowledge about doping, and knowledge about sports nutrition and DS (KSN). In addition to the descriptive statistics and differences between genders, a multinomial regression using PDB as the criterion (negative-, neutral-, or positive-PDB, with a negative-PDB as the reference value) was calculated to define associations between predictors and criterion. With only 71% of swimmers who declared negative-PDB results indicated an alarming figure. Boys with better KSN were more negatively oriented toward positive-PDB (OR: 0.77, 95%CI: 0.60–0.95). In girls, lower competitive achievement was evidenced as a risk factor for neutral-PDB (OR: 0.39, 95%CI: 0.24–0.63). Also, higher neutral-PDB (OR: 0.88, 95%CI: 0.81–0.96) and positive-PDB (OR: 0.90, 95%CI: 0.83–0.99) were identified in girls who began with intensive training in younger age. Because of the alarming figures of PDB, there is an evident need for the development of systematic antidoping educational programs in youth swimming. In doing so, focus should be placed on girls who began intensive training at an earlier age and those who did not achieve high competitive results.

An Italian Campaign to Promote Anti-doping Culture in High-School Students

Doping poses a threat to sport worldwide. Studies have revealed that, in addition to elite athletes, amateur and recreational sportsmen and sportswomen are making increasing use of performance-enhancing drugs. Worryingly this trend has been documented among young people. Anti-doping efforts seeking to deter elite athletes from doping through detection of the use of prohibited substances are costly and have not been completely effective either at the top-level or the amateur/recreational level. A thoughtful education program, inspired by honesty and respect, might be more effective in shaping attitudes toward doping in young people and protecting their health. For these reasons, the Italian “Lotta al Doping” (Fight Against Doping) project sought to cause a cultural shift in young people by taking anti-doping seminars to high schools. In the 2017–2018 school year we reached more than 20,800 students from 157 high schools through 202 seminars. Before and after the seminars, we administrated anonymous, voluntarily completed surveys with a set of questions (items = 15), taken from the WADA-Play-True-Quiz. Upon completion of the 2-h seminar, the majority of the answers given by the students resulted correct (13 out of 15 items, p < 0.000001, McNemar) confirming the value of the initiative. This project stands out as promising in the doping prevention process at the youth and amateur levels.

Understanding the Paths to Appearance- and Performance-Enhancing Drug Use in Bodybuilding

How do gym-goers who are normally not inclined to resort to appearance- and performance-enhancing drugs (APEDs) progressively normalize their use? Based on data collected through a year and a half of participant observation in a gym and 30 semi-directive interviews with practitioners with varying profiles in French-speaking Switzerland, this article examines the evolution of practitioners’ relations with APED use by articulating various levels of analysis. Associated with social vulnerabilities, the progressive normalization of APED use is concomitant with the “conversion” to bodybuilding. Our results show the extent to which and under what conditions interactions within the layout of gyms can influence practices. From refusal to normalization, our results suggest that APEDs and the associated beliefs coincide with career stages, which we aim to bring to light here.

Doping Among Professional Athletes in Iran: A Test of Akers's Social Learning Theory

The use of performance-enhancing drugs (PED) is common among Iranian professional athletes. As this phenomenon is a social problem, the main purpose of this research is to explain why athletes engage in "doping" activity, using social learning theory. For this purpose, a sample of 589 professional athletes from Rasht, Iran, was used to test assumptions related to social learning theory. The results showed that there are positive and significant relationships between the components of social learning theory (differential association, differential reinforcement, imitation, and definitions) and doping behavior (past, present, and future use of PED). The structural modeling analysis indicated that the components of social learning theory accounts for 36% of the variance in past doping behavior, 35% of the variance in current doping behavior, and 32% of the variance in future use of PED.

Influences of perfectionism and motivational climate on attitudes towards doping among Korean national athletes: a cross sectional study

BACKGROUND

The motives for elite athletes to dope are related primarily to maintaining and improving their physical performance. Especially, elite athletes training to compete in the Olympics may feel unique situational pressure, which may in turn induce powerful motivation for doping and predict doping behavior. This study aimed to investigate possible factors associated with attitudes towards doping in Korean national athletes who competed in the Rio 2016 Olympic Games.

METHODS

A total of 198 athletes (95 female, 103 male) completed the questionnaire, which covered demographic information, doping-related experiences, Performance Enhancement Attitude Scale (PEAS), Perfectionism in Sports Scale (PSS; coach's criticism, concern over mistakes, and personal standards), and Perceived Motivational Climate in Sport Questionnaire-2 (PMCSQ-2; ego-involving and task-involving climates). Pearson's correlation coefficients were used to identify correlations among PEAS, PSS, and PMCSQ-2 scores, and stepwise multiple linear regression was performed to investigate possible factors significantly associated with attitudes towards doping.

RESULTS

The coach's criticism of PSS was slightly or weakly related to the concern over mistakes of PSS and the ego-involving climate of PMCSQ-2, respectively. And the concern over mistakes sub-scale of perfectionism was related to attitudes towards doping, but weakly.

CONCLUSIONS

Effective anti-doping policy should meet athletes' perfectionism, and more studies that identify other factors that influence athletes' doping attitudes are needed.

Influence of knowledge and beliefs on consumption of performance enhancing agents in north-western Saudi Arabia

BACKGROUND

Consumption of performance enhancing agents (PEAs) has a wide range of negative health consequences, but knowledge of these consequences among gym users of PEAs in Saudi Arabia is not well understood.

OBJECTIVES

Identify the knowledge, awareness, beliefs and attitudes of gym users about negative health consequences of using PEAs, and the relationship between these factors and use of these agents.

DESIGN

Cross-sectional study.

SETTING

Five gyms in Madinah city, Saudi Arabia.

SUBJECTS AND METHODS

Convenience sampling was used to recruit gym users. An electronic self-administered questionnaire was used to collect data.

MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE(S)

Level of knowledge about the negative health consequences of PEAs among gym users.

RESULTS

About 70% of 316 participants had used one or more of PEAs over the last six months. Of those, about 68.4% used protein powder supplements and 48.1% used energy drinks. Participants who believed that protein powder supplements (c2=52.3, P < .01) and energy drinks (c2=35.2, P < .01) had health hazards used these agents less often than others during the six months preceding data collection. Participants who had less knowledge about the negative health consequences were more likely to use protein powder supplement (t=2.38, P=.018). On the other hand, those who were more knowledgeable about the negative health consequences of insulin, were more likely to use insulin (t=2.45, P=.015).

CONCLUSION

Misuse of PEAs is widespread among gym users in Saudi Arabia. Improving the level of knowledge and awareness of possible serious health consequences would hopefully lead to reduced PEA consumption.

LIMITATIONS

The temporal sequence of cause and effect could not be determined in a cross sectional study. Convenience sampling in a single city limited the generalizability of the findings to all regions of Saudi Arabia.

The Effectiveness of a New School-Based Media Literacy Intervention on Adolescents' Doping Attitudes and Supplements Use

The aim of the study was to evaluate the effectiveness of a media literacy intervention targeting, for the first time, the specific topic of Performance and Appearance Enhancing Substances (PAESs) use in high-school students. Overall, 389 students (52% male) aged between 13 and 19 years (mean = 16.56 year; SD = 1.26) participated to a media literacy intervention (i.e., “intervention group”) while 103 students aged between 14 and 19 year (mean = 16.10 year; SD = 1.38) were considered as the control group (i.e., “control group”). In two separate occasions over the course of six consecutive months, students in both groups filled out a set of questionnaires which included measures of social-cognitive beliefs (i.e., attitudes, subjective norms, intentions) and a self-reported measure of retrospective use of doping (Yes/No) and supplements (Yes/No). Compared to students in the control group (Mean_(time1) = 1.96; SD_(time1) = 0.85; and Mean_(time2) = 2.09; SD_(time2) = 0.94), intervention students on average expressed relatively stronger attitudes against doping use over time (Mean_(time1) = 2.2; SD_(time1) = 0.85; and Mean_(time2) = 2.05; SD_(time2) = 0.82). Students in the latter group also showed a statistically significant decrease in self-reported supplement use (Use_(time1) = 6.7%; Use_(time2) = 3.8%; p = 0.05, McNemar Test). Interestingly, albeit marginally significant, students in the control group showed a relative increment in the self-reported use of supplements over time (Use_(time1) = 4.9%; Use_(time2) = 8.7%; p = 0.22, McNemar Test). Overall, the media literacy intervention investigated in the present study was effective in decreasing adolescent student’s positive attitudes toward doping use and in reducing the use of legal PAES. These findings supported the generalizability and the usefulness of a media literacy approach in the specific field of PAES.

Predictors of doping intentions, susceptibility, and behaviour of elite athletes: a meta-analytic review

Research in doping has focused on potential intervention strategies, increasingly targeting predicting factors. Yet, findings are inconsistent, mostly athlete-centred and explain only limited variances in behaviour. This critical review aims to (a) summarize studies that identified predictors of doping intentions, susceptibility, and behaviour in elite athletes and to (b) analyse in how far previous research included aspects beyond athlete-centred approaches, such as context and sporting culture. We reviewed 14 studies that focused on elite athletes. Situational temptation, attitudes, and subjective norms seem to be strong predicting variables of doping intentions (r ≥ 0.50), but intention was no predictor for behaviour. Attitudes were a significant predictor for both, doping susceptibility (r = 0.47) and behaviour (r = 0.30). Most of the predictors are athlete-centred and ignore macro-level factors that might help to explain how certain individual traits impact on the decision making process. The findings from this review call for a critical discussion of whether current doping-prevention research needs to take new directions. We propose future research to bridge findings of psychologists and sociologists, as it appears that doping behaviour cannot be explained by ignoring the one or the other. Impacts of sporting culture that have been identified in qualitative approaches need to be integrated in future quantitative approaches to test for its external validity. Inclusion of both, micro- and macro level factors may enable an integrative prevention program that creates a sporting culture without doping.

Why the war on drugs in sport will never be won

Recent exposes of drug use in sports suggest that doping might be more problematic than doping-control test results reveal. A zero-tolerance (ZT) model, which aims to eliminate the use, has dominated the thinking of sport's policy makers over the last 15 years. In light of the limitations associated with ZT-based policy, we propose an alternative policy, one based on controlled use and harm reduction principles. We argue that substance control policies underpinned by harm reduction (HR) principles of social utility and public value will deliver superior social outcomes. First, a harm reduction approach better accommodates the competitive realities of sports and the impact of elite sports' emphasis on performance at all costs. Second, HR prioritises athlete welfare over sport and brand reputation. Finally, while appreciating the regulatory and risk management responsibilities of sports' governing bodies, the HR model offers greater space to the athlete's right to privacy, and right to personal autonomy.

Using the prototype willingness model to predict doping in sport

To enable preventive measures to be designed, it is important to identify modifiable distal and proximal factors underlying doping behavior. This study investigated aspects of the prototype willingness model in relation to doping. A cross-sectional study was conducted involving 729 competitive athletes. Following ethical approval, athletes (mean age = 28.8 ± 10.1 years; 63% male) completed an online questionnaire, which assessed doping-related attitudes, norms, prototype perceptions, outcome expectancies, and behavioral willingness. Using hierarchical multiple regression analysis, 54.4% of the total variance in willingness to dope was explained. Specifically, past doping, attitudes, and favorability of performance enhancing substance user prototypes were the strongest unique predictors of willingness to dope. Athletes appeared most willing to dope if they were to suffer an injury, a dip in performance, or think others are doping and getting away with it. National-level athletes displayed significantly greater willingness to dope (Kruskal-Wallis γ2 = 35.9, P < 0.001) and perceived themselves as significantly more similar to a doper (Kruskal-Wallis γ2 = 13.4, P = 0.004) than athletes competing at any other level. The findings highlight the importance of extending anti-doping provision beyond elite-level sport and the need to target athletes' doping-related perceptions.

Personal and psychosocial predictors of doping use in physical activity settings: a meta-analysis

BACKGROUND

There is a growing body of empirical evidence on demographic and psychosocial predictors of doping intentions and behaviors utilizing a variety of variables and conceptual models. However, to date there has been no attempt to quantitatively synthesize the available evidence and identify the strongest predictors of doping.

OBJECTIVES

Using meta-analysis, we aimed to (i) determine effect sizes of psychological (e.g. attitudes) and social-contextual factors (e.g. social norms), and demographic (e.g. sex and age) variables on doping intentions and use; (ii) examine variables that moderate such effect sizes; and (iii) test a path analysis model, using the meta-analyzed effect sizes, based on variables from the theory of planned behavior (TPB).

DATA SOURCES

Articles were identified from online databases, by contacting experts in the field, and searching the World Anti-Doping Agency website.

STUDY ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA AND PARTICIPANTS

Studies that measured doping behaviors and/or doping intentions, and at least one other demographic, psychological, or social-contextual variable were included. We identified 63 independent datasets.

STUDY APPRAISAL AND SYNTHESIS METHOD

Study information was extracted by using predefined data fields and taking into account study quality indicators. A random effects meta-analysis was carried out, correcting for sampling and measurement error, and identifying moderator variables. Path analysis was conducted on a subset of studies that utilized the TPB.

RESULTS

Use of legal supplements, perceived social norms, and positive attitudes towards doping were the strongest positive correlates of doping intentions and behaviors. In contrast, morality and self-efficacy to refrain from doping had the strongest negative association with doping intentions and behaviors. Furthermore, path analysis suggested that attitudes, perceived norms, and self-efficacy to refrain from doping predicted intentions to dope and, indirectly, doping behaviors.

LIMITATIONS

Various meta-analyzed effect sizes were based on a small number of studies, which were correlational in nature. This is a limitation of the extant literature.

CONCLUSIONS

This review identifies a number of important correlates of doping intention and behavior, many of which were measured via self-reports and were drawn from an extended TPB framework. Future research might benefit from embracing other conceptual models of doping behavior and adopting experimental methodologies that will test some of the identified correlates in an effort to develop targeted anti-doping policies and programs.

Substance use and misuse and potential doping behaviour in rugby union players

The aims of this investigation were to compile evidence on substance-use-and-misuse (SUM) and to identify factors related to potential-doping-behaviour (PDB) in rugby union. The subjects were 105 rugby athletes (all males; 23.4 ± 4.1 years; 99% respondents). The variables included socio-demographic factors, SUM-data, sport-factors, knowledge-on-doping (KD), and PDB. Data showed high alcohol consumption, with more than 30% of the athletes binge drinking at least once per week. Approximately 52% of the subjects used dietary-supplementation (DS) and 23% reported PDB, whereas 55% believed that doping is present in rugby. Forward conditional logistic regression revealed that less rugby experience (OR:1.286; 95%CI:1.058-1.563; p < 0.05), less smoking (OR:2.034; 95%CI:1.100-3.760; p < 0.05), higher DS usage (OR:5.543; 95%CI:1.666-18.444; p < 0.01), and a stronger belief that doping is present in rugby (OR:0.305; 95%CI:0.066-0.638; p < 0.01) were significant predictors of PDB. The high PDB and alcohol consumption warrant a serious intervention on these problems in rugby.

Nutritional supplement and doping use in sport: Possible underlying social cognitive processes

There is growing evidence suggesting that nutritional supplement (NS) use is strongly associated to doping use in elite and amateur sports. However, there is a paucity of research on the psychological processes that underlie this association. The present study investigated the cognitive and behavioral components of the association between NS use and doping among adolescent sub-elite athletes. Six hundred and fifty adolescent athletes completed a questionnaire including measures of doping intentions, attitudes, norms, and beliefs about NS use. The results showed that NS users who did not report doping use had significantly stronger doping intentions and more positive attitudes and favorable beliefs toward doping use, as compared with athletes who did not use NS. In support of the "shared mental representations" hypothesis, the present findings show that NS use is associated with biased reasoning patterns in favor of doping use. This mechanism may explain why some NS users decide to engage in doping.

Dietary supplement and drug use and doping knowledge and attitudes in Italian young elite cyclists

OBJECTIVE

To explore use and attitudes toward drugs and dietary supplements (DS) and knowledge concerning doping in cycling.

DESIGN

Retrospective cross-sectional study.

SETTING

Professional cycling.

PARTICIPANTS

Elite under-23 male cyclists.

INTERVENTION

Anonymous semistructured questionnaire administered during race periods.

MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES

Use and attitudes toward DS and drugs, and doping knowledge.

RESULTS

Forty cyclists aged 19 to 23 years and practicing for 14 to 30 h/wk were interviewed. Previous use (last 3 months) of drugs or DS occurred in 33 of 40 (82.5%) and 39 of 40 (97.5%) cyclists, respectively. Almost all the subjects named at least 1 doping agent (range, 1-10). Within a fixed list of 18 substances (among which only 14 were doping agents), participants recognized 3 to 18 of them as doping agents. They recognized tramadol and sildenafil as doping agents, which are not doping agents, and failed to recognize probenecid and albumin, which actually are. Doping knowledge correlated with drug use (r2 = 0.1614; P = 0.01). Participants deemed doping prevalence high among cyclists in general but not in their own team (P < 0.0001).

CONCLUSIONS

Use of prescription drugs and DS was a common occurrence. Doping knowledge was poor and biased, and its relationship with drug use deserves consideration. Educational interventions are needed to improve knowledge and awareness about prescription drugs and DS use, as well as about doping.

Drive Theory and Home Run Milestones in Baseball: An Historical Analysis

The purpose of this investigation was to test whether the performance of the home run hitters in Major League Baseball adhered to predictions of Drive Theory. 24 baseball players who have hit at least 505 home runs were included in the sample. Their performance was assessed around the time in which they reached a significant home run career milestone, operationalized as either 500 or 600 home runs, or surpassing the league's home run record. As predicted, the players were found to require significantly more at-bats to complete the 5 home runs before the milestone, when stress was assumed to be mounting, than the 5 home runs after the milestone. In contrast, those players who reached the personal landmark from 1988 (the suspected commencement of the so-called “Steroid Era”) onwards required the same number of at-bats before and after the milestone.

Predicting attitude towards performance enhancing substance use: a comprehensive test of the Sport Drug Control Model with elite Australian athletes

OBJECTIVES

This study presents a comprehensive examination of the Sport Drug Control Model via survey data of elite Australian athletes.

DESIGN

A cross-sectional nationwide mail survey.

METHODS

A mail survey of 1237 elite Australian athletes was conducted. Structural equation modelling was employed to test the model.

RESULTS

Morality (personal moral stance on performance-enhancing substances use), reference group opinion (perceived moral stance of reference group on performance-enhancing substances use) and legitimacy (perceptions of the drug testing and appeals processes) evidenced significant relationships with attitude towards performance-enhancing substances use, which in turn was positively associated with doping behaviour. The model accounted for 81% and 13% of the variance in attitude towards performance-enhancing substances use and doping behaviour, respectively.

CONCLUSIONS

These findings validate the usefulness of the Sport Drug Control Model for understanding influences on performance-enhancing substances use. Nevertheless, there is a need to survey athletes representing a broader range of competition levels and cross-cultural research to test the model's applicability to other populations of athletes.

Beliefs about the causes of success in sports and susceptibility for doping use in adolescent athletes

The present study set out to assess the impact of attributional beliefs about success on the susceptibility for doping use in adolescent athletes. The sample consisted of 309 adolescent athletes participating in both team and individual sports. Participants completed a battery of questionnaires including Beliefs about the Causes of Success in Sport Questionnaire (BACSSQ), current and past doping use, and measures of attitudes, norms, situational temptation and social desirability. Variance reduction rate analysis revealed that social desirability did not act as a confounder in the relationship between doping susceptibility and its predictors. With regard to beliefs about the causes of success dimensions, only deception emerged as a significant predictor of doping use susceptibility over and above the effects of well-established social-cognitive predictors of doping intentions and use. These findings imply that beliefs about the causes of success in youth sports may comprise another dimension of risk factors for doping susceptibility and use.

Prevalence of use of performance enhancing drugs by fitness centre members

Studies on the use of performance enhancing drugs (PED) in fitness centres rely predominately on conventional survey methods using direct questioning. However, research indicates that direct questioning of sensitive information is characterized by under-reporting. The aim of the present study was to contrast direct questioning of different types of PED use by Dutch fitness centre members with results obtained with the Randomized Response Technique (RRT). Questionnaires were conducted among members of fitness centres. PED were classified into the following categories: anabolic steroids, prohormones, substances to counteract side-effects, growth hormone and/or insulin, stimulants (to reduce weight), and miscellaneous substances. A total of 718 athletes from 92 fitness centres completed the questionnaire. The conventional method resulted in prevalences varying between 0% and 0.4% for the different types of PED with an overall prevalence of 0.4%. RRT resulted in prevalences varying between 0.8% and 4.8% for the different types of PED with an overall prevalence of 8.2%. The overall prevalence of the two survey methods differed significantly. The current study showed that the conventional survey method using direct questioning led to an underestimation of the prevalence. Based on the RRT results, the percentage of users of PED among members of fitness centres is approximately 8.2%. Stimulants to lose weight had the highest prevalence, even higher than anabolic steroids. The key task for future preventive health work is to not only focus on anabolic steroid use, but also include interventions focusing on the use of stimulants to lose weight.

Subjective stressors in school and their relation to neuroenhancement: a behavioral perspective on students' everyday life "doping"

BACKGROUND

The use of psychoactive substances to neuroenhance cognitive performance is prevalent. Neuroenhancement (NE) in everyday life and doping in sport might rest on similar attitudinal representations, and both behaviors can be theoretically modeled by comparable means-to-end relations (substance-performance). A behavioral (not substance-based) definition of NE is proposed, with assumed functionality as its core component. It is empirically tested whether different NE variants (lifestyle drug, prescription drug, and illicit substance) can be regressed to school stressors.

FINDINGS

Participants were 519 students (25.8 ± 8.4 years old, 73.1% female). Logistic regressions indicate that a modified doping attitude scale can predict all three NE variants. Multiple NE substance abuse was frequent. Overwhelming demands in school were associated with lifestyle and prescription drug NE.

CONCLUSIONS

Researchers should be sensitive for probable structural similarities between enhancement in everyday life and sport and systematically explore where findings from one domain can be adapted for the other. Policy makers should be aware that students might misperceive NE as an acceptable means of coping with stress in school, and help to form societal sensitivity for the topic of NE among our younger ones in general.

Motivational and social cognitive predictors of doping intentions in elite sports: an integrated approach

Doping use is an important issue in both competitive and non-competitive sports, and poses potentially irreversible health consequences to users. Scholars increasingly call for theory-driven studies on the psychosocial processes underlying doping use that will inform subsequent policy-making and prevention interventions. The aim of the study was to implement an integrative theoretical model to assess the direct and indirect effects of motivational variables, moral orientations, and social cognitions on doping intentions. A randomly selected and representative sample of 750 elite athletes anonymously completed a battery of questionnaires on motivational and moral constructs, and social cognitions related to doping. Hierarchical linear regression analysis and multiple mediation modeling were used. The effects of achievement goals and moral orientations were significantly mediated by attitudinal, normative, and self-efficacy beliefs, in both lifetime ever and never doping users. Moral orientations indirectly predicted the doping intentions of never users, but did not predict ever users' doping intentions. Achievement goals and sportspersonship orientations influence doping intentions indirectly, through the effects of attitudes and self-efficacy beliefs. Sportspersonship (moral) orientations were relevant to doping intentions among athletes with no prior experiences with doping, while achievement goals and situational temptation were relevant to both lifetime never and ever dopers.

Athletes’ Perceptions Toward Substance Use in Baghdad City

The majority of men’s sports need high levels of strength and power. The effects of any given type of performance-enhancing substance are mostly directly related to its ergogenic effects (enhanced strength, higher energy production, and better recovery), anabolic potential (increased protein synthesis, especially in muscles), and/or stimulating properties (increased attention and loss of fear), which give a competitive advantage to athletes. A descriptive correlational study was conducted to identify bodybuilders’ and athletes’ perception toward substance use and to identify the relationship between substance use and those athletes’ sociodemographic characteristics of age, level of education, social status, and monthly income. A purposive “nonprobability” sample of 172 bodybuilding athletes were recruited from gym users of Baghdad city. The study found that two fifths of those who used anabolic-androgenic steroids (AAS) were 19 years old or younger, less than one half were overweight (body mass index = 25-29.9), two fifths of participants enjoyed exercise/training to an extreme level, two fifths of study participants highly perceived the improvement of athletic performance, two fifths of the study participants highly perceived the importance of improving athletic performance, less than half of the study participants used AAS, one quarter of the study participants who used AAS had been influenced by their coaches to use such substances, and more than one third of the study participants who used AAS were using such substances in the form of oral tablets and intramuscular injection together.

Vulnerability and the intention to anabolic steroids use among Iranian gym users: an application of the theory of planned behavior

This correlational study explored the psychological antecedents of 253 Iranian gym users' intentions to use the anabolic-androgenic steroids (AAS), based on the Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB). The three predictor variables of (1) attitude, (2) subjective norms, and (3) perceived behavioral control accounted for 63% of the variation in the outcome measure of the intention to use the AAS. There is some support to use the TPB to design and implement interventions to modify and/or improve individuals' beliefs that athletic goals are achievable without the use of the AAS.

As práticas corporais nas academias de ginástica: um olhar do professor sobre o corpo fluminense

O presente estudo tem por objetivo investigar as concepções dos professores de Educação Física, atuantes em academias de ginástica da Baixada Fluminense, sobre sua prática profissional e o trato com o corpo. Os dados foram obtidos por meio de entrevistas semiestruturadas, observação e anotações de diário de campo. Os investigados demonstram preocupação em atender aos anseios do aluno e preservar a sua integridade física. Contudo, características socioeconômicas da região parecem colaborar para uma prática laboral que privilegie a rotina de exercícios exaustivos, sendo detectada uma tensão entre o que seria ideal em nível de discurso e a realidade dos usuários que desejam resultados rápidos.

Gateway to doping? Supplement use in the context of preferred competitive situations, doping attitude, beliefs, and norms

Nutritional supplement (NS) use is widespread in sport. This study applied an integrated social cognitive approach to examine doping attitudes, beliefs, and self-reported doping use behavior across NS users (n = 96) and nonusers (n = 116). Following ethical approval, 212 competitive athletes (age mean = 21.4, s = 4.5; 137 males) completed self-reported measures of doping-related social cognitions and behaviors, presented in an online format where completion implied consent. Significantly more NS users (22.9%) reported doping compared with nonusers (6.0%; U = 4628.0, P < 0.05). NS users presented significantly more positive attitudes toward doping (U = 3152.0, P < 0.05) and expressed a significantly greater belief that doping is effective (U = 3152.0, P < 0.05). When presented with the scenario that performance-enhancing substances are effective and increase the possibility of winning, NS users were significantly more in favor of competing in situations that allow doping (U = 3504.5, P < 0.05). In sum, doping use is three-and-a-half times more prevalent in NS users compared with nonusers. This finding is accompanied by significant differences in doping attitudes, norms, and beliefs. Thus, this article offers support for the gateway hypothesis; athletes who engage in legal performance enhancement practices appear to embody an "at-risk" group for transition toward doping. Education should be appropriately targeted.

Methodological considerations regarding response bias effect in substance use research: is correlation between the measured variables sufficient?

Efforts for drug free sport include developing a better understanding of the behavioural determinants that underline doping with an increased interest in developing anti-doping prevention and intervention programmes. Empirical testing of both is dominated by self-report questionnaires, which is the most widely used method in psychological assessments and sociology polls. Disturbingly, the potential distorting effect of socially desirable responding (SD) is seldom considered in doping research, or dismissed based on weak correlation between some SD measure and the variables of interest. The aim of this report is to draw attention to i) the potential distorting effect of SD and ii) the limitation of using correlation analysis between a SD measure and the individual measures. Models of doping opinion as a potentially contentious issue was tested using structural equation modeling technique (SEM) with and without the SD variable, on a dataset of 278 athletes, assessing the SD effect both at the i) indicator and ii) construct levels, as well as iii) testing SD as an independent variable affecting expressed doping opinion. Participants were categorised by their SD score into high- and low SD groups. Based on low correlation coefficients (<|0.22|) observed in the overall sample, SD effect on the indicator variables could be disregarded. Regression weights between predictors and the outcome variable varied between groups with high and low SD but despite the practically non-existing relationship between SD and predictors (<|0.11|) in the low SD group, both groups showed improved model fit with SD, independently. The results of this study clearly demonstrate the presence of SD effect and the inadequacy of the commonly used pairwise correlation to assess social desirability at model level. In the absence of direct observation of the target behaviour (i.e. doping use), evaluation of the effectiveness of future anti-doping campaign, along with empirical testing of refined doping behavioural models, will likely to continue to rely on self-reported information. Over and above controlling the effect of socially desirable responding in research that makes inferences based on self-reported information on social cognitive and behavioural measures, it is recommended that SD effect is appropriately assessed during data analysis.

Virtue or pretense? Looking behind self-declared innocence in doping

BACKGROUND

Social science studies of doping practices in sport rely predominantly on self-reports. Studies of psychoactive drug use indicate that self-reporting is characterised by under-reporting. Likewise doping practice is likely to be equally under-reported, if not more so. This calls for more sophisticated methods for such reporting and for independent, objective validation of its results. The aims of this study were: i) to contrast self-reported doping use with objective results from chemical hair analysis and ii) to investigate the influence of the discrepancy on doping attitudes, social projection, descriptive norms and perceived pressure to use doping.

METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS

A doping attitudes questionnaire was developed and combined with a response latency-based implicit association test and hair sample analysis for key doping substances in 14 athletes selected from a larger sample (N = 82) to form contrast comparison groups. Results indicate that patterns of group differences in social projection, explicit attitude about and perceived pressure to use doping, vary depending on whether the user and non-user groups are defined by self-report or objectively verified through hair analysis. Thus, self-confessed users scored higher on social projection, explicit attitude to doping and perceived pressure. However, when a doping substance was detected in the hair of an athlete who denied doping use, their self-report evidenced extreme social desirability (negative attitude, low projection and low perceived pressure) and contrasted sharply with a more positive estimate of their implicit doping attitude.

CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE

Hair analysis for performance enhancing substances has shown considerable potential in validating athletes' doping attitude estimations and admissions of use. Results not only confirm the need for improved self-report methodology for future research in socially-sensitive domains but also indicate where the improvements are likely to come from: as chemical validation remains expensive, a more realistic promise for large scale studies and online data collection efforts is held by measures of implicit social cognition.

A Review of Men's Health and Masculinity

Men's health is a new and evolving area of specialty that goes beyond men's cancers and sexual activities. Men's health in the 21st century incorporates a broader conceptualization of health, health behaviors, and lifestyle choices. This new focus results from the fact that men continue to lag behind women in life expectancy and in health care use, a situation that is worse for minority men. Understanding how gender socialization and masculine ideology affects men's health is an important step toward providing effective care for men. In this article, the authors review these areas and then discuss each of the top actual causes of death for men: tobacco use, poor diet, alcohol use, and physical inactivity. They then discuss the important issue of steroid use among men. Throughout the review, the authors highlight racial and ethnic differences in health behaviors. Furthermore, they provide empirically supported clinical implications to assist clinicians who see men with health concerns in their practices. Finally, they offer suggestions for creating ways to include men in the health care system in hopes of improving their use.

Psychological drivers in doping: the life-cycle model of performance enhancement

BACKGROUND

Performance enhancement (PE) is a natural and essential ingredient of competitive sport. Except for nutritional supplement contamination, accidental use of doping is highly unlikely. It requires deliberation, planning and commitment; and is influenced by a host of protective and risk factors.

HYPOTHESIS

In the course of their career, athletes constantly set goals and make choices regarding the way these goals can be achieved. The cycle of choice - goal commitment - execution - feedback on goal attainment - goal evaluation/adjustment has numerous exit points, each providing an opportunity for behaviour change, which may or may not be related to the use of prohibited methods. The interplay between facilitating and inhibiting systemic and personality factors, constantly influenced by situational factors could result in an outcome vector of 'doping attitudes', which combines with subjective norms to influence intentions to choose prohibited PE methods. These influences also vary from one stage of athlete development to the next, making some athletes more vulnerable to engaging in doping practices than others, and more vulnerable at certain time periods - and not others.

TESTING THE HYPOTHESIS

Model-testing requires a series of carefully planned and coordinated studies. Correlational studies can establish relationships where the directionality is not-known or not important. Experimental studies with the manipulation of doping expectancies and risk factors can be used to demonstrate causality and evaluate potential intervention strategies. The final model can be tested via a behavioural simulation, with outcomes compared to those expected from literature precedence or used as a simulated computer game for empirical data collection.

IMPLICATIONS

A hypothesized life-cycle model of PE identifies vulnerability factors across the stages of athlete development with the view of informing the design of anti-doping assessment and intervention. The model suggests that, instead of focusing on the actual engagement in prohibited PE practices, deterrence strategies are likely to be more effective if they target the influencing factors at the appropriate stage and identify groups of athletes and their respective career stages, which pose particular risks of engagement in doping practices. This enables a more effective intervention approach by targeting specific risk factors and expectancies.