Masculinity, moral atmosphere, and moral functioning of high school football players

Predictors of Bullying among Athletes in the Romanian Context

The purpose of this study was to examine the explanatory power of a predictive model of bully/perpetrator behaviour in Romanian athletes, consisting of negative pre-competitive emotions (anxiety, sadness, and anger), perception of male gender normativity, and relationships with coaches and teammates. Additionally, we aimed to explore the mediation effect of bully-victim behaviour on the relationship between athletes' connections with their coaches and bully/perpetrator behaviour. The current research involved a nonexperimental, cross-sectional design exploring the presence of bully/perpetrator behaviour in Romanian male and female athletes. The quantitative methodology was used to collect and analyse the data obtained. Researchers translated, adapted and pretested the questionnaire set to the Romanian cultural background (SEQ, MAMS, CART-Q, In-group Ties Scale, BSQ) before distributing it to 448 participants. 58.7% were male participants, and 41.3% were female participants. The mean age was 21.15 (SDage = 2.37, range = 18-32). The research was conducted in the first half of 2023. SPSS (V. 20) and Hayes's PROCESS tool were used to investigate the data. The findings demonstrated that in the case of Romanian male athletes, perception of male gender normativity, anger, and weaker connections with coaches are the most important psychological factors in predicting bully/perpetrator behaviour. In contrast, in the case of Romanian female athletes, only weaker connections with coaches and perception of male gender normativity play an essential role in explaining bully/perpetrator behaviour. Additionally, the study demonstrated that bully-victim behaviour mediates the relationship between athletes' weaker connections with their coaches and bully/perpetrator behaviour. Athletes' weaker connections with their coaches lead to experiencing a high level of bully/perpetrator behaviour by stressing bully-victim behaviour, which also contributes to achieving a high level of bully/perpetrator behaviour.

Athletic Identity in Youth Athletes: A Systematic Review of the Literature

Athletic identity (AI), the degree of personal connection to sport, is well-described in adult research; however, this social trait has been less studied in younger age groups. This systematic review describes epidemiological characteristics of AI in youth athletes. PubMed, Embase and PsycInfo were searched to identify AI studies involving quantitative athlete identity outcomes and cohorts 22 years and younger. The search strategy was developed for each database using the Boolean method. PRISMA guidelines and the Appraisal Tool for Cross-Sectional Studies (AXIS) were utilized. Ten out of ninety-one studies met inclusion criteria. AI scores differed by race/ethnicity. Two studies found increased AI during adolescence compared to later in ones’ training. Mental health-focused studies revealed higher AI levels protect against burnout, but in injured athletes, increased depression risk. Transitioning to a higher level of play during adolescence can correlate with stronger senses of AI. Further research should explore the concept of athletic identity saliency as one moves through an athletic career or training program and how thoughts of perceived success, professional progression, recruitment prospect or injury affect levels of athletic identity.

Badminton Players' Moral Intentions: A Factorial Survey Study Into Personal and Contextual Determinants

Improving and maintaining high ethical standards among athletes is a major challenge in sports, which requires sufficient knowledge on athletes' moral intentions. This study advances our knowledge on athletes' moral intentions by examining the personal and contextual determinants (factors) that influence moral intentions of badminton players. In a factorial survey study, a total of 171 participants were asked to respond to scenarios describing moral dilemmas in the context of badminton. This approach allows combining advantages from both classical experiments and survey methods, enabling the determination of the underlying principles of the judgments and intentions of respondents. Multilevel analysis indicated that intention to engage in the described behavior was impacted by both the act and the gender of the subject. This study complements previous research on athletes' moral intentions by the advanced method of factorial survey, while supporting the development of more specific approaches in the promotion of ethical behavior in sports.

The Relationship between Moral Climate of Sports and the Moral Behavior of Young Athletes: A Multilevel Meta-analysis

Sports are among the most important leisure activities for youth and adolescents. Both positive (i.e., prosocial) and negative (i.e., antisocial) moral behaviors occur on the playing field. To stimulate positive sports experiences, it is important to understand which factors are related to the moral behavior of young athletes; one of these is the moral climate, that is, the socio-moral environment in which sports take place. Little is known about the overall strength of the relationship between moral climate and moral behavior of young athletes, as well as the potential moderating factors of this relationship. A meta-analysis of 27 studies containing 117 effect sizes and N = 7726 young athletes (age < 18 years) was conducted. The results show that there is an overall significant association between these two variables (r= 0.40), indicating that a prosocial moral climate is related to less antisocial and more prosocial behavior, while an antisocial moral climate is associated with more antisocial and less prosocial behavior of young athletes. Two study characteristics significantly moderated this relationship: specifically, stronger associations were found in cross-sectional and in older studies. In addition, the strength of the association between moral climate and moral behavior was stronger for antisocial moral climate compared to prosocial moral climate. Finally, associations for team members were stronger than those of coaches or a broad moral club climate. Implications for further research and sports practice are discussed.

Athletic identity foreclosure

Athletic identity foreclosure refers to commitment to the athlete role in the absence of exploration of occupational or ideological alternatives. This article traces the theoretical underpinnings of the construct, examines the role of sport participation in identity development, and provides an overview of the course, correlates, and consequences of athletic identity foreclosure. Implications for future research are discussed.

Role of Uniforms in the Body Image of Female College Volleyball Players

Female student athletes often desire a muscular body to be successful in sport, but this body type does not conform to traditional cultural norms of femininity. In this study, the authors qualitatively examined the experiences of female intercollegiate volleyball players to better understand their beliefs about their bodies—both as athletes and as women outside of sport—in addition to whether perceptions about their revealing sports uniforms were related to body image. Results indicated that body image among female student athletes is a multidimensional construct. Participants reported conflicting messages about their bodies in regard to how they look on the court and how they are supposed to look off the court. In addition, results suggested that revealing uniforms contributed to decreased body esteem, and these uniforms also distracted players and impacted on-court performance. Results are interpreted within the framework of objectification theory, and implications for psychologists working with female student athletes are provided.