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Motivation for sport participation and eating disorder risk among female collegiate athletes
Abstract
In light of conflicting research regarding eating disorder risk and sports participation, the current study examined the relationship between specific aspects of sports participation (i.e., level of competition, leanness requirements, and physical/cardiovascular intensity level), an individual’s motivation for sports participation, and eating disorder symptomatology/risk. Participants included 319 female collegiate athletes (M age = 19.88; SD = 1.62) representing a variety of sports and competition levels. Multilevel modeling found that level of competition, receiving a scholarship, age, and years of collegiate sport played did not predict eating disorder risk. In the final model, there was a significant interaction between intrinsic motivation and sport intensity. For high intensity sports, higher levels of intrinsic motivation were associated with lower eating disorder risk. For low intensity sports, the level of intrinsic motivation did not impact eating disorder risk. For all sport intensities, extrinsic motivation was associated with a higher eating disorder risk. Results suggest that it is not the specific sport but athletes’ motivation for those sports with high physical/cardiovascular intensity and leanness requirements that is associated with untoward consequences. The results clarify conflicting results previously reported in the literature that have primarily employed univariate analyses and have implications for athletic development programs.
... Nevertheless, little is known about the role of the psychological needs and self-determination in the sport context in the adoption of eating behaviors. To our knowledge, only two studies have addressed this issue, by measuring variables of interest in the sport context, and found that lower levels of self-determination for sport (e.g., practicing primarily to improve one's shape, weight, and physical attractiveness) were associated with a greater risk of developing eating disorders in samples comprising mainly adult athletes (Chaba et al., 2021;Homan et al., 2019). However, to date, no research has investigated the relationships between psychological needs and selfdetermination in sport, and eating behaviors in adolescent athletes, despite adolescence being a crucial development stage where changes in body image can influence eating behaviors (Baker et al., 2012). ...
... This result supports the findings of previous studies conducted mainly in adults. For example, lower self-determination for sport has been associated with a greater risk of developing eating disorders in female and male athletes (Chabba et al., 2021;Homan et al., 2019). Additionally, Mond and his colleagues (2009) found that exercising primarily to improve one's shape, reduce weight, and enhance physical attractiveness, which represent low self-determination, distinguished between women with eating disorders and healthy women. ...
Objective
The purpose of this study was to examine the mediating role of self‐determination for sport in the relationship between psychological needs in a sport context, and restrictive eating behaviors among adolescent athletes, while controlling for confounding variables.
Method
Self‐report online surveys were completed by 983 adolescent athletes (41.3% identified as girls, M = 14.63 years, SD = 0.765). Structural equation modeling was conducted to investigate the hypothesized associations between basic psychological need satisfaction and frustration in sport, self‐determination for sport, and restrictive eating behaviors, controlling for the level of competition and the type of sport practiced. Gender differences between the associations were assessed using moderation analysis.
Results
Girls reported significantly more restrictive eating behaviors (Mgirls = 0.85; SD = 1.39 vs. Mboys = 0.62; SD = 1.31). Both associations between basic psychological need frustration and satisfaction and restrictive eating behaviors were mediated by self‐determination for sport (β = 0.054, 95% bootstrap IC = 0.027–0.089; β = −0.045, 95% bootstrap IC = −0.079 to −0.021). Further, gender moderated an association so that frustration of basic psychological in sport more strongly predicted restrictive eating behaviors in girls (β = 0.256; p = 0.008), compared with boys.
Discussion
Our study reveals considerable gender differences in the mechanism underlying the adoption of restrictive eating in adolescent athletes. The research also fills a gap in the literature by supporting the assumptions of the Hierarchical Model of Intrinsic and Extrinsic Motivation in eating behaviors, specifically in the sport context.
... The athlete at greatest risk for an ED had low intrinsic and high extrinsic motivation and was participating in a high physical/cardiovascular intensity sport that demanded leanness. Consequently, an acceptance and commitment approach, which focuses on values affirmation, could be an important part of selective prevention for certain athletes at risk because of the nature of their sport (Homan et al., 2019). ...
... Second, the epidemiological study by De Oliveira Figueiredo et al.'s (2019) extends findings indicating that, because body dissatisfaction is an issue for a significant minority of children prior to adolescence, it deserves specific attention in programming designed to prevent DE in children and adolescents. Third, three studies Gorrell et al., 2019;Homan et al., 2019) emphasize that risk factors likely vary as a function of socially constructed groupings. This research points to perfectionism, appearance concerns, motivational set in athletes, and weight suppression as deserving of more longitudinal research, including attention in prevention programming and outcome evaluation. ...
This article reviews 11 prevention-related publications in Eating Disorders: The Journal of Treatment & Prevention during 2019. Two models from the 2018 review continue to frame this analysis: (1) the Mental Health Intervention Spectrum from health promotion → types of prevention → case identification and referral → treatment; and (2) parsing phases of prevention into rationale, theory, and methodology → clarification of risk factors → implications for specific preventive interventions → design innovation and feasibility (pilot) research → efficacy and effectiveness research → program dissemination. These articles illustrate how the theoretical complexity and rigorous methodological demands of prevention science are manifest in the eating disorder field. A subset of articles also demonstrates the importance of working with researchers and community stakeholders to improve our understanding of how ethnicity, class, and gender intersect with planning for improvements in all phases of prevention. Other subsets show the need to expand the list of relevant risk factors, and how the traditional schema of masculinity creates both maladaptive biases in case identification and obstacles to an effective and compassionate understanding of EDs. Finally, implications of the absence of efficacy, effectiveness, and dissemination studies are discussed.
... On the contrary, the "team" vs "individual" sports perspective is under-addressed in representative, non-clinical populations, and it has led to inconclusive or mixed results which warrant further evaluation [24][25][26]. In fact, the preference for sedentary behaviours or individual training may indirectly reflect a rise in extrinsic motivations to practice sports, a condition that has been identified as a risk factor for EDs [27], and the internalisation of appearance ideals may be tied to disordered eating, especially among boys [28]. Conversely, engagement in team sports may be associated with lower disordered eating symptoms [25], possibly due to its cooperative goalse.g., in ball games-as opposed to activities meant to optimise individual performances or appearance. ...
Purpose
Disordered eating and body image concerns are increasingly common among adolescents, possibly representing the underpinning of eating disorders (EDs). This cross-sectional observational study aimed at investigating the relationship between various patterns of sports involvement or inactivity, and the abovementioned psychopathological dimensions.
Methods
All adolescents attending their 3rd–5th Italian grade in a single high school reported their sociodemographic and anthropometric data, their weekly sports involvement, and filled the Eating Disorders Examination Questionnaire 6.0 (EDE-Q), the Body Uneasiness Test, and the Muscle Dysmorphia Disorder Inventory (for boys). Comparisons were performed considering sex, weekly hours of activity, and different sports type (none, individual, or team sports).
Results
Of 744 enrolled students, 522 (70.2%) completed the survey. Girls showed higher underweight rates, preference for inactivity or individual sports, and higher psychometric scores compared to boys. Among girls, no differences were found based on time spent exercising or sports type. Inactive boys displayed worse weight- and shape-based psychopathology, higher body uneasiness, and higher appearance intolerance compared to those who devoted more time to exercise. Among boys, individual and team sports were associated with lower EDE-Q scores compared to inactivity, whereas body uneasiness and appearance intolerance were lower only in team sports.
Conclusions
The study confirms the presence of remarkable sex differences in eating and body concerns of adolescents. Among boys, sports involvement is tied to lower ED psychopathology, and preference for team sports may be associated with reduced concerns. Wider longitudinal studies on will clarify the direction and specificity of these findings.
Level of evidence
Level V—Cross-sectional observational study.
... In this group with higher self-demand, the risk of eating disorders will also increase when the body weight is low [11]. At the same time, according to the results of Homan et al. [12], they found that when teenagers' exercise motivation is to find strong sensory stimulation in sports, they may appear after 20 months having eating disorders; thus, extrinsic motivation and goal motivation are important factors that affect the occurrence of eating disorders in adolescents. However, Calderon et al. [13] learned from the survey of female college athletes that exercise motivation was also highly correlated with eating disorders. ...
The aim of this study is to explore the relationship between exercise motivation and eating disorder and the mediating effect of anxiety in physical exercise. Athletes are in a social network, and the different human-machine relationships and situations generated in this may produce different sports motivations and anxiety states for athletes. The exercise motivation, status-trait anxiety, and eating disorder of 1076 fitness subjects were described and analyzed by questionnaire survey, and the survey data were statistically analyzed by means of correlation, regression, and structural equation model. The results showed that the overall detection rate of eating disorder was 56.3%. The overall detection rate of eating disorder was different between males and females. Exercise motivation has a significant positive correlation with state anxiety and eating disorder. Exercise motivation has a significant positive predictive effect on eating disorder, exercise motivation has a significant positive predictive effect on state anxiety, and state anxiety has a significant positive predictive effect on eating disorder. The mediating effect shows that state anxiety can partially mediate the relationship between exercise motivation and eating disorder, exercise motivation has a direct impact on eating disorder, and state anxiety has an indirect impact on eating disorder. In physical exercise, the exercisers’ bad exercise motivation will produce too much anxiety. Poor exercise motivation and anxiety can lead to symptoms of eating disorders. In physical exercise, we should adopt reasonable value orientation and positive psychological suggestion and encourage healthy and reasonable eating behavior, which will help to prevent and treat eating disorders.
... All items are assessed on a 7-point scale anchored by 1 (does not correspond at all) and 7 (corresponds exactly). Past research has supported the factorial validity, test-retest reliability, and internal consistency reliability of this scale with youth sport participants (Homan et al., 2019;Vicent et al., 2020). The alpha values for the six subscales ranged from .72 to .86, ...
This study investigated whether a large sample of youth participants’ life skills development through sport was impacted by demographic variables and/or variables based on self-determination theory. Participants were 461 Brazilian youth sport (325 boys; 136 girls) aged 10–17 years ( M age = 15.12, SD = 1.44). Participants completed a self-report research survey to assess demographic variables, coach autonomy support, basic need satisfaction, and sport motivation. We analyzed data using cluster analysis, a chi-square test and multivariate analysis of variance. We found that sport participants in the high life skills development cluster were older ( p = .007) and had more years of sport experience ( p = .032). Compared to the low life skills development cluster, sports participants in the high life skills development cluster displayed higher scores for coach’s autonomy support ( p = .001), autonomy satisfaction ( p = .002), competence satisfaction ( p = .001), relatedness satisfaction ( p = .001), and identified regulation ( p = .023). In practice, these findings indicate that coaches should seek to satisfy participants’ three basic psychological needs and encourage an identified regulation form of motivation when trying to promote participants’ life skills development through sport.
... All items are assessed on a 7-point scale anchored by 1 (does not correspond at all) and 7 (corresponds exactly). Past research has supported the factorial validity, test-retest reliability, and internal consistency reliability of this scale with youth sport participants (Homan et al., 2019;Vicent et al., 2020). The alpha values for the six subscales ranged from .72 to .86, ...
This study investigated whether participants’ life skills development through sport was impacted by demographic and self-determination theory-based variables in a large sample of youth sport participants. Participants included 461 Brazilian sport participants (325 boys and 136 girls) aged between 10–17 years (Mage = 15.12, SD = 1.44). The research survey used assessed demographic variables, coach autonomy support, basic need satisfaction, and motivation in sport. The data were analyzed using cluster analysis, a chi-square test and multivariate analysis of variance (p < .05). Results revealed that sport participants in the high life skills development cluster were of a higher age (p = .007) and had more years of experience in their sport (p = .032). As compared to the low life skills development cluster, youth sport participants in the high life skills development cluster displayed higher scores for coach autonomy support (p = .001), autonomy satisfaction (p = .002), competence satisfaction (p = .001), relatedness satisfaction (p = .001), and identified regulation (p = .023). Such findings suggest that coaches should look to satisfy participants’ three basic psychological needs and encourage an identified regulation form of motivation when trying to promote participants’ life skills development through sport.
Playing sports, in addition to guiding the athlete towards a healthy lifestyle, provides personal satisfaction and fulfilment that facilitates finding meaning and integration in the community. The aim of this research was to determine the association between eating attitudes and age groups among female basketball players. A sample of 67 female participants, were taken at the level of the whole of Serbia sample of 67 subjects, which make up 3 subsamples of the group, i.e. GR1 < 18 (n-28), GR2 19-21 (n-18), GR3 > 22 (n-21) years. The criterion for selecting participants was: age over 13 years, female participants who play basketball and are active. Based on the inclusion criteria in the study, a sample of 67 participants was taken who filled out online questionnaires about eating habits EAT-26 (Eating Attitudes Test). Based on the chi-square test, a significant association between eating attitudes and age groups was determined for 23 out of 26 statements. The association was absent only for items 11, 13 and 16. In addition, significant relations were observed between age groups and dieting scale (χ2=0.694, p=0.000), bulimia & food scale (χ2=0.516, p=0.000) and oral control scale (χ2=0.621, p=0.000). More investigation is required into the psychometric characteristics of tests like the EAT-26 in populations of female athletes. Given that the final model was inspired by an exploratory process, it is obvious that one should take these results with some caution.
Objetivo: El objetivo principal del estudio, fue la realización de una revisión sistemática, con el fin de conocer los factores de riesgo y protectores del deporte en cuanto al desarrollo de Trastorno de la Conducta Alimentaria. Para ello, se consultó en diversas bases de datos: Web Of Science (WOS), y el Catálogo Trobes de la Universidad de Valencia, y a partir de los resultados encontrados, se procedió análisis de la producción científica extraída. Resultados: A partir de la utilización de diversos operadores booleanos, se encontraron un total de 21 artículos que cumplieron los criterios de inclusión. De estos estudios, 5, revelaron que los deportes donde se le da mayor importancia a la imagen corporal y hay una mayor exposición del cuerpo (gimnasia rítmica, culturismo, danza, natación sincronizada, etc.) tienen mayor índice de prevalencia en cuanto al desarrollo de un TCA. Conclusiones: El deporte juega un papel tanto protector como de riesgo. Aquellas personas que tienen una personalidad determinada (rasgos perfeccionistas, desajustes emocionales) o una predisposición genética en cuanto a desarrollo de TCA, el deporte puede ser un desencadenante (dependiendo del tipo de deporte que se practique, la presión ejercida por el entrenador, la categoría deportiva, etc.). Sin embargo, la práctica deportiva moderada, es un factor protector frente a TCA, dado que aumenta los sentimientos de bienestar, mejora la percepción de la imagen corporal y mejora las relaciones sociales.
In this article, we investigate the community‐driven science happening organically in elite athletics as a means of engaging a community of learners—collegiate athletes, many of whom come from underrepresented groups—in STEM. We aim to recognize the data literacy practices inherent in sports play and to explore the potential of critical data literacy practices for enabling athletes to leverage data science as a means of addressing systemic racial, equity, and justice issues inherent in sports institutions. We leverage research on critical data literacies as a lens to present case studies of three athletes at an NCAA Division 1 university spanning three different sports. We focus on athletes' experiences as they engage in critical data literacy practices and the ways they welcome, adapt, resist, and critique such engagements. Our findings indicate ways in which athletes (1) readily accept data practices espoused by their coaches and sport, (2) critique and intentionally disengage from such practices, and (3) develop their own new data productions. In order to support community‐driven science, our findings point to the critical role of athletics' organizations in promoting athletes' access to, as well as engagement and agency with data practices on their teams.
Background:
The athletes' physical function level is correlated with the sports risk.
Objective:
The study aims to evaluate the function level and seek the relationship between sports risk and physical function level.
Methods:
The Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) is introduced, the evaluation index, index weight, and evaluation standards are determined, so as to construct the evaluation system of physical function of disabled snowboarder. The health sports risk evaluation system based on human natural and social attributes is constructed. The different functional indexes and the overall physical function level of the research object are analysed statistically to reveal the relationship between sports risk and physical function level.
Results:
The physical functions of most subjects are "relatively good" and a few are "excellent". For the cardiovascular risk, pulse wave velocity (PWV) has the highest correlation with the overall score of physical function for both male and female athletes. Overall, different sensitivity indexes are greatly correlated to the physical function level.
Conclusions:
This study provides theoretical and data support for grasping the level of athlete' physical function and exploring the relationship between sports risk and physical function level.
This study examined the relationship between the Sport Commitment Model and the Self-Determination Theory. The participants were 214 adolescent athletes who completed the Hungarian version of the Sport Commitment Questionnaire-2 and the Hungarian version of the Sport Motivation Scale. Several commitment sources predicted SMS scores as well. Amotivation was predicted by the obligatory reason for commitment such as Personal Investment-Loss and Other Priorities. External Regulation was predicted by Social factors of commitment. Introjected Regulation was determined by Desire to Excel-Mastery and Personal Investment-Loss. Identified Regulation was explained by Desire to Excel-Mastery, Valuable Opportunities, and Personal Investment-Loss. Integrated Regulation was explained with Valuable Opportunities, Desire to Excel-Mastery, Personal Investment-Loss and Social Support-Informal. The Intrinsic Motivation subscale was significantly predicted by Desire to Excel-Mastery, Personal Investment-Loss, Sport Enjoyment and Social Support-Informal. As we see the types of commitment showed a clear association with SMS, however the commitment sources showed a complex relationship with self-determination, thus it is hard to separate them on the Self-determination continuum.
Background:
Issues of personal control have been proposed to play a central role in the aetiology and maintenance of eating disorders. Empirical evidence supporting this relationship is inconsistent, partly due to the multiplicity of constructs used to define "control". This study compares six commonly used measures of control with the aim of determining which operationalisation of control is most centrally relevant to eating pathology. Given the high level of comorbidity between eating disorders and obsessive-compulsive disorder and the potentially common risk/maintenance factors for the two disorders, we also examine the relationship between control and obsessive-compulsive symptomatology.
Methods:
Female community participants (N = 175) completed self-report measures of control, eating disorder pathology and obsessive-compulsive symptoms.
Results:
Multivariate analyses of variance indicated significant differences between individuals with high vs. low levels of psychopathology on most of the measures of control. Using regression analyses, we found that a sense of ineffectiveness and fear of losing self-control were the only significant independent predictors of eating pathology, and fear of losing self-control was the most significant predictor of obsessive-compulsive symptoms.
Conclusions:
This study highlights the importance of issues of control, particularly feelings of ineffectiveness and fear of losing self-control, in eating disorder symptoms. Furthermore, our findings suggest that there may be a similar underlying fear of losing self-control among individuals who engage in disordered eating and obsessive-compulsive behaviours. Thus, ineffectiveness and fear of losing self-control are two dimensions that are important to consider in maintenance and treatment models of disordered eating behaviours.
UniversitC du QuCbec B MontrCal A new measure of motivation toward sport has been developed in French, namely the Echelle de Motivation vis-h-vis les Sports. Two studies were conducted to translate and validate this new measure in English. The Sport Motivation Scale (SMS) consists of seven subscales that measure three types of Intrinsic Motivation (IM; IM to Know, IM to Accomplish Things, and IM to Experience Stimulation), three forms of regulation for Extrinsic Motivation (Identified, Introjected, and External), and Amotivation. The first study con-firmed the factor structure of the scale and revealed a satisfactory level of internal consistency. Correlations among the subscales revealed a simplex pattern confirming the self-determination continuum and the construct valid-ity of the scale. Gender differences were similar to those obtained with the French-Canadian version. The more self-determined forms of motivation were associated with more positive responses on related consequences. In a second study, the SMS was administered on two occasions and revealed adequate test-retest reliability.
To examine the effect of a 1-yr school-based intervention program to prevent the development of new cases of eating disorders (ED) and symptoms associated with ED among adolescent female and male elite athletes.
All 16 Norwegian Elite Sport High Schools were included (intervention group [n = 9] and control group [n = 7]). In total, 465 (93.8%) first-year student athletes were followed during high school (2008-2011, three school years). The athletes completed the Eating Disorder Inventory 2 and questions related to ED before (pretest), immediately after (posttest 1), and 9 months after the intervention (posttest 2). Clinical interviews (Eating Disorder Examination) were conducted after the pretest (all with symptoms [n = 115, 97%] and a random sample without symptoms [n = 116, 97%]), and at posttest 2, all athletes were interviewed (n = 463, 99.6%).
Among females, there were no new cases of ED in the intervention schools, while 13% at the control schools had developed and fulfilled the DSM-IV criteria for ED not otherwise specified (n = 7) or bulimia nervosa (n = 1), P = 0.001. The risk of reporting symptoms was lower in the intervention than in the control schools at posttest 1 (odds ratio [OR] = 0.45, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 0.23-0.89). This effect was attenuated by posttest 2 (OR = 0.57, 95% CI = 0.29-1.09). The intervention showed a relative risk reduction for current dieting (OR = 0.10, 95% CI = 0.02-0.54) and three or more weight loss attempts (OR = 0.47, 95% CI = 0.25-0.90). Among males, there was one new case of ED at posttest 2 (control school) and no difference in the risk of reporting symptoms between groups at posttest 1 or 2.
A 1-yr intervention program can prevent new cases of ED and symptoms associated with ED in adolescent female elite athletes.
Background:
Patients with borderline personality disorder (BPD) show a high prevalence of early adversity, such as childhood trauma. It has also been reported that prenatal adverse conditions, such as prenatal maternal stress, drug taking, tobacco smoking or medical complications, may be associated with an increased risk of mental disorders in the offspring. Prenatal adversity is investigated here for the first time as a potential risk factor in the diagnosis of BPD. Method A total of 100 patients with a DSM-IV diagnosis of BPD and 100 matched healthy controls underwent semi-structured interviews about the course of pregnancy, maternal stressors, birth complications and childhood trauma. Further information was obtained from the participants' mothers and from prenatal medical records.
Results:
Borderline patients were significantly more often exposed to adverse intrauterine conditions, such as prenatal tobacco exposure (p=0.004), medical complications (p=0.008), prenatal maternal traumatic stress (p=0.015), familial conflicts (p=0.004), low social support (p=0.004) and partnership problems during pregnancy (p=0.014). Logistic regression analyses revealed that the reported prenatal risk factors accounted for 25.7% of the variance in BPD. Prenatal tobacco exposure [odds ratio (OR) 3.37, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.49-7.65, p=0.004] and medical complications (OR 2.87, 95% CI 1.29-6.38, p=0.010) emerged as important predictors. After controlling for childhood adversity and parental socio-economic status (SES), prenatal risk factors predicted relevant borderline subdomains, such as impulsivity, affective instability, identity disturbance, dissociation and severity of borderline symptoms.
Conclusions:
This study provides evidence of an association between prenatal adversity and the diagnosis of BPD. Our findings suggest that prenatal adversity may constitute a potential risk factor in the pathogenesis of BPD.
The present study examined whether gender, type of sport (lean v. non-lean), body dissatisfaction and self esteem were associated with disordered eating behaviors in Division I college athletes. More female than male athletes displayed disordered eating behaviors; approximately one-quarter of the population was at risk for a clinically diagnosable eating disorder. The results also revealed that females in non-lean sports (basketball, tennis, golf, soccer, and skiing) and males in lean sports (track, wrestling) displayed the highest level of disordered eating behavior and body dissatisfaction. Finally, results showed that for women, disordered eating behaviors were predicted in order by: body dissatisfaction, self esteem and type of sport (lean v. non-lean), whereas for men, disordered eating behaviors were only predicted by body dissatisfaction. Information from this study will be useful for coaches and athletic trainers hoping to design interventions for athletes suffering from disordered eating behaviors.
The purpose of this paper is to propose a motivational sequence that integrates much of the intrinsic and extrinsic motivation literature in sport. The proposed motivational sequence: “Social Factors → Psychological Mediators → Types of Motivation → Consequences” is in line with self-determination theory (Deci & Ryan. 1985. 1991) and the Hierarchical model of intrinsic and extrinsic motivation (Vallerand, 1997). Using the sequence, it is first shown that the motivational impact of social factors inherent in sport, such as competition/cooperation, success/failure, and coaches' behaviors toward athletes, takes place through their influence on athletes' perceptions of autonomy, competence, and relatedness (i.e., the psychological mediators). Second, recent results are provided with respect to a new multidimensional measure (i.e., the Sport Motivation Scale; Pelletier et al., 1995) to assess the different types of athletes' motives. Third, we review findings that suggest that such sport motives lead to various consequences for the athlete e.g.
Purpose:
The objective of this study is to examine the prevalence of eating disorders (ED) among female and male adolescent elite athletes and nonathletic controls.
Methods:
This was a two-phase study, including a self-report questionnaire (part I) followed by clinical interviews (part II). The total population of first-year students at 16 Norwegian Elite Sport High Schools (n = 677) and two randomly selected high schools (controls, n = 421) were invited to participate. The questionnaire was completed by 611 (90%) athletes and 355 (84%) controls. The subjects reporting symptoms associated with ED were classified as "at risk" for ED. In part II, all "at-risk" athletes (n = 153), a random sample of not "at risk" (n = 153), and a random sample of 50% of the controls classified as "at risk" (n = 91) and not "at risk" (n = 88) were invited to the clinical interview to screen for ED (i.e., meeting the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders criteria for anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa, or ED not otherwise specified).
Results:
In part I, more controls than athletes were classified as "at risk" for ED (50.7% vs 25.0%, P < 0.001). In part II, the prevalence of ED among the total population of athletes and controls was estimated to be 7.0% versus 2.3%, with a difference of 4.7% (95% confidence interval, 3.4-6.0; P = 0.001), with the ED prevalence being higher for female than male athletes (14.0% vs 3.2%, P < 0.001) and female and male controls (5.1% vs 0%, P < 0.001). No difference in the prevalence of ED was detected between the females in weight-sensitive and less weight-sensitive sport groups (19.7% vs 11.9%, P = 0.136).
Conclusion:
The prevalence of ED is higher in adolescent elite athletes than controls and higher in female than male athletes. Clinical interview is needed to determine accurate prevalence of ED.
The main purpose of the present study was to examine the links between sports participation and self-esteem, with particular interest in the possible mediating role of physical self-esteem. The participants in this study were 382 students (167 boys; 215 girls) in Grades 5-8. Participants completed a series of paper and pencil measures, detailing their sports participation, as well as their self-perceptions concerning physical and general self-esteem. Sports participation was related to all indices of self-esteem and this was equally true for boys and girls. Two distinct but related factors were identified as components of physical self-esteem (Physical appearance and Physical competence), differentially associated with self-esteem for boys and girls. Results supported a mediational model, with physical self-esteem mediating the relationship between sports participation and general self-esteem. Significant sex differences were noted with regard to specific indices of physical self-esteem. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved)
Few epidemiological studies have focused on the psychological health of high level athletes. This study aimed to identify the principal psychological problems encountered within French high level athletes, and the variations in their prevalence based on sex and the sport practiced.
Multivariate analyses were conducted on nationwide data obtained from the athletes' yearly psychological evaluations.
A representative sample of 13% of the French athlete population was obtained. 17% of athletes have at least one ongoing or recent disorder, generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) being the most prevalent (6%), followed by non-specific eating disorders (4.2%). Overall, 20.2% of women had at least one psychopathology, against 15.1% in men. This female predominance applied to anxiety and eating disorders, depression, sleep problems and self-harming behaviors. The highest rates of GAD appeared in aesthetic sports (16.7% vs. 6.8% in other sports for men and 38.9% vs. 10.3% for women); the lowest prevalence was found in high risk sports athletes (3.0% vs. 3.5%). Eating disorders are most common among women in racing sports (14% vs. 9%), but for men were found mostly in combat sports (7% vs. 4.8%).
This study highlights important differences in psychopathology between male and female athletes, demonstrating that the many sex-based differences reported in the general population apply to elite athletes. While the prevalence of psychological problems is no higher than in the general population, the variations in psychopathology in different sports suggest that specific constraints could influence the development of some disorders.
Research in self-determination theory (Ryan & Deci, 2002) has shown that satisfaction of autonomy, competence, and relatedness needs in sport contexts is associated with enhanced engagement, performance, and well-being. This article outlines the initial development of a multidimensional measure designed to assess psychological need thwarting, an under-studied area of conceptual and practical importance. Study 1 generated a pool of items designed to tap the negative experiential state that occurs when athletes perceive their needs for autonomy, competence, and relatedness to be actively undermined. Study 2 tested the factorial structure of the questionnaire using confirmatory factor analysis. The supported model comprised 3 factors, which represented the hypothesized interrelated dimensions of need thwarting. The model was refined and cross-validated using an independent sample in Study 3. Overall, the psychological need thwarting scale (PNTS) demonstrated good content, factorial, and predictive validity, as well as internal consistency and invariance across gender, sport type, competitive level, and competitive experience. The conceptualization of psychological need thwarting is discussed, and suggestions are made regarding the use of the PNTS in research pertaining to the darker side of sport participation.
Patient-oriented outcome measures such as the Medical Outcomes Short Form (SF-36) and the Pediatric Outcomes Data Collection Instrument (PODCI) are important tools for determining the impact of events like sport-related injury on health-related quality of life (HRQoL). Unfortunately, there are no published studies using these instruments that compare adolescent athletes with their nonathlete peers, making interpretations of these measures in this population difficult.
To compare HRQoL in adolescent athletes and nonathletes using 2 common instruments.
Cross-sectional.
7 high schools.
219 athletes and 106 nonathletes.
None.
The SF-36 and the PODCI were completed in a counterbalanced manner during 1 session. Dependent variables included the 8 subscale and 2 composite scores of the SF-36 and the 5 subscale scores and 1 global score of the PODCI.
On the SF-36, athletes reported higher scores on the physical function, general health, social functioning, and mental health subscales and the mental composite score and lower scores on the bodily pain subscale than nonathletes. On the PODCI, athletes reported higher scores on the sport and physical function and happiness subscales and lower scores on the pain/comfort subscale.
Athletes reported higher scores on a number of SF-36 and PODCI subscales related to mental, emotional, and physical well-being than nonathletes. Our findings suggest that athletic involvement may be a benefit to the overall health status of adolescents and imply that athletes may be a distinct adolescent group requiring their own normative values when using the SF-36 and PODCI.
Background and Purpose: The sport motivation scale (SMS; [Pelletier, L. G., Fortier, M. S., Vallerand, R. J., Tuson, K. M., Brière, N. M., & Blais, M. R. (1995). Toward a new measure of intrinsic motivation, extrinsic motivation, and amotivation in sports: The sport motivation scale (SMS). Journal of Sport and Exercise Psychology, 17, 35–53]) was developed to measure an athlete's motivation toward sport participation. However, the SMS does not measure the most autonomous form of extrinsic motivation, integrated regulation, which is inconsistent with self-determination theory (SDT; [Deci, E. L., & Ryan, R. M. (1985). Intrinsic motivation and self-determination in human behaviour. New York: Plenum Press]) upon which the instrument is based. Moreover, several studies (e.g., [Martens, M. P., & Webber, S. N. (2002). Psychometric properties of the sport motivation scale: An evaluation with college varsity athletes from the U.S. Journal of Sport and Exercise Psychology, 24, 254–270]) have questioned the factorial validity of the SMS. Hence, the purpose of this study was to develop a revised version of the SMS, including integrated regulation.
The purpose of this study was to test a motivational model of sport dropout that integrates the 4 stage-causal sequence proposed by the Hierarchical Model of Vallerand (1997) and elements from achievement goal theory (Nicholls, 1989). The model posits that a task involving motivational climate facilitates, while an ego-involving climate undermines, perceptions of competence, autonomy, and relatedness. In turn, feeling incompetent, non autonomous, and unrelated to others undermines self-determined motivation toward handball which leads to the intention of dropping out of handball. Finally, such intentions are implemented later on. Three-hundred and thirty-five females handballers completed a motivation questionnaire and were followed for 21-months. Results from structural equation modeling analyses provided basic support for the model. Findings are discussed in light of their theoretical and applied implications.
The authors compared collegiate athletes and nonathletes to see whether there were significant differences in the perceived levels of social connectedness, self-esteem, and depression and if an interaction among the variables of athlete status, gender, GPA, BMI, and levels of weekly exercise and sleep were associated with depression symptomatology.
Participants were 227 college students.
The authors surveyed students using the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale, the Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale, and the Social Connectedness Scale-Revised.
Athletes had significantly greater levels of self-esteem and social connectedness, as well as significantly lower levels of depression, than did nonathletes. However, the statistically strongest predictors of depression in this cohort were the variables of gender, self-esteem, social connectedness, and sleep.
This study adds to the limited and inconsistent research in the empirical knowledge base regarding depression among collegiate athletes.
Fiercer competition between athletes and a wider knowledge of optimal training regimens dramatically influence current training methods. A single training bout per day was previously considered sufficient, whereas today athletes regularly train twice a day or more. Consequently, the number of athletes who are overtraining and have insufficient rest is increasing. Positive overtraining can be regarded as a natural process when the end result is adaptation and improved performance: the supercompensation principle--which includes the breakdown process (training) followed by the recovery process (rest)--is well known in sports. However, negative overtraining, causing maladaptation and other negative consequences such as staleness, can occur. Physiological, psychological, biochemical and immunological symptoms must be considered, both independently and together, to fully understand the 'staleness' syndrome. However, psychological testing may reveal early-warning signs more readily than the various physiological or immunological markers. The time frame of training and recovery is also important since the consequences of negative overtraining comprise an overtraining-response continuum from short to long term effects. An athlete failing to recover within 72 hours has presumably negatively overtrained and is in an overreached state. For an elite athlete to refrain from training for > 72 hours is extremely undesirable, highlighting the importance of a carefully monitored recovery process. There are many methods used to measure the training process but few with which to match the recovery process against it. One such framework for this is referred to as the total quality recovery (TQR) process. By using a TQR scale, structured around the scale developed for ratings of perceived exertion (RPE), the recovery process can be monitored and matched against the breakdown (training) process (TQR versus RPE). The TQR scale emphasises both the athlete's perception of recovery and the importance of active measures to improve the recovery process. Furthermore, directing attention to psychophysiological cues serves the same purpose as in RPE, i.e. increasing self-awareness. This article reviews and conceptualises the whole overtraining process. In doing so, it (i) aims to differentiate between the types of stress affecting an athlete's performance: (ii) identifies factors influencing an athlete's ability to adapt to physical training: (iii) structures the recovery process. The TQR method to facilitate monitoring of the recovery process is then suggested and a conceptual model that incorporates all of the important parameters for performance gain (adaptation) and loss (maladaptation).
The objectives of the study were to examine the prevalence of anorexia nervosa (AN), bulimia nervosa (BN), anorexia athletica (AA), and eating disorders not otherwise specified (ED-NOS) in both male and female Norwegian elite athletes and a representative sample from the general Norwegian population.
A 2-step study including self-reported questionnaire and clinical interview.
The entire population of Norwegian male and female elite athletes (n=1620) and controls (n=1696) was evaluated for the presence of eating disorders (EDs).
Based on the results of the questionnaire, all athletes and controls classified as at risk for EDs, and a representative sample of athletes and controls classified as healthy participated in the clinical part of the study to determine the number of subjects meeting the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders-IV criteria for EDs.
More athletes (13.5%) than controls (4.6%; P<0.001) had subclinical or clinical EDs. The prevalence of EDs among male athletes was greater in antigravitation sports (22%) than in ball game (5%) and endurance sports (9%; P<0.05). The prevalence of EDs among female athletes competing in aesthetic sports (42%) was higher than that observed in endurance (24%), technical (17%), and ball game sports (16%).
The prevalence of EDs is higher in athletes than in controls, higher in female athletes than in male athletes, and more common among those competing in leanness-dependent and weight-dependent sports than in other sports. A collaborative effort among coaches, athletic trainers, parents, physicians, and athletes is optimal for recognizing, preventing, and treating EDs in athletes.
This study reports on findings concerning the test-retest reliability of the Eating Disorder Inventory 2 (EDI-2).
Three hundred twenty-seven female inpatients who met the DSM-IV criteria for eating disorders (anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa, or eating disorders not otherwise specified) and 209 inpatients with a diagnosis of depression, obsessive-compulsive disorder, anxiety disorder, or somatoform disorder took part in the study. The EDI-2 was administered to the patients at the beginning of inpatient therapy and a second time 7 days later.
All 11 EDI-2 subscales showed significant test-retest correlations ranging from .81 to .89 in the eating disorder group and from .75 to .94 in the group with other diagnoses.
The test-retest reliabilities for the EDI-2 subscales are relatively high, indicating a good and acceptable stability over time. These results provide further evidence that the EDI-2 is an instrument with good reliability for the assessment of eating disorder symptoms.
Perfectionism is a potentially maladaptive personality trait implicated in a number of psychopathologies. As our understanding of the construct perfectionism has shifted from more unidimensionally focused conceptualizations to multidimensional ones, our ability to assess its bearing on various disorders has grown. One particular area in which perfectionism appears to play an important role is among eating disorder patients. The personalities of both those with anorexia nervosa (AN) and bulimia nervosa (BN) are thought to be intrinsically perfectionistic, which suggests a need to understand the role perfectionism plays in the development, course and outcome of these disorders. There is also an increased focus on perfectionism among athletes and its relationship to the higher prevalence of eating disorders in this group. With the institution of Title IX in the United States (which prohibited sex discrimination in higher educational settings) the participation of women in various sports has increased exponentially and with it concerns about their well-being in a milieu where a risk for menstrual irregularities, osteoporosis and eating disorders (the female athlete triad) are common. However, conflicting data suggests that athletics may be a protective factor in the development of eating disorders on the one hand, or it may be a risk factor on the other. Thus, it has become important to examine other variables, such as perfectionism, that may influence the outcome, one way or another. This review examines the current evidence about the relations between perfectionism, athletics and eating disorders.
The purpose of this study was to determine whether significant differences exist in the domain of overall physical self-worth and the subdomains of sport competence, physical condition, body attractiveness, and physical strength between intercollegiate athletes and regular exercisers, intercollegiate athletes and nonexercisers, and regular exercisers and nonexercisers. The Physical Self-Perception Profile (PSPP) was used to survey female college students attending one Midwestern University. It was concluded that college females who engaged in sport competition and exercise participation perceived their physical selves more positively than did female nonexercisers.
Although third-wave behaviour therapies are being increasingly used for the treatment of eating disorders, their efficacy is largely unknown. This systematic review and meta-analysis aimed to examine the empirical status of these therapies. Twenty-seven studies met full inclusion criteria. Only 13 randomized controlled trials (RCT) were identified, most on binge eating disorder (BED). Pooled within- (pre-post change) and between-groups effect sizes were calculated for the meta-analysis. Large pre-post symptom improvements were observed for all third-wave treatments, including dialectical behaviour therapy (DBT), schema therapy (ST), acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT), mindfulness-based interventions (MBI), and compassion-focused therapy (CFT). Third-wave therapies were not superior to active comparisons generally, or to cognitive-behaviour therapy (CBT) in RCTs. Based on our qualitative synthesis, none of the third-wave therapies meet established criteria for an empirically supported treatment for particular eating disorder subgroups. Until further RCTs demonstrate the efficacy of third-wave therapies for particular eating disorder subgroups, the available data suggest that CBT should retain its status as the recommended treatment approach for bulimia nervosa (BN) and BED, and the front running treatment for anorexia nervosa (AN) in adults, with interpersonal psychotherapy (IPT) considered a strong empirically-supported alternative.
I: Background.- 1. An Introduction.- 2. Conceptualizations of Intrinsic Motivation and Self-Determination.- II: Self-Determination Theory.- 3. Cognitive Evaluation Theory: Perceived Causality and Perceived Competence.- 4. Cognitive Evaluation Theory: Interpersonal Communication and Intrapersonal Regulation.- 5. Toward an Organismic Integration Theory: Motivation and Development.- 6. Causality Orientations Theory: Personality Influences on Motivation.- III: Alternative Approaches.- 7. Operant and Attributional Theories.- 8. Information-Processing Theories.- IV: Applications and Implications.- 9. Education.- 10. Psychotherapy.- 11. Work.- 12. Sports.- References.- Author Index.
An ACT Approach Chapter 1. What is Acceptance and Commitment Therapy? Steven C. Hayes, Kirk D. Strosahl, Kara Bunting, Michael Twohig, and Kelly G. Wilson Chapter 2. An ACT Primer: Core Therapy Processes, Intervention Strategies, and Therapist Competencies. Kirk D. Strosahl, Steven C. Hayes, Kelly G. Wilson and Elizabeth V. Gifford Chapter 3. ACT Case Formulation. Steven C. Hayes, Kirk D. Strosahl, Jayson Luoma, Alethea A. Smith, and Kelly G. Wilson ACT with Behavior Problems Chapter 4. ACT with Affective Disorders. Robert D. Zettle Chapter 5. ACT with Anxiety Disorders. Susan M. Orsillo, Lizabeth Roemer, Jennifer Block-Lerner, Chad LeJeune, and James D. Herbert Chapter 6. ACT with Posttraumatic Stress Disorder. Alethea A. Smith and Victoria M. Follette Chapter 7. ACT for Substance Abuse and Dependence. Kelly G. Wilson and Michelle R. Byrd Chapter 8. ACT with the Seriously Mentally Ill. Patricia Bach Chapter 9. ACT with the Multi-Problem Patient. Kirk D. Strosahl ACT with Special Populations, Settings, and Methods Chapter 10. ACT with Children, Adolescents, and their Parents. Amy R. Murrell, Lisa W. Coyne, & Kelly G. Wilson Chapter 11. ACT for Stress. Frank Bond. Chapter 12. ACT in Medical Settings. Patricia Robinson, Jennifer Gregg, JoAnne Dahl, & Tobias Lundgren Chapter 13. ACT with Chronic Pain Patients. Patricia Robinson, Rikard K. Wicksell, Gunnar L. Olsson Chapter 14. ACT in Group Format. Robyn D. Walser and Jacqueline Pistorello
Objective: To investigate the severity and nature of compulsive exercise in males and females with anorexia nervosa (AN). Method: Male (n = 27) and female (n = 24) patients with AN completed measures of compulsive exercise and eating disorder symptomatology. Results: Males reported significantly greater overall compulsive exercise pathology than females. Analysis of subscale scores on the compulsive exercise test showed that males relied significantly more heavily on avoiding negative affect and increasing positive affect, and endorsed more rigid and repetitive exercise habits than females. Discussion: Compulsive exercise appears to be more severe in males with AN relative to females. For males in particular, exercise may function to regulate affect by both reducing negative emotionality and increasing positive emotionality, indicating an important psychological function of exercise beyond the physiological effects of expunging calories. Furthermore, the exercise behaviours endorsed by males were more deeply embedded in rigidity, routine and repetitiveness, which may lead to increased treatment resistance and difficulty achieving an overall relaxation of rigid and repetitive cognition and behaviour. Clinicians treating males with AN should pay special attention to the presence and severity of compulsive exercise, with emphasis on its affect regulatory components.
This study compared the prevalence of eating disorder behaviors between female collegiate athletes (n = 206) and female college nonathletes (n = 197). Although female nonathletes had somewhat higher average scores on the Eating Attitudes Test 26, the proportion at risk for disordered eating was not different in the 2 groups. There was no significant difference among female athletes in different sports. Younger women were found to have more symptoms of disordered eating than did older women.
Fiercer competition between athletes and a wider knowledge of optimal training regimens dramatically influence current training methods. A single training bout per day was previously considered sufficient, whereas today athletes regularly train twice a day or more. Consequently, the number of athletes who are overtraining and have insufficient rest is increasing.
Positive overtraining can be regarded as a natural process when the end result is adaptation and improved performance; the supercompensation principle — which includes the breakdown process (training) followed by the recovery process (rest) — is well known in sports. However, negative overtraining, causing maladaptation and other negative consequences such as staleness, can occur.
Physiological, psychological, biochemical and immunological symptoms must be considered, both independently and together, to fully understand the ’staleness’ syndrome. However, psychological testing may reveal early-warning signs more readily than the various physiological or immunological markers.
The time frame of training and recovery is also important since the consequences of negative overtraining comprise an overtraining-response continuum from short to long term effects. An athlete failing to recover within 72 hours has presumably negatively overtrained and is in an overreached state. For an elite athlete to refrain from training for >72 hours is extremely undesirable, highlighting the importance of a carefully monitored recovery process.
There are many methods used to measure the training process but few with which to match the recovery process against it. One such framework for this is referred to as the total quality recovery (TQR) process. By using a TQR scale, structured around the scale developed for ratings of perceived exertion (RPE), the recovery process can be monitored and matched against the breakdown (training) process (TQR versus RPE). The TQR scale emphasises both the athlete’s perception of recovery and the importance of active measures to improve the recovery process. Furthermore, directing attention to psychophysiological cues serves the same purpose as in RPE, i.e. increasing self-awareness.
This article reviews and conceptualises the whole overtraining process. In doing so, it (i) aims to differentiate between the types of stress affecting an athlete’s performance; (ii) identifies factors influencing an athlete’s ability to adapt to physical training; (iii) structures the recovery process. The TQR method to facilitate monitoring of the recovery process is then suggested and a conceptual model that incorporates all of the important parameters for performance gain (adaptation) and loss (maladaptation).
Motivation, particularly different types of motivation (i.e., intrinsic, extrinsic, and amotivation), is a topic that has been of interest to both psychologists and sport psychologists. One area of interest in sport psychology is the assessment of different types of motivation. The Sport Motivation Scale (SMS) (Pelletier et al., 1995) was created to assess an athlete's intrinsic motivation, extrinsic motivation, and amotivation toward sport participation. The psychometric properties of the SMS, however, have not been tested on a sample of college athletes in the U.S., which is an important component if researchers and applied sport psychologists are to use the SMS with this population. A total of 270 U.S. college athletes participated in this study. Results provided some evidence for the reliability and validity of the SMS for this population, although a confirmatory factor analysis yielded relatively poor fit indices, indicating problems with model specification. A "piecewise" model testing approach, in which different components of the model were tested separately, indicated that the biggest problems with model specification may involve the extrinsic and amotivation components of the measure.
This study aimed to investigate the influence of constraint dimensions on intrinsic motivation, extrinsic motivation and amotivation. The self-determination theory and the hierarchical model of intrinsic and extrinsic motivationwere used as the theoretical framework. Two hundred and fifty seven (N = 257) adult individuals (residents of the city of Thessaloniki, Greece), who reported participation in some type of sport and physical activity, completed the Sport Motivation Scale and the leisure constraints questionnaire. The results indicated that intrapersonal. constraints accounted for 38% of the variance in amotivation, and 15% of the variance in intrinsic motivation. No relationships were revealed between interpersonal and structural constraints and motivation, and between constraint dimensions and extrinsic motivation. These results suggest that intrapersonal constraints act as de-motivating forces for individuals. They support elements of the hierarchical model of leisure constraints, and further clarify the role of motivation in the model. Finally, they suggest that future research should focus on the conceptualization of intrapersonal constraints, and their relations with other social and psychological mediators of motivation that have been proposed in the literature.
Sundgot-Borgen (1993) hypothesized that participants in refereed sports, e.g., basketball, may be at lower risk for the development of eating disorders in comparison to those participating in judged sports, e.g., gymnastics. This study tested this hypothesis. Structured interviews and self-report questionnaires were employed to assess the presence of eating disorder diagnoses, the presence of body weight and shape concerns, psychopathology, and body mass index among female collegiate athletes. The sample included three groups of participants: nonathletic students (n = 62), student athletes participating in refereed sports (n = 33), and student athletes participating in judged sports (n = 37). Comparison of eating disorder diagnoses between groups found a trend toward a higher rate of diagnoses among members of judged sports as compared to both refereed sports and nonathletic students, approximately (13%, 3%, and 3%, respectively). Participants in judged sports did not differ from nonathletic students on measures of overconcern with body size and shape. However, participants in refereed sports scored lower on these same measures than either nonathletes or athletes participating in judged sports. This finding suggests that participation in refereed sports may function as a protective factor that reduces the risk of developing overconcern with body size and shape.
Animal analogues of anorexia nervosa suggest that submissive behaviour and social defeat may be implicated in the onset of wasting diseases. Data from human sufferers of anorexia nervosa and bulimia nervosa are also consistent with the presence of submissive behaviours and perceived low social rank (e.g. low self-esteem, helplessness, and feelings of shame). A total of 101 patients with eating disorders completed the Submissive Behaviour Scale and the Social Comparison Rating Scale, and their responses were compared with 101 age- and sex-matched student controls. Patients with eating disorders reported significantly higher levels of submissive behaviour and a more unfavourable social comparison than did student controls. Furthermore, levels of submissive behaviour and unfavourable social comparison were significantly related to severity of eating disorder symptoms, even after taking account of depressive symptoms and other psychopathology. These preliminary results suggest that ranking theory may have some application to eating disorders. Further research is required to determine whether rank plays a specific role in eating disorders (beyond the increased rates of depression which also occur in eating disorders) and, if so, what is its precise role.
To examine whether differences in eating disorder symptoms exist between women who are varsity athletes, club athletes, independent exercisers, and nonexercisers and to determine whether sports anxiety moderates any observed between-group effects.
Two hundred seventy four female undergraduates completed the eating disorders inventory and the physical activity and sport anxiety scale and reported their exercise habits.
Women who participated in sports tended to have higher levels of eating disorder symptomatology than those who did not. Higher levels of sports anxiety were predictive of higher levels of bulimic symptoms and drive for thinness. Finally, the interaction of sports anxiety and level of athletic participation significantly predicted body dissatisfaction and bulimic symptoms.
Coaches and clinicians should be aware that athletes experience higher rates of eating disorder symptoms than nonathletes. Moreover, sports anxiety should be considered as a possible target of therapy among athletes. © 2008 by Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Int J Eat Disord 2009
Little children love to play and to learn. They are active, curious, and eager to engage their environments, and when they do they learn. To some extent adults also love to play and to learn. When people are playing and learning in this eager and willing way, they are intrinsically motivated. Throughout life, when they are in their healthiest states, they are active and interested, and the intrinsically motivated behaviors that result help them acquire knowledge about themselves and their world.
The aim of this study was two-fold; first, to examine the relationship between motivational orientations and adjustment to
university, stress, and well-being in a sample of students during their second year of university and second, to assess the
predictive value of motivational orientations in determining subsequent academic performance. Controlling for gender and age,
amotivated behaviors led to worse psychosocial adjustment to university, higher levels of perceived stress, and greater psychological
distress while studying. In contrast, intrinsically motivated behaviors (to know) were associated with lower levels of stress.
In relation to academic performance, neither extrinsic or intrinsic motivation, nor amotivation were related to subsequent
academic achievement. Both gender and entry qualifications were significant predictors of performance; women and those individuals
with greater academic aptitude prior to entering university had higher marks. These results are discussed with reference to
Deci and Ryan’s (1985, 1991) self-determination theory.
Athletes have been identified by some as a population at risk for the development of eating disorders. The role of the level of athletic competition as a factor for disordered eating, however, has not been defined. The present study examined eating attitudes among a sample of NCAA Division 1 female collegiate athletes (N = 38), NCAA Division III athletes (N = 40), and non-athlete controls (N = 31). Participants completed the Eating Attitudes Test (EAT-26), the Eating Disorder Inventory-2 (EDI-2), and a demographic and health questionnaire. Results indicated that athletes at higher levels of competition showed more signs of pathological eating and were at an increased risk for the development of eating disorders. Athletes in sports emphasizing a lean physique and in weight-restricting sports were also more vulnerable than athletes in other types of sports and non-athlete controls.
Self-determination theory (SDT) maintains that an understanding of human motivation requires a consideration of innate psychological needs for competence, autonomy, and relatedness. We discuss the SDT concept of needs as it relates to previous need theories, emphasizing that needs specify the necessary conditions for psychological growth, integrity, and well-being. This concept of needs leads to the hypotheses that different regulatory processes underlying goal pursuits are differentially associated with effective functioning and well-being and also that different goal contents have different relations to the quality of behavior and mental health, specifically because different regulatory processes and different goal contents are associated with differing degrees of need satisfaction. Social contexts and individual differences that support satisfaction of the basic needs facilitate natural growth processes including intrinsically motivated behavior and integration of extrinsic motivations, whereas those that forestall autonomy, competence, or relatedness are associated with poorer motivation, performance, and well-being. We also discuss the relation of the psychological needs to cultural values, evolutionary processes, and other contemporary motivation theories.
The authors assessed the prevalence of pathogenic eating and weight-control behaviors among female college athletes, using a psychometrically valid measure.
Participants were 204 college athletes (M age=20.16 years, SD=1.31 years) from 17 sports at 3 universities. On average, they participated in their sport for 10.88 years (SD=16.68 years) and on their college team for 2.10 years (SD=1.03 years).
Participants completed a demographic and weight background questionnaire, Questionnaire for Eating Disorder Diagnoses, and the Bulimia Test-Revised.
The authors classified participants as eating disordered (n=4, 2.0%), symptomatic (n=52, 25.5%), and asymptomatic (n=148, 72.5%). Few participants engaged in binge eating; most used exercise, as opposed to vomiting, dieting, laxatives, or diuretics, to control their weight.
Female athletes suffer from eating disorders, and most experience symptom levels that are subclinical but problematic.
This study examined risk factors and triggers for eating disorders in female athletes. Subjects included were all of the elite female athletes in Norway (N = 603), ages 12-35 yr, representing six groups of sports: technical, endurance, aesthetic, weight dependent, ball games, and power sports. The Eating Disorder Inventory was used to classify individuals at risk for eating disorders. Of the 117 athletes defined at risk, 103 were administered a structured clinical interview for eating disorders. A comparison group was also interviewed, consisting of 30 athletes chosen at random from a pool not at risk and matched to the at-risk subjects on age, community of residence, and sport. Ninety-two of the at-risk athletes met criteria for anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa, or anorexia athletica. The prevalence of eating disorders was higher in sports emphasizing leanness or a specific weight than in sports where these are less important. Compared with controls, eating disordered athletes began both sports-specific training and dieting earlier, and felt that puberty occurred too early for optimal performance. Trigger factors associated with the onset of eating disorders were prolonged periods of dieting, frequent weight fluctuations, a sudden increase in training volume, and traumatic events such as injury or loss of a coach.
This study examined the prevalence of eating disorders (ED) and the possible difference between ED symptoms and true ED by using questionnaires as compared with an interview and clinical evaluation in Norwegian elite female athletes (n = 522) from 35 sports and nonathletic controls (n = 448). In addition to the 117 athletes classified as "at risk" to develop ED, 90 subjects were randomly chosen, comprising 30 athletic controls, 30 at-risk nonathletes, and 30 nonathletic controls. All were interviewed and clinically examined. A significantly higher number of athletes (18%) than controls (5%) were found to actually suffer from ED, particularly athletes competing in sports in which leanness or a specific weight were considered important. When results from the screening study were compared to those from the interviews and clinical examinations, a significant underreporting of ED among athletes was demonstrated. The athletes also reported the use of other pathogenic methods in the screening study compared to what they reported in the interview. Nonathletes more correctly reported the use of pathogenic methods but overreported the prevalence of ED. Thus the issue of using questionnaires alone or in combination with personal interview/clinical examination merits further investigation.
This article describes the use of a slightly modified version of the Eating Disorders Examination (EDE) in children.
Sixteen children aged between 7 and 14 years attending an eating disorders clinic over a 5-month period were recruited to the study. The two main modifications to the EDE were (A) the inclusion of a sort task to assess overvalued ideas about weight and shape and (B) the reformulation of certain items to assess intent rather than actual behavior. The existing EDE scoring system was used, resulting in item, subscale, and global scores.
Of the 16 children (10 F 6 M), 11 had a diagnosis of anorexia nervosa, and 5 of eating disorder not otherwise specified (EDNOS). There were interesting differences in responses on items assessing core overvalued ideas, with weight and/or shape concerns emerging as of great importance in terms of self-evaluation in the majority of children with anorexia nervosa.
Results suggest that this may be a useful assessment tool in children, with some children obtaining global and subscale scores consistent with adult norms for females with eating disorders. Problems of the administration of the EDE to this patient group are discussed and details of the modifications used are outlined.
The relationship between athletic participation and eating problems is examined using meta-analysis. Both the risk and protective elements of athletic participation are considered.
Data from 34 studies were used to examine the overall relationship between athletic participation and eating problems. Relationships for specific sports, elite athletes, and various age groups are also examined.
Athletes appeared to be somewhat more at risk for eating problems than nonathletes. This was especially true of dancers. Significant effects did not emerge for gymnasts. Elite athletes, especially those in sports emphasizing thinness, were at risk. Nonelite athletes, especially in high school, had reduced risk of eating problems compared to controls. Body dissatisfaction was lower in athletes.
There appear to be circumstances under which sports participation by women constitutes a risk factor for certain elements of eating problems. In other situations, athletic participation may be protective against eating problems.
A 225-item questionnaire was completed by 5163 female 7th, 9th and 11th grade public school students in their classrooms to examine factors associated with eating disorders among girls involved in weight-related sports. Eating disorder symptoms were found in almost one third of girls involved in weight-related and non-weight-related sports. However, after controlling for grade, race, SES, and study design effect, girls in weight-related sports were 51% more likely to have eating disorder symptoms. Also, among girls in weight-related sports who had eating disorders, substance abuse, physical and sexual abuse history, depressive symptoms, suicide attempts, low family communication, and low parental caring were 98% to 377% more common.
The present study sought to investigate the relationship between a number of areas of elite student-athletes' lives and disordered eating.
We surveyed 1445 elite Division I athletes at 11 different institutions and in 11 different sports. Hierarchical regression was used to indicate specific areas of the participants' collegiate experience that may be associated with disordered eating attitudes and symptomatology.
Results demonstrate that the variables entered into each model predicted between 40.5% and 46.4% of the variance for the restriction of food, body dissatisfaction, and drive for thinness. Categories of variables that generally predicted the most variance for each dependent measure were demographics, athletic involvement, and personality. Of the 11 sports included in the analysis, wrestling and gymnastics demonstrated elevated levels of drive for thinness, food restriction, and purging behavior compared to other athletes.
Findings suggest that in elite athletes gender, ethnicity, sport, and self-esteem are associated with several behaviors and attitudes indicative of disordered eating.
Athlete burnout research has been hampered by the lack of an adequate measurement tool. The Athlete Burnout Questionnaire (ABQ) and the Maslach Burnout Inventory General Survey (MBI-GS) are two recently developed self-report instruments designed to assess burnout. The convergent and discriminant validity of the ABQ and MBI-GS were assessed through multi-trait/multi-method analysis with a sporting population. Overall, the ABQ and the MBI-GS displayed acceptable convergent validity with matching subscales highly correlated, and satisfactory internal discriminant validity with lower correlations between non-matching subscales. Both scales also indicated an adequate discrimination between the concepts of burnout and depression. These findings add support to previous findings in non-sporting populations that depression and burnout are separate constructs. Based on the psychometric results, construct validity analysis and practical considerations, the results support the use of the ABQ to assess athlete burnout.