ISSN: 1543-9518|Vol. 24

Volunteerism and Multiculturalism: A Linkage for Future Olympics

Submitted by: George Karlis

Abstract

Olympic volunteerism is a relatively new topic in the Olympic Movement and in research. It was not until the 1980 Lake Placid Olympics that an Olympic volunteer movement commenced. To date, the Olympic Movement has not established a policy concerning volunteerism and multiculturalism. None of the 18 main commissions of the International Olympic Committee has a primary mandate for volunteerism and multiculturalism; responsibility for recruiting and training volunteers falls to the national Olympic committees. Reflecting upon the experiences of Canada’s multiculturalism policy, this paper examines the linkage between volunteerism and multiculturalism in the Olympic Movement and develops a policy on volunteerism and multiculturalism for that movement. The policy emphasizes (a) equal recognition of all volunteers, (b) equal opportunity for personal growth through the volunteer experience, (c) provision of all volunteers with opportunity to experience the Olympic spirit, (d) cultural exchange and interchange among volunteers, and (e) a “common cultural environment.”  The researcher concludes that the outlined policy should be implemented by one of the IOC main commissions (perhaps the Commission for Culture and Olympic Education) and/or in the Olympic Charter.

Volunteerism and Multiculturalism: A Linkage for Future Olympics

The volunteer sector, traditionally known as society’s third sector, has rapidly grown since the 1970s (Hall & Banting, 2000; Scott, 1997). This trend has occurred in most western nations that have witnessed downsizing of public sector services, fiscal restraints on public resources, and increase in reliance on volunteers to serve the growing needs of society. This trend has also spilled over into the commercial sector as many corporations, businesses, and enterprises have looked to reduce costs by accepting the assistance of volunteers. Moreover, major national and international sporting events such as the Francophone Games in Canada and the Summer and Winter Olympic Games depend on volunteers more today than in the past to provide needed services to athletes, officials, spectators, and others involved with these events (Larocque, Gravelle, & Karlis, 2002).

Regardless of the type of volunteer service or environment, volunteers are made up of different people, from different backgrounds, having many different cultures (Arai, 2000–2001, 2002; Minshall, 1984). When these people come together as volunteers to provide a common service under a “common roof” to an organization or an event such as the Olympics, they not only have to abide by standards and regulations of the host country’s national Olympic committee, they also have to learn to appreciate and work with each other, despite cultural differences. Indeed, Olympic volunteers are called upon to “work with so many cultures at a time and look as if they were one” (Pellico, 1999, p. 1). As each volunteer is accustomed to a different way of life, it may be difficult for them to interact in a socially cohesive fashion (Karlis, 1998). This is a challenge that each host country’s national Olympic committee and the Olympic Movement must be prepared to contend with.

In November 1999, under the auspices of the Olympic Museum and the International Chair on Olympism, the Conference on Volunteers, Global Society and the Olympic Movement was held in Lausanne, Switzerland. This conference attracted roughly 100 experts representing nongovernmental organizations, national and international associations for volunteers, national Olympic committees, Olympic organizing committees, national and international sports federations, volunteer leaders, and researchers. The conference concluded by emphasizing that contributions made by volunteers to the Olympic Games are plentiful, extending beyond rendering services to actually enhancing the Games’ social and cultural dimensions.

At a subsequent conference, the World Conference on Olympic and Sport Tourism held in New York in November 2001, Jacques Rogge [president of the International Olympic Committee] proposed that the national Olympic committees set up volunteer corps. Rogge argued that a need for specialized volunteers exists. He went on to state that, “One must draw from culture, local traditions, and the experience acquired by volunteers, to build up volunteerism” (Rogge, 2001–2002, p. 1). Moreover, the New York Declaration put forth at this conference recognized that volunteerism is the foundation of the Olympic Movement; that is, a need exists within the Olympic Movement to promote, develop, and consolidate the culture of volunteerism.

Despite the fact that the results of both of these conferences highlighted culture as an important dimension in volunteerism, a policy on volunteerism and multiculturalism does not exist anywhere in the Olympic Movement. Although host countries’ national organizing committees continuously emphasize culture, cultural awareness, and cultural transmission, there is no policy within the Olympic Movement or Olympic Charter that guides the preparation of volunteers to serve the multicultural fabric of the Olympic Games. Moreover, a commission having the development of volunteers as its primary mandate is not to be found amongst the international Olympic commissions.

Canada is a nation that has a multicultural policy and is regarded by many as a classic example of diverse peoples living and working together in an efficient and effective manner (Karlis & Katakoullis, 1992). The 1988 introduction of its multicultural policy was Canada’s endorsement of equal recognition and equal opportunity for all Canadians (Department of the Secretary of State of Canada, 1987). More specifically, in Canada, multiculturalism policy is used by the government as an administrative tool for enhancing Canadians’ social cohesiveness (their range of ethnicities notwithstanding) and helping to establish a “Canadian” identity for this young society.

The purpose of this paper is to examine the linkage between volunteerism and multiculturalism in terms of the Olympic Movement. It addresses the call made at the conclusion of the 1999 Lausanne conference and 2001 New York conference for increased research on volunteerism at the Olympics. The paper makes a case for the implementation of volunteerism and multiculturalism within the mandate of the Olympic Movement, taking Canada’s multiculturalism policy as an example.

Volunteerism and the Olympic Games

Although it may be argued that volunteerism at the Olympic Games has a rich history, with many athletes, officials, and organizers sharing their time and effort, the concept of the Olympic volunteer is fairly young. The glossary in the official report of the 1992 Barcelona Games offered the first published definition of an Olympic volunteer. This definition states that the Olympic volunteer is “a person who makes an individual, altruistic commitment to collaborate, to the best of his/her abilities[,] in the organization of the Olympic Games, carrying out the tasks assigned to him/her without receiving payments or rewards of any other nature” (Barcelona Olympic Organizing Committee, 1992, p. 381).

Historically, the concept of the Olympic volunteer evolved out of the work of the organizing committee for the Lake Placid Games in 1980. During these Games, a volunteer program was created that  focused on preparing and training approximately 6,000 volunteers (Moreno, 1999). Indeed, since 1980 there has been a greater reliance on volunteers to stage each Olympic Games, leading to increased numbers of volunteers and stronger focus on training volunteers on the part of host nations’ organizing committees. The figures in Table 1 demonstrate the growth in the numbers of volunteers at summer and winter Olympic Games.

Table 1

Numbers of Volunteers at Summer and Winter Olympic Games, 1984 to 2004

Summer Games Winter Games
Los Angeles 1984 28,742 Lake Placid 1980 6,703
Seoul 1988 27,221 Sarajevo 1984 10,450
Barcelona 1992 34,548 Calgary 1988 9,498
Atlanta 1996 60,422 Albertville 1992 unavailable
Sydney 2000 47,000 Lillehammer 1994 9,054
Athens 2004 60,000a Nagano 1998 32,579
Salt Lake City 19,000

aEstimated total volunteers for Olympics and Paralympics

Without doubt, volunteerism is an important part of implementing the Olympic Games. As Fok argued (1999), “Volunteers constitute the force that lies behind the Olympic ideal” (p. 2). Volunteers are needed not only to operate services but to assist in management and technical areas, medical support, sport event technical operations, international relations and language areas, and operative and general services (Lanzoni & Lykogianni, 1999). In Athens in 2004, there will be four periods during which volunteers will serve: (a) during “test events” used to test facilities and all operations prior to the Games (2003–04), (b) during the preparation of the Olympic and Paralympic Games (May–August 2004), (c) during the Olympic Games (13–29 August 2004), and (d) during the Paralympic Games (17–28 September 2004) (International Olympic Committee, n.d.) . The efforts of volunteers allow these Games to operate and indeed to continue to exist. The official website for the Athens Olympics puts it succinctly: “The greatest celebration of humanity is only possible through the will, the passion, the dedication and the professionalism of each volunteer” (International Olympic Committee, n.d.).

It is estimated that in Athens in 2004, 45,000 volunteers will be trained for the Olympics and 15,000 for the Paralympics. The Sydney Olympic Games utilized 47,000 in 2000; the Atlanta Games relied on the efforts of 60,422 volunteers in 1996. To equip so many volunteers to carry out the necessary tasks requires the appropriate management and guidance and also sound training. Training is probably the most important aspect of preparing to volunteer at the Olympics.

Those who volunteer make a commitment of time to the event of roughly 14 days, start to finish. But in addition, they commit time outside the actual Games for training and preparation for their tasks. In some cases there is wrap-up work after the Games. Those who volunteered for the Games in Athens completed the following steps: a personal interview, training, and participation. In past Olympics, the training process has varied slightly from organizing committee to organizing committee, reflecting the unique needs of a host nation and a specific Games. During the Sarajevo Games, for example, training was general and acquainted volunteers with the region’s geography and its social and political history, with special emphasis on the principles of socialism. At the Calgary Olympics, in contrast, a systematic plan specified training for each event location (Moreno, 1999). Nonetheless, for the most part the training of volunteers during past Olympics comprised sessions focusing on Olympic history, hosting techniques, customer services, international relations, cultural awareness, and people skills (Techmeyer, 2002). Thus there are three main “courses” involved in  training volunteers: a culture course, a tasks and functions course, and a practical hands-on course (Moreno, 1999).

More than likely, this will be the case for the Athens Games as well. A volunteer for the Athens 2004 Games will complete a training program related to a specific role (International Olympic Committee, n.d.). The training will consist of  (a) acquaintance with the history of the Ancient and Modern Olympics, (b) introduction to the different sport activities, (c) explanation of the routines of the Games, and (d) awareness of information to be given to athletes, officials, and visitors to the Games.

In preparation for the Salt Lake City Olympic Games, volunteer Britannie Hanson attended five training sessions. The first was a general orientation held in a packed high school auditorium. During orientation, uniforms were displayed and the coming months’ agenda was reviewed; door prizes (microwave ovens, vacuum cleaners) were awarded. At the next volunteer training session, training was more specific and was carried out in groups of 25 to 35 volunteers. The training topics included everything from venue locations to hospitality and international customs (e.g., some cultures consider it rude to point a finger, so volunteers were to learn to give directions without using that gesture) (Foy, 2001). The final three training sessions included one general class and two meetings devoted to learning individual job-specific and venue-specific roles.

As a reward or incentive for volunteering, volunteers receive a number of perks. For example, during the Sydney Olympics in 2000, volunteers were provided with a free uniform and received free meals and refreshments while working. In addition, free transportation on the Olympic network was provided to volunteers on duty, and volunteers received complimentary tickets to an event of the Games.

Moreno (1999) lists three kinds of effects of volunteerism that make it important to the Olympic Movement today and in the future: political effects, economic effects, and cultural effects. From a political perspective, volunteerism represents the coming together of individuals in a particular project, which leads to the expression of public momentum. From an economic perspective, volunteerism represents reduced salary costs and other expenses. From the cultural viewpoint, finally, volunteerism creates enhanced knowledge of solidarity and multiculturalism: an appreciation and respect for all cultures.

The Olympic Movement

The Olympic Movement commenced with the reestablishment of the Olympic Games by Pierre de Coubertin. Since the first modern-day Games, held in Athens in 1896, the Olympic Movement has continued to grow, shaped by Olympism, which is a philosophy based on equality of sports, which are international and democratic. Indeed, it is the goal of the Olympic Movement to assist in building a better world by educating youth through sport practiced without discrimination of any kind. The intent of the Olympic Movement, according to a statement on www.olympic.org, is to build a spirit of friendship, solidarity, and fair play (International Olympic Committee, n.d.).

The Olympic Movement is made up of a wide array of organizations, athletes, and other persons who agree to abide by the Olympic Charter and who recognize the International Olympic Committee (IOC) as the supreme authority in the Olympic Movement. The 102-page, five-chapter Olympic Charter outlines the fundamental principles of the Olympic Movement. Members of the Olympic Movement include individuals, international sport federations, national Olympic committees, judges, referees, and athletes.

The operation of the Olympic Games is a difficult process. To aid in successfully implementing the Games, the IOC has established 18 main commissions, each consisting of experts in a specified domain. The work of these commissions addresses areas the IOC has deemed vital not only to implementing the Games, but to sustaining the Olympic Movement. The Olympic Movement extends beyond sport to the promotion of Olympic ideals through cultural and educational programs. In addition, the Olympic Movement is also concerned with humanitarian aid efforts, environmental efforts, and enhancing the status of women in sport.

Volunteerism, Multiculturalism and the Olympic Movement

A review of the Olympic Charter and of information made available by the Olympic Movement and the main IOC commissions reveals that the issue of volunteerism and multiculturalism has not been highlighted. The relationship of the two appears to receive scant attention in formal documents of the Olympic Movement; no heading in any of the five Olympic Charter chapters alludes to volunteerism. Moreover, a policy on volunteerism and multiculturalism appears not to exist anywhere in Olympic Movement documentation. Despite this omission,  Richard Pound (1999), IOC first vice president, has stated that, “the Olympic Movement is a social phenomenon based, fundamentally, on the activities of volunteers” (p. 1).

And yet none of the 18 IOC main commissions focuses primarily on volunteerism, and the Commission for Culture and Olympic Education alone addresses the issue of cultural diversity, although its mandate does not include a multicultural policy.  The role of the Commission for Culture and Olympic Education is to focus on culture’s relationship to sport  in pursuit of a linkage between sport and culture, advocation of cultural exchange, and promotion of the diversity of cultures. The commission, according to the website www.olympic.org,  fulfills its role by organizing international competitions, forums, and special events and by developing educational programs (International Olympic Committee, n.d.).

As Pound’s statement suggests, however, volunteerism and multiculturalism are important concerns in the Olympic Movement. Traditionally, volunteerism has been the responsibility of the host country’s national Olympic committee, which also would address issues of multiculturalism (again, along with the IOC Commission for Culture and Olympic Education). Thus, for the most part the Olympic Movement has addressed volunteerism and multiculturalism distinctly, rather than collectively. For example, leading up to the Athens Games, the National Olympic Committee of Greece is addressing volunteerism through two branches of the organizational structure, volunteer recruitment and volunteer training. Each branch has a manager who reports directly to the general manager of the Volunteers Division.

Multiculturalism in Canadian Society

Canada is a multicultural society. Approximately one third of Canada’s population comprises immigrants and their immediate descendents. In recognition of the cultural mosaic the population represents, the government of Canada enacted the 1988 Canadian Multiculturalism Act. The act underscores the value Canada places on diversity and highlights the importance of all individuals in the development of the Canadian identity. The act brought about the establishment of a multiculturalism policy, whose main objectives include (a) recognizing the cultural diversity of Canada and that Canadians are free to preserve and share their cultural heritage, affirming that multiculturalism is a fundamental characteristic of Canadian identity; (b) confirming that ethnic origin and background should not limit anyone’s chance to help shape and build Canadian society; (c)  recognizing Canada’s culturally diverse communities and their contributions to Canadian society; (d) promoting equality for all and creating the social conditions that further the goal of equality; (e) recognizing that the social and cultural life of Canada is strengthened by bringing together Canadians of different backgrounds; and (f) recognizing that a multicultural heritage contributes to the richness of Canadian cultural expression.

Moreover, Canada’s multiculturalism policy ensures that Canadians of all origins have an equal opportunity to obtain employment and advancement in those institutions. The policy furthermore promotes programs and practices that enhance the ability of individuals and communities of all origins to contribute to the continuing evolution of Canada, as well as those that enhance understanding of and respect for the diverse members of Canadian society. Through the multicultural policy, an expectation is established that use will be made, as appropriate, of language skills and cultural understanding of individuals of all origins. Finally, the policy calls for conducting activities in a manner that is sensitive and responsive to the multicultural reality of Canada.

Lessons for the Olympic Movement

Most Olympic volunteers come from the host nation (Nakajima, 1999). One important attribute of these volunteers is patriotism, that is, helping to promote the host city and country (Ronningen, 1999). Volunteers must have a sense of national pride, must value cooperation, and must promote the Olympic spirit (Kikou, 2001). As Bontempi (2001) notes, moreover, the ideal Olympic volunteer is able to work with people of all cultural and social backgrounds.

To produce ideal Olympic volunteers is a difficult task. Traditionally, training volunteers has fallen under the auspices of the national Olympic committee of a host nation. Focus has been placed on educating volunteers about ideals of the Olympics and training them in specific skills and tasks for their volunteer positions. Training overall has been case-specific, as no policy has existed within the Olympic Movement for the training of volunteers. While an IOC policy for training volunteers perhaps is not required, since each national Olympic committee best recognizes its own needs and those tasks required to implement its Games. But perhaps an effective policy on volunteerism and multiculturalism could help create a “collective cultural orientation” among volunteers and those who train them.

Canada’s multiculturalism policy is globally renowned as one of the best. It is likely the Olympic Movement could benefit by adapting some part of the policy. The effort might start by recognizing the diverse, pluralistic nature of volunteers, highlighting how multiculturalism can contribute to an “Olympic identity.” Moreover, a policy on volunteerism and multiculturalism would help establish a collective understanding of the cultural importance of volunteerism.

An Olympic policy on volunteerism and multiculturalism should have at its center the following:

  1. equal recognition of all volunteers
  2. equal opportunity for personal growth through the volunteer experience
  3. provision of all volunteers with opportunity to experience the spirit of the Olympics
  4. cultural exchange and interchange among volunteers
  5. a “common cultural environment”

Such a policy would assist nations like Greece, whose National Olympic Committee has actively recruited prospective volunteers from the diaspora, notably Canadians, Australians, and Americans of Greek descent. Because Greece is the smallest nation to host the Olympics, the need to look beyond its borders to secure volunteers has been great. It is possible that, unlike in past Olympics, a large number of volunteers will come from countries other than the host country (Karlis, in press).

Which sector of the Olympic Movement should be responsible to implement the policy on volunteerism and multiculturalism, the national Olympic committees or the Commission for Culture and Olympic Education–or might a new commission be established for volunteerism and multiculturalism? Alternatively, should a volunteerism and multiculturalism policy be integrated within the Olympic Charter?

The national Olympic committees are responsible for the training of volunteers and thus would benefit from a policy on volunteerism and multiculturalism. To make sure all future Olympic Games would operate under the policy, it would be wise to implement it in a central governing body, such as the Commission for Culture and Olympic Education. If the Olympic Movement deems such policy important enough, an IOC commission for volunteerism and multiculturalism might even be established. This would without doubt help to further address growing use of Olympic volunteers. The implementation of policy on volunteerism and multiculturalism within the Olympic Charter would go a step further in creating a solid base for volunteerism throughout the Olympic Movement.

Conclusion

While since the 1980s Olympic volunteers have become increasingly valuable resources for organizing Olympic Games and carrying out their day-to-day functions, the Olympic Movement has only lately begun to recognize the importance of volunteers. Conferences in 1999 and 2001 both called for more research on Olympic volunteerism and multiculturalism, calls supported by the present research. The future of the Olympic Movement largely rests on the efforts of volunteers. A policy on volunteerism and multiculturalism would significantly enhance the volunteer movement of the Olympics, along with larger Olympic aims.

References

Arai, S. M. (2000–2001). Typology of volunteers for a changing sociopolitical context: The impact on social capital, citizenship and civil society. Leisure and Society, 23(2), 327–352.

Arai, S. M. (2002). Ethnic identity, diversity and social cohesion through volunteering: A critical examination of theoretical concepts applied to cultural non-profit organizations in society [Abstract]. Proceedings of the 10th Canadian Congress on Leisure Research, 35–36.

Barcelona Olympic Organizing Committee (1992). Memoria oficial de los Juegos Olimpicos de Barcelona [Official Account of the Barcelona Olympic Games]. Barcelona, Spain: Author.

Bontempi, R. (2002, December–January). The ideal Olympic volunteers. Olympic Review, 23–26.

Department of the Secretary of State of Canada. Multiculturalism. (1987). Ottawa, Ontario, Canada: Author.

Fok, F. (1999, November). Volunteers move society forward with sports culture. Paper presented at the Conference on Volunteers, Global Society and the Olympic Movement, Lausanne, Switzerland.

Foy, P. (November 5, 2001). Salt Lake City Olympic volunteers learn never to point a finger. Retrieved from http://ca.sports.yahoo.com/011105/6/darw.html

Hall, M., & Banting, K. G. (2000). The nonprofit sector in Canada: An introduction. In K. G. Banting (Ed.), The nonprofit sector in Canada (pp. 1–28). Kingston, Ontario, Canada: School of Policy Studies, Queen’s University.

Hanson, B. S. (April 5, 2001). Olympic volunteers prepare for 2002. Retrieved from  http://www.davis.k12.ut.ut.us/vhs/news/Apr5_01/n6.htm

International Olympic Committee. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.athens2004.com/page/default.asp?la=2&id=2342

International Olympic Committee. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.olympic.org/uk/organisation/index_uk.asp

Karlis, G. (1998). Social cohesion, social closure and recreation: The ethnic experience in multicultural societies. Journal of Applied Recreation Research, 23(1), 3–21.

Karlis, G. (in press). Culture and identity: Bringing back Greeks from the diaspora to volunteer for Athens 2004. Economics and Athletics.

Karlis, G., & Kartakoullis, N. (1992). Leisure in multicultural societies: Learning from the Canadian experience. Journal of Business and Society, 5(1, 2), 94–102.

Kikou, O. (2001, December–January). How to build a volunteer force. Olympic Review, 19–21.

Lanzoni, I., & Lykogianni, D. (1999, November). The volunteers during and after the Olympic Games: Youth camp and Olympic Education School programmes. Paper presented at the Conference on Volunteers, Global Society and the Olympic Movement, Lausanne, Switzerland.

Larocque, L., Gravelle, F., & Karlis, G. (2002). Volunteerism and serious leisure: The case of the Francophone Games [Abstract]. Proceedings of the 10th Canadian Congress on Leisure Research, 85–87.

Minshall, L. (1984). Volunteerism. The Recreationist, 4(2), 13–24.

Moreno, A. B. (1999, November). The evolution of volunteers at the Olympic Games. Paper presented at the Conference on Volunteers, Global Society and the Olympic Movement, Lausanne, Switzerland.

Multiculturalism and Citizenship Canada. (1990). The Canadian Multiculturalism Act: A guide for Canadians. Ottawa, Ontario, Canada: Author.

Nakajima, S. (1999). Activist volunteering: The Bind-Aid Volunteer Group and its work prior to the Nagano Games. Paper presented at the Conference on Volunteers, Global Society and the Olympic Movement, Lausanne, Switzerland.

Pellico, A. (1999, November). My experiences as a volunteer at the centennial Olympic games, Atlanta ‘96. Paper presented at the Conference on Volunteers, Global Society and the Olympic Movement, Lausanne, Switzerland.

Pound, R. (1999, November). Volunteers and the Olympic Movement: Past, present, and future. Paper presented at the Conference on Volunteers, Global Society and the Olympic Movement, Lausanne, Switzerland.

Rogge, J. (2001, December–January). Volunteerism. Olympic Review, 1.

Ronnigen, P. (1999, November). Volunteer recruitment policy and motivation factors for volunteering. Paper presented at the Conference on Volunteers, Global Society and the Olympic Movement, Lausanne, Switzerland.

Scott, J. T. (1997). Defining the nonprofit sector. In R. Hirshhorn (Ed.), The emerging sector: In search of a framework. Ottawa, Ontario, Canada: Renouf.

Techmeyer, M. (2002). The 2002 Olympic Winter Games: Who’s volunteering from IM-STC? Retrieved from http://utah.edu/stc/newletters/sloc.html.

Author Note

George Karlis, Ph.D.

2018-03-22T11:33:07-05:00February 18th, 2008|Sports Management|Comments Off on Volunteerism and Multiculturalism: A Linkage for Future Olympics
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Gender Differential in the Goal Setting, Motivation, Perceived Ability, and Confidence Sources of Basketball Players

Submitted by: Dongfang Chie-der, Steve Chen, Chou Hung-yu, and Chi Li-Kang

]Abstract[

Gender differences in goal setting, perceived motivational climate, perceived athletic ability, and perceived sources of confidence in athletic ability were evaluated for a male group and female group of high school basketball players (N = 174). Significant findings included higher scores among males for (a) perceived ego climate and (b) perfection of skills and physical performance as sources of confidence. Significant findings from simple correlation analyses included a positive relationship of both sexes’ task orientation, perceived task climate, and perceived ability, to 8 confidence sources. Male players’ ego orientation was positively related to demonstration of ability, physical performance, and social support. Males’ perceived ego climate and females’ ego orientation were both positively related to 7 of the 8 sources of confidence. Females’ ego orientation, males’ perceived ego climate, and the 8 sources were positively related to confidence perceived prior to competition. Stepwise regression analyses showed males’ task orientation and perceived ability to predict confidence prior to competition; for females, perceived ability and perceived task climate were effective predictors. Respondents derived better confidence in a task-oriented environment, so the researchers advise coaches to create task-oriented practice environments to enhance confidence of male and female players.

]Gender Differential in the Goal Setting, Motivation, Perceived Ability, and Confidence Sources of Basketball Players[

Self-confidence and sport-related confidence have been viewed as crucial factors influencing athletic performance. A number of studies show athletes who are strongly confident in terms of sport concentrate better, have healthier emotions, and demonstrate better game strategies, control of tempos, and performance than less confident athletes (Chi, 1996; Gould, 1981; Mahoney, Gabriel, & Perkin, 1987). The relationship between sport-related confidence and athletic performance should thus be of vital interest to sport psychologists. But sport-related confidence can be an inconsistent and transitory variable. Its instability over time is based largely on where players find their confidence, the confidence source. Research may shed light on how a particular source influences level of confidence, cognition, emotion, and behavior (Vealey, 1986). A careful examination of confidence sources offers to help explain the interaction of social background, organizational culture, and athletes’ individual characteristics.

Competitive sport is an environment for the pursuit of excellence in athletic performance (Duda, 1987). Sport psychology researchers have explored how players develop confidence in their athletic performance. Out of the social-cognitive perspective, achievement goal theory has gradually become popular as a model for testing  (Ames & Archer, 1988; Elliott & Dweck, 1988; Nicholls, 1984, 1989; Mills, 1997; Huang & Chi, 1994).

Prior research on achievement goal theory has shown that a task-oriented climate enhances motivation and confidence (Duda, 1992). There is a relationship between goal orientation and sport-related confidence. Athletes’ task orientation correlates positively to their sport confidence; athletes tending to emphasize acquisition of skill (in other words, perfection) along with the learning process and competitive process tend to have greater sport-related confidence. Shane’s study (2000) of 620 male and female high school or college athletes explored the relationship between goal orientation and sport-related confidence. Its findings showed significant gender differences in task orientation, ego orientation, and several confidence-source factors (skill perfection, demonstration of ability, and physiological/psychological preparation). The findings furthermore showed differences in the perceived sources of sport confidence for high school versus college athletes (both genders).

Studies like Shane’s might lead us to conclude that athletes’ emotions, levels of cognition, and behaviors affect their sport confidence. There is ample research indicating that task-oriented individuals and individuals operating in task-oriented climates have relatively positive emotions as well as a relatively high self-perception and self-perceived ability. Athletes perhaps more than nonathletes self-perceive their abilities, which would make strong impact on their sport confidence (Mills, 1997; Huang & Chi, 1994). Sport confidence research focusing on organizational culture (e.g., perceived motivational climate)  and other environmental factors, however, is rare. In Taiwan, even within sport psychology sport confidence is little used as a research construct.

But what are the variables in athletes’ confidence prior to competing? Where does sport confidence felt by male and female basketball players come from? The present study sought those sources of sport confidence, working from motivational theories and their constructs. The primary focus was relationships among high school basketball players’ goal orientation, perceived motivational climate, perceived ability, sport confidence sources, and pre-competition sport confidence levels, as well as how those relationships differed with the gender of the players.

]Method[

Subjects

The study participants were 174 male (n = 87) and female (n = 87) basketball players who had played in the 2003 HBL [Taiwanese high school basketball league] Division I tournament. The average age of a player was 17.09 years (SD = .91).

Instruments

Four research questionnaires were used to measure four phenomena: (a) participants’ goal orientation, (b) the motivational climate they perceived, (c) perceived personal athletic ability, and (d) perceived personal sport-related confidence.  First, the Sport Goal Orientation Questionnaire (Duda & Nicholls, 1989; modified by Chi, 1993) contains 13 questions and is primarily used to measure individuals’ goal orientation in sport settings. Second, the Perceived Sport Motivation Climate Questionnaire (Seifriz, Duda, & Chi, 1992; modified by Huang & Chi, 1994), which comprises  two parts and 34 questions, is primarily used to measure, in team-sport settings, the motivational climate perceived by individual athletes. Third, a modified version of the Perceived Ability Questionnaire (Nicholls et al., 1985) presented 4 questions. Fourth, the Sport Confidence Questionnaire, Wu and Chi’s modification (2000) of the Vealey et al. Sources of Sports Confidence Questionnaire (1998), was employed to assess the participants’ sources of sport confidence. Wu and Chi’s Sport Confidence Questionnaire contains 35 questions and uses a 7-point Likert scale. Questions address eight proposed sources of confidence, as follows: perfection of skills, 5 questions; demonstration of ability, 6 questions; physiological/psychological preparation, 4 questions; physical performance, 3 questions; social support, 3 questions; vicarious experience, 4 questions; coach’s leadership style, 7 questions; and positive environment, 3 questions. Percentage of variance was 71.03%, and Cronbach’s alpha for the question sets ranged from .70 to .96, indicating strong validity and reliability for the instrument.

Procedures

In advance of the survey administration, coaches and trainers strived to develop good relations with the players and to acquaint themselves well with the practice and game schedules. The researchers informed players participating in the study of the anonymous and strictly confidential nature of their survey responses, and that completing the four instruments would take about 30 minutes. Players met together 2 hours prior to their scheduled practice to complete the instruments. Time was taken at the start of the session to allow the researchers to explain questionnaire content to the participating players.

]Results[

Gender differences were observed when t tests of the data were conducted (Table 1). The differences characterized goal orientation, perceived motivational climate, perceived ability, and sources of sport confidence. Male participants in the study recorded higher scores than female participants did for the sport-related confidence variables perceived ego climate, perfection of skills, and physical performance.

Table 1

Players’ Goal Orientation, Perceived Motivational Climate, Perceived Ability, and Sources of Sport Confidence, by Gender
Gender
Male
Female
Number
  87
   87
    t
Variable
 Mean
   SD
 Mean
  SD
Task orientation 4.052 0.529 4.123 0.569 -0.84
Ego orientation 3.580 0.556 3.500 0.567 0.94
Perceived task climate 3.894 0.437 3.911 0.499 -.24
Perceived ego climate 3.483 0.479 3.264 0.530 2.86*
Perceived ability 4.452 1.171 4.168 1.025 1.69
Perfection of skills 5.365 0.971 5.181 1.056 1.19**
Demonstration 5.523 0.971 5.181 1.056 1.24**
Physiological/psychological preparation 5.508 1.016 5.416 1.046 0.55
Physical performance 4.869 0.897 4.521 1.204 2.16*
Social support 5.272 0.940 5.157 1.199 0.70
Leadership styles 5.492 0.924 5.527 1.145 -0.21
Vicarious experience 5.486 0.932 5.416 1.088 0.33
Positive environment 5.134 1.029 5.038 1.185 0.59
*p < 0.05 **p < 0.01

When simple correlation analyses were performed, positive relationships were observed for the eight sources-of-sport-confidence variables and the task orientations, perceived task climates, and perceived abilities of players of either gender (Table 2, Table 3). (Again, the eight variables are perfection of skills, demonstration of ability, physical performance, physiological/psychological preparation, social support, vicarious experience, coach’s leadership style, and positive environment.) Among the male respondents, ego orientation was positively related to demonstration of ability, physical performance, and social support, while perceived ego climate was positively related to demonstration of ability, physical performance, physiological/psychological preparation, social support, vicarious experience, coach’s leadership style, and positive environment.

Among female respondents, ego orientation was positively related to demonstration of ability, physical performance, physiological/psychological preparation, social support, vicarious experience, coach’s leadership style, and positive environment, while ego climate was positively related to both vicarious experience and positive environment.

Table 2

Simple Correlations Between Variables–Male Respondents (n = 87)
Variable
Task
orientation
Ego
orientation
Perceived
task climate
Perceived
ego climate
Perceived
ability
Perfection of skills .596** .179 .568** .203 .265*
Demonstration of ability .395** .270* .398** .358** .285
Physiological/psychological
preparation		 .430** .093 .478** .260* .272**
Physical performance .320** .212* .284** .288** .373**
Social support .518** .213* .524** .303** .390**
Coach’s leadership style .517** .192 .568** .284** .401**
Vicarious experience .412** .188 .541** .286** .302**
Positive environment .302** .144 .410** .365** .237**

*p < 0.05  **p < 0.01 (two-tailed)

Table 3

Simple Correlations Between Variables–Female Respondents (n = 87)
Variable
Task
orientation
Ego
orientation
Perceived
task climate
Perceived
ego climate
Perceived
ability
Perfection of skills .639** .325** .664** .068 .415**
Demonstration of ability .570** .552** .541** .350** .263**
Physiological/psychological
preparation		 .683** .340** .688** .155 .365**
Physical performance .465** .397** .429** .091 .349**
Social support .637** .457** .648** .128 .426**
Coach’s leadership style .659** .479** .647** .203 .401**
Vicarious experience .595** .250* .684** .058 .536**
Positive environment .511** .309** .494** .227* .500

*p < 0.05   **p < 0.01 (two-tailed)

For the male respondents, perceived task climate effectively predicted demonstration of ability, physical performance, social support, vicarious experience, coach’s leadership style, and positive environment. In addition, their task orientation effectively predicted perfection of skills and physiological/psychological preparation. For the female respondents, perceived task climate was an effective predictor of perfection of skills, physical performance, social support, vicarious experience, and positive environment. In addition, their task orientation was an effective predictor of demonstration of ability, physiological/psychological preparation, coach’s leadership style, and positive environment.

For males, total equality of variance was 22.6%, and the variance for each variable was 17.6% and 5.0%. For females, perceived ability and perceived task climate were effective predictors of confidence perceived prior to competition; the total equality of variance was 43.9%, and the variance for each variable was 39.6% and 4.3%.

]Conclusions[

The study results include significant gender differences in perceived ego climate and three source-of-sport-confidence variables: perfection of skills, demonstration, and physical performance. Additionally, for both genders, sources of confidence were closely related to a player’s task orientation, perceived task climate, and perceived ability. During stepwise regression analyses, both genders’ sources of sport confidence were shown to be effectively predicted by a player’s task orientation, motivation task climate, and self-perceived ability. Such findings are in line with results of several previous studies (Shane, 2000; Vealey, 1998; Wu & Chi, 2000). The findings indicated further that players who were more task oriented, or preferred task-oriented climates, valued the participative process (comprising effort, perfection, and learning) over the win-lose outcome. This emphasis would have a positive effect on both sport-related confidence and the sources of that confidence. For this reason, the researchers suggest first that coaches work harder at creating task-oriented practice environments or climates, and second that they strive to understand the sources of their players’ sport-related confidence, in order to enhance the athletes’ confidence.

Future studies in the area of athletes’ sport-related confidence might investigate sequential effects of different types of motivational climates on sources of sport confidence (effort and performance) as well as on cognitive anxiety, state anxiety, and satisfaction.

]References[

Bandura , A. (1977). Self-efficacy: Toward a unifying theory of behavioral change. Psychological Review, 84, 191–215.

Chi, L. K. (1996). Stress management of athletes. National Physical Education Quarterly, 25(4), 51–57.

Chou, W. H. (1995). The establishment of sport confidence based on self-efficacy. National Physical Education Quarterly, 25(4), 62–69.

Corbin, C. B., Laurie, D. R., Gruger, C., & Simley, B. (1984). Vicarious success experience as a factor influencing self-confidence, attitudes, and physical activity of adult women. Journal of Teaching in Physical Education, 4, 17–23.

Duda, J. L. (1992). Motivation in sport settings: A goal perspective approach. In G. C. Roberts (Ed.), Motivation in sport and exercise (pp. 57–91). Champaign, IL: Human Kinetics.

Duda, J. L., Chi, L., & Newton, M. (1990). Psychometric characteristics of the TEOSQ. Paper presented at the meeting of the North American Society for the Psychology of Sport and Physical Activity, Houston, TX.

Duda, J. L., Fox, K., Biddle, S. J. H., & Armstrong, N. (1992). Children’s achievement goals and beliefs about success in sport. British Journal of Education Psychology, 26, 40–63.

Feltz, D. L. (1988). Self-confidence and sports performance. In K. B. Pandolf (Ed.), Exercise and sport sciences reviews (pp.423–457). New York: MacMillan.

Huang, C. R., & Kuo, H. Y. (1999). The sources of athletes’ sport confidence. Chinese Physical Education, 13(3), 60–66.

Kao, S. F. (1993). A discussion of sport confidence based on the viewpoint of self-efficacy. Chinese Physical Education, 7(1), 107–110.

Lirgg, C. C. (1991). Gender differences in self-confidence in physical activity: A meta-analysis of recent studies. Journal of Sport & Exercise Psychology, 13, 294–310.

Lu, P. C. (1991). Sport confidence and performance. Chinese Physical Education, 4(4), 21–25.

McCormick, S. S. (2000). The relationship of sources of sport-confidence and goal orientation. Unpublished master’s thesis, Springfield College.

Nicholls, J. G. (1984). Achievement motivation: Conceptions of ability, subjective experience, task choice, and performance. Psychological Review, 91, 328–346.

Seifriz, J., Duda, J. L., & Chi, L. (1992). The relationship of perceived motivational climate to intrinsic motivation and beliefs about success in basketball. Journal of Sport and Exercise Psychology, 14, 375–391.

Vealey, R. S. (1986). Conceptualization of sport-confidence and competitive orientation: Preliminary investigation and instrument development. Journal of Sport and Exercise Psychology, 8, 221–346.

Vealey, R. S. (1988). Sport-confidence and competitive orientation: An addendum on scoring procedures and gender differences. Journal of Sport and Exercise Psychology, 10, 471–478.

Vealey, R. S., Hayashi, S. W., Garner-Holman, M., & Giacobbi, P. (1998). Sources of sport-confidence: Conceptualization and instrument development. Journal of Sport and Exercise Psychology, 20, 50–80.

Wu, S. C. (2000). A research in relationships of athletes’ goal orientation, perceived motivational climates and sport confidence. Unpublished master’s thesis, National College of Sport and Physical Education, Taoyuan, Taiwan, Republic of China.

2017-08-07T11:51:43-05:00February 18th, 2008|Contemporary Sports Issues, Sports Management, Sports Studies and Sports Psychology, Women and Sports|Comments Off on Gender Differential in the Goal Setting, Motivation, Perceived Ability, and Confidence Sources of Basketball Players
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Marketing Sport and a City: The Case Of Athens 2004

Submitted by: George Karlis,

The opportunity for a city to host the Olympic Games constitutes an enormous economic, social, and cultural commitment, as the Olympics are the world’s biggest sporting event. It is an opportunity that, if properly managed and marketed, will bring a number of positive long-term benefits to the rest of the country in which the city is located.

While the Games last only 2-3weeks, 10 years of preparation will have gone before to ensure both a successful bid and the smooth operation of the Games once the bid wins. The experience of cities that have hosted the Olympic Games demonstrates that, if they are carefully planned and promoted, the Games can generate significant growth over a long period. A primary factor in such growth is the increase in tourism that  a nation can continue to enjoy long after the Olympic Games have concluded. The aim of this paper is to examine the nature of the impact hosting the Games makes on tourism and to discuss marketing strategies that the city of Athens should follow in order to maximize the positive impact of tourism surrounding the 2004 Olympic Games.

From a tourism perspective, the Olympic Games can certainly be considered the most important sporting event. Frequently, organizers’ purpose in undertaking such events is to increase tourism in a city or country. In general, the benefits from organizing such events include the following:

  1. attracting high-income tourists and creating a new generation of tourists who might visit the host country repeatedly
  2. creating a favorable image of the host country as a tourism destination
  3. creating and/or modernizing a locale’s tourism infrastructure
  4. using the international media’s presence to communicate with the world
  5. creating a skilled workforce in the organization, management, and funding sectors specializing in unique, tourist-friendly sporting events

Properly managed, the Olympic Games can change a country’s tourism industry significantly and for the long term. Effects tend to fall within three categories, the Olympic market, the internal tourism market, and the international tourism market. The Olympic market consists of a network of economic activities that result from organization of the event and require significant investment of time and funding. Aspects of the Olympic market are marketing (mainly promotion and public relations), funding and donations, preparation of athletic and related facilities, tickets and other spectator services, transportation and accommodation (of athletes, spectators, dignitaries), and safety and emergency services. For every Olympiad, a workforce is formed to undertake these tasks, creating thousands of jobs and extensive activity in the host city. (Later in this paper, an attempt is made to estimate economic and non-economic effects of the Olympic market, based on previous studies.)

A large nation’s internal tourism market also experiences an impact when one of its cities is to host the Olympic Games. However, in Greece as opposed to the U.S. or even Australia, the internal tourism market is of less significance. In terms of both area and population, Greece is the smallest country chosen to host an Olympic Games. One might go so far as to refer to Greece itself as the “city” that has undertaken the responsibility of hosting the Games.

The right to host the Olympics brings with it long-term effects on the city and nation’s international tourism market, as well. Such effects begin to be felt immediately after a country has won a bid to host the Games and persist until several years after the closing ceremony. In the case of Athens, this period covers the years 1998 to 2011. International tourism will extend to three types of tourist: visitors traveling before the Games, spectators and other visitors during the Games, and visitors drawn to the country at some point by the Olympics-related publicity. The first category comprises, for Athens, persons who will visit Greece in preparation for the Games, such as the members of the Olympic family, media representatives, sponsoring organizations’ representatives, athletes, dignitaries, and some spectators. Such individuals also constitute the second category and can be expected to peak in number as the Olympic athletes compete. Finally, the third category includes all tourists from outside Greece who will visit Greece between 1998 and 2011 due to promotional efforts linked to the 2004 Games.

Games’ Direct Impact on Tourism

The direct impact of the Olympic Games on tourism is embodied in the arrival of all those directly involved in Olympic athletic events, as well as those participating in the associated cultural Olympiad; direct impact’s chronology is before and during the Games. Whatever the city hosting the Games, demands associated with direct impact remain similar and are based mainly on  the number of sports included (currently 28). While estimating direct impact involves some rather arbitrary decisions, the final overall result is not influenced, as it is of very small size. Moreover, a slight increase in the relevant figures was allowed to reflect visitors at the cultural Olympiad. Table 3 presents estimates of the numbers of tourists anticipated to be directly associated with the 2004 Athens Games during the period 1998-2003.

The tourist category of most importance is the before-Olympics visitors, who include numbers of representatives of the International Olympic Committee (IOC). The IOC is contractually obligated to send representatives to Greece regularly to audit activities and check the progress of the Games’ organization. The second largest category of visitors includes members of international federations for various sports. They monitor the development of facilities in which competition will take place. The third category consists of athletes. As the date of the Games approaches, athletes begin to visit the country to become accustomed to the climate and sporting facilities. The final category is made up of sponsors and members of the media.

The total number of visitors expected in Greece during 1998-2004 on Olympic Games’ business will number 111,000. This figure constitutes a very small percentage of all tourists who will ultimately visit Greece as the result of the publicity about the country linked to the 2004 Games.

Consequences for Greece, for Athens

Again, the effect of the Olympic Games on tourism has relevance both for Athens and for Greece as a whole. Initially, forecasts of the numbers of tourists throughout Greece were made. These forecasts were then used to estimate the number of tourists to arrive in Athens, according to three national scenarios. The first national scenario is confined to those arrivals directly linked to the Games and assumes that the level of demand will be minimal. The second national scenario assumes a steady increase in demand leading up to the Games and stabilizing a few years after the Games. The third national scenario assumes a small increase in tourism before and during the Games, a large increase after the Games, and a small decrease several years after the Games.

The Olympic Games of 2004 will present a great opportunity for the rehabilitation of Athens and the Attica prefecture as a whole. Some infrastructure projects are already under way; together with Athens’ international promotions during the coming seven years, these projects may help Athens enhance the proportion of the Greek tourism industry it claims. Under a first city scenario, Athens will maintain, at the least, its share of all tourists arriving in Greece, which early in the 1980s was 40% but slipped to 16% in the mid 1990s.

Under the second city scenario, Athens’ share of the total number of tourists in Greece will increase significantly, attaining for the period 1998-2011 an average 22% of all tourists. During the 1990s, the proportion of tourists in Greece who were visiting Athens was as high as 22.3%, but averaged 18.22%.

According to a third scenario, Athens’ share in the numbers of foreign visitors to Greece should move from 18% in 1998 to 22% in 2004; after 2004, the city’s share should decrease, returning to the 18% figure in 2011.  Across the whole period, the average proportion of Greek tourism claimed by Athens is forecast to be 16.9%.

Each one of these scenarios for Athens is combined with the three scenarios for the whole country. Thus, the total number of possible outcomes for Attica comes to nine. The fluctuations of these effects are the same as the fluctuations relating to Greece as a whole. They are not presented here because the effects for the Attica area are estimated as a percentage of the whole. Under the first two scenarios, the percentage is assumed to follow a distribution moving from 18% to 22% and then returning to 18%.

Maximizing Benefits to Tourism Industry That May Surround the Games

The Olympic Games are a unique tourism-sport event presenting an outstanding opportunity to develop long-term gains for a nation’s tourism Industry. Supply and demand continue to figure in marketing, and in the case of Greece and the 2004 Olympics, it must be ensured that the tourism infrastructure can meet the demand for accommodation posed by extra thousands of tourists yet not overestimate the number of tourists who will visit Greece.

Figure 1 diagrams the approach to marketing the 2004 Games, one that involves three basic, interdependent elements. The first is supply, which includes organization of and preparation for the Games, the choice of the host city, all services that will be required , media (television, radio, and print), and grants offered by IOC and the host city. The second element of the marketing system comprises intermediaries between the supply and the demand. Often, these intermediaries participate in securing the successful bid for the Olympics, for instance by finding sponsors, working to attract spectators, and generally organizing the athletic events. The third element of the marketing system is demand, which includes all national athletic teams, all federations supporting the Olympic sports, spectators and tourists, the media audience (television viewers, radio listeners, and readers), and all official sponsors of the Games. The Los Angeles Games proved the importance of sponsorship to the presence of adequate funding.

How can Athens and Greece best tap into the elements of this framework to maximize publicity generated by the Games? When the Sydney Games come to an end, Athens and Greece could pursue a series of strategies, including the following:

1. Host athletic events during the period prior to the Games to allow Olympic athletes to experience the Greek climate. Events should be organized in various regions of Greece.

2. Host athletic events featuring non-Olympic sports, in cooperation with these sports’ international federations.

3. Host participative athletic events targeting those potential tourists who enjoy recreational athletics.

4. Before and after the Games, organize Olympics-related excursions highlighting the regions associated with athletics in ancient Greece.

5. Organize international cultural exhibitions and scientific and professional conferences offering an Olympics angle.

6. Supply the international media with information before and after the Games, using news broadcasts.

The forecasts presented earlier are based on the assumption the all of these strategies will be implemented to the fullest. The strategies, nevertheless, are only some of the strategies (activities and events) that could help Greece maximize benefits deriving from the Games. Other strategies should be developed to ensure the best management of the Games.

Conclusion

The Olympic Games in 2004 will have important economic effects on the host city Athens. Publicity surrounding the Olympics and the Olympic competitions themselves are expected to increase foreign tourism in Greece during 1998-201. New jobs will be created and the nation’s GDP will grow, very probably to the tune of 0.8% for annual growth from 1998 to 2011, which should increase employment by 32,000 annually.

The most important source of the increase in economic activity will be money spent by foreign tourists visiting both Athens and Greece as a result of Olympic exposure. The prediction of this study is that these such cash inflows will come to 2.3 trillion drachmas for the 14-year period 1998-2011, an average of 161 billion drachmas (1999 prices). According to the central scenario of this study, increased tourism due to the Olympic Games will come to 440,000 visitors annually for the period 1998-2011, or 6 million visitors in all.

Increased tourism will create additional need for accommodation. According to this study, such demand can be satisfied without additional investment in accommodation infrastructure, by improving existing accommodation units, especially across the Attica area. During the 2004 Games, peak demand in the Attica area will occur in August and is likely to amount to 1.9 million overnight stays during the 17 days of the Games. Existing hotel accommodations in the Attica area, along with use of temporary facilities such as camps, student dormitories, cruise ships, apartments, and private residences should provide accommodations for  2.6 million, more than adequate for the anticipated number of visitors.

While simply sheltering visitors to the Games is important, it is not enough. The supply of accommodations of various types must also be carefully managed. One conclusion of this study is that, although Greece may be able to cope with the unusual numbers of tourists arriving, this does not preclude problems while hosting them. To discourage any problems, government, organizing committee, and hotel management must work together from the time the Games in Sydney end. Especially critical will be the enhancement of the quality of Attica’s high-end hotels.

Long-term increases in demand for accommodation resulting from the 2004 Olympics is expected to be very small. At the end of the examined period, the supply of beds in Attica will amount to 100,000, while demand should be roughly the same, 103,000. The demand for beds across Greece will come to 858,000, while the supply will come to 834,000.

References

  1. Getz, D. (1997). Event management and event tourism. New York: Cognizant Communication.
  2. Getz, D. (1998). Trends, strategies, and issues in sport-event tourism. Sport Marketing Quarterly, 7(2), 8-13.
  3. Gibson, H. (1998). Sport tourism: A critical analysis of research. Sport Management Review, 1, 45-76.
  4. Holden, K., Peel, D. A., & Thompson, J. L. (1990). Economic forecasting: An introduction. Cambridge, Cambridgeshire, England: Cambridge University Press.
  5. Ludwig, S., & Karabetsos, J. D. (1999). Objectives and evaluation processes utilised by sponsors of the 1996 Olympic Games. Sport Marketing Quarterly, 8(1), 11-20.
  6. Moore, J. (1999). Sydney 2000: Managing the Olympic story. Sport Marketing Quarterly, 8(1), 5-10.
  7. Sandler, D. M., & Shani, D. (1993). Sponsorship and the Olympic Games: The consumer perspective. Sport Marketing Quarterly, 2(3), 38-43.

 

2013-11-26T21:15:22-06:00February 18th, 2008|Contemporary Sports Issues, Sports Facilities, Sports Management|Comments Off on Marketing Sport and a City: The Case Of Athens 2004
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Implementation of a Sport Management Major Within an Undergraduate Exercise and Sport Science Department

Submitted by: Michael D. Kerr

Abstract

The purpose of this investigation was to develop an orderly process of implementing and establishing a sport management major within an undergraduate exercise and sport science department. This research examined and evaluated established, university-based, accredited undergraduate sport management programs within the United States. It was an empirical study of developmental occupational competencies and areas of curriculum content, in terms of the relative importance of their inclusion in a sport management major.

A survey instrument developed by the researcher was employed to rank 30 competencies factors and 30 curriculum factors that might be included in a sport management major. The instrument was developed using the literature, a panel of experts, and a pilot study in which Cronbach’s alpha coefficient was employed to test the validity and internal consistency reliability of the instrument. The survey instrument was e-mailed to the coordinators of 71 university-based, accredited undergraduate sport management programs. Although 50 program coordinators returned the instrument, 2 surveys were incomplete and could not be used; 48 of the 71 instruments distributed thus were utilized in the research (67.6% response rate).

The statistical analysis for this research included descriptive statistics to analyze the rankings of each of the competencies and curriculum content selections, as well as factor analysis to determine curriculum development based on these selections. The method of factor extraction used was the principal component method, and the method of rotation employed was the varimax rotation. Frequencies, percentages, means, mean rankings, and standard deviation were the descriptive statistics utilized. The factor analysis investigated areas within the competency and curriculum selections that demonstrated a high degree of correlation and thus could be identified as clusters.

The ranked order of the competency and curriculum selections, the results of the factor analysis, a review of literature, the compared responses of the sport management department coordinators, and the use of NASPE/NASSM Sport Management Program Review Council standards have all served as guidelines for the investigator’s development of a sport management major. The major has been designed to provide students with the educational background necessary to function effectively as professionals in a dynamic and multifaceted sport management setting, while meeting the needs of a contemporary sport industry.

Implementation of a Sport Management Major Within an Undergraduate Exercise and Sport Science Department

In decades past, many college and university physical education programs concerning professional preparation and career development placed an emphasis on coaching and teacher training curricula. But the area of physical education has expanded rapidly in recent years, with a resulting proliferation of dynamic physical education career possibilities. Demand for teachers and coaches is ongoing, but there is also a growing need for qualified sport professionals in the area of sport management.

Professional positions in sport require knowledge, skill, and ability beyond even what is represented by a degree in physical education. Many colleges and universities have established undergraduate and/or graduate sport management programs in an effort to provide the requisite knowledge, training, and field experience to students planning careers in the managerial and administrative portions of the sport industry. Other colleges and universities are just now choosing to implement such programs to keep pace with student interest in the sport industry. This study grew out of one institution’s decision to launch a sport management program, seeking to identify a sound process and method to implement the undergraduate  major field of study within its department of exercise and sport science.

Methods

Participants in the study included 48 out of 71 coordinators of established, university-based, accredited undergraduate sport management programs within the United States who were electronically sent a study questionnaire (return rate of 67.6%). The instrument completed and returned by the 48 sought to identify the competencies and curriculum content thought necessary for implementing and establishing a sport management major. The instrument, titled the Sport Management Questionnaire, was developed by the researcher through an identification of concepts and review of literature. A panel of experts assessed the development, reliability, and validity of this instrument, which asked respondents to rate how important each of a number of competencies and curriculum content areas was. The ratings were to reflect the participants’ expertise and experiences relating to their institutions’ undergraduate sport management programs. Ratings were assigned using a 5-point Likert scale (Leedy, 1997), with anchors ranging from 1 (not important) to 5 (critically important). The research involved 60 dependent variables, 30 reflecting competencies and 30 reflecting curriculum content. Statistical analysis performed during the research included (a) descriptive statistics concerning ranking of competencies and curriculum content; (b) factor analysis determining curriculum development based on competencies and curriculum content, and (c) reliability analysis testing the reliability of the instrument. Statistical significance was accepted at an alpha level.

Results

Mean Range, Competency Items

Table 1 indicates the pattern of total mean ranges of competency items indicated by the program coordinators; the mean values were obtained for each of the 30 competencies items, from 48 respondents. The mean values ranged from a high of 4.79 (Item 2, communication skills) to a low of 2.21 (Item 9, designing fitness programs).

Table 1

Mean Range, Frequency, and Competency Items
Program Coordinators
Mean Range Competency Items Frequency
> 4.500 2, 11, 17, 23, 24
5
4.000 – 4.499 1, 10, 14, 16, 18, 20, 29, 30
8
3.500 – 3.999 3, 13, 15, 21, 22, 25, 27, 28
8
3.000 – 3.499 6, 12, 26
3
2.500 – 2.999 4, 5, 19
3
2.000 – 2.499 7, 8, 9
3
< 1.999 N/A
0
Total
30

According to the participating program coordinators, the top five competencies that should be included in a sport management major are, in order,

  1. communication skills (Item 2) and making decisions (Item 23)
  2. organizing or managing time (Item 24)
  3. developing long- and short-range goals (Item 11)
  4. computer skills (Item 17)
  5. hiring and supervising staff or personnel (Item 18)

Mean Range, Curriculum Content Items

Table 2 presents the pattern of total mean ranges of curriculum content items indicated by the program coordinators; the mean values were obtained for each of the 30 curriculum content items, from the 48 respondents. The mean values ranged from a high of 4.71 (Item 17, sport and business management) to a low of 1.63 (Item 13, physical education curriculum).

Table 2

Mean Range, Frequency, and Curriculum Content Items

Program Coordinators
Mean Range Curriculum Content Items Frequency
> 4.500 10, 11, 17, 18, 27
5
4.000 – 4.499 2, 3, 4, 5, 8, 12, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 26
12
3.500 – 3.999 9, 16, 24, 25
4
3.000 – 3.499 15, 28, 29, 30
4
2.500 – 2.999 6,
1
2.000 – 2.499 14,
1
< 1.999 1, 7, 13
3
Total
30

According to the participating program coordinators, the top five curriculum content areas that should be included in a sport management major are, in order,

  1. sport and business management (Item 17)
  2. sport finance (Item 18)
  3. legal aspects of sport (Item 10)
  4. organizational behavior and management (Item 11)
  5. sport marketing and promotion (Item 27)

Factor Analysis, Competencies

Factor analysis performed with the data from the participating coordinators identified 5 clusters of competency items with 53.0% of the total variation. Titles were assigned to each of these 5 clusters of competency items, as follows (Table 3):

Table 3

Competencies Clusters and Variance Accounted for by Each

Cluster 1 Human Resource Management 12.60% of variance
Item 11 Developing Long- and Short-Range Goals
Item 14 Evaluating Job Performance of Personnel
Item 18 Hiring and Supervising Staff and Personnel
Item 22 Maintaining Personnel Records
Item 25 Organizing Students and Personnel
Item 29 Responding to Positive and Negative Feedback
Cluster 2 Leadership and Organization Management 11.35% of variance
Item 21 Knowledge of Sports
Item 23 Making Decisions
Item 24 Organizing and Managing Time
Item 28 Preparing Job Descriptions
Cluster 3 Marketing and Financial Management 10.55% of variance
Item 1 Budgeting
Item 2 Communication Skills
Item 6 Designing Advertisements
Item 16 Fund Raising
Cluster 4 Administrative Management 9.82% of variance
Item 3 Controlling Allocation of Resources
Item 19 Knowledge of First Aid and Safety Procedures
Item 30 Understanding Sport and Business Law
Cluster 5 Planning 8.47% of variance
Item 8 Designing Computer Programs
Item 9 Designing Fitness Programs
Item 12 Developing Personnel Training Programs

Factor Analysis, Curriculum Content

Factor analysis performed with the data from the participating coordinators identified 2 clusters of curriculum content items with 41.2% of the total variation. Titles were assigned to both clusters, as follows (Table 4):

Table 4

Curriculum Content Clusters and Variance Accounted for by Each

Cluster 1 Sport and Business Management 25.38% of variance
Item 2 Business Communication
Item 5 Consumer Behavior
Item 8 Human Resource Management
Item 9 Labor-Management Relations
Item 11 Organizational Behavior and Management
Item 12 Personnel Management
Item 17 Sport and Business Management
Item 18 Sport Finance
Item 19 Sport Economics
Item 21 Sport Ethics
Item 22 Sport Facilities Management
Item 23 Sport Fund Raising
Item 24 Sport Governance
Item 26 Sport Leadership
Cluster 2 Administration of Physical Education and Recreation 15.83% of variance
Item 1 Applied Physiology of Exercise
Item 6 Fitness Management
Item 7 Health Education and Health Science
Item 13 Physical Education Curriculum
Item 14 Recreation and Leisure Education
Item 28 Sport Philosophy
Item 29 Sport Travel and Tourism

Conclusions

The results of this research allowed the investigator to develop an orderly process for designing, implementing, and establishing an undergraduate sport management major within a university exercise and sport science department. The procedures employed in designing the process included the following:

  1. The 10 top-ranked curriculum content and competencies items were incorporated in the sport management major.
  2. The results of factor analysis were employed to identify clusters of factors to serve as areas of emphasis within the sport management major.
  3. Existing literature was evaluated and considered during the design process.
  4. Curriculum standards set by NASPE/NASSM in 2000 were adopted as the foundation of the sport management major.

References

Alsop, W. L., & Fuller, G. F. (2001). Directory of academic programs in sport management. Morgantown, WV: Fitness Information Technology.

Banks, A. L., & Wright, O. (2001). The top five employment opportunities in physical education higher education. Physical Educator, 58(3), 150-158.

Boucher, R. L. (1998). Toward achieving a focal point for sport management: A binocular perspective. Journal of Sport Management, 12(1), 76-85.

Cuneen, J., & Sidwell, M. J. (1998). Evaluating and selecting sport management undergraduate programs. Journal of College Admissions, 158, 6-13.

Kelley, D. R., Beitel, P. A., DeSensi, J. T., & Blanton, M. D. (1994). Undergraduate and graduate sport management curricular models: A perspective. Journal of Sport Management, 8(2), 93-101.

Lambert, T. (1999). Thorstein Veblen and the higher learning of sport management education. Journal of Economic Issues, 33 (14), 973-983.

Leedy, P. D. (1997). Practical research: Planning and design (6th ed). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall.

National Association of Sport and Physical Education, North American Society for Sport Management. (2000). Sport management program standards and review protocol. Reston, VA: Author.

Parkhouse, B. L., & Pitts, B. G. (2001). Definition, evolution, and curriculum. In B. L. Parkhouse (Ed.), The management of sport (pp. 2-14). New York: McGraw-Hill.

Pitts, B. G. (2001). Sport management at the millennium: A defining moment. Journal of Sport Management, 15(1), 1-9.

Steir, W. F. (2001). Sport management: The development of sport management perspectives. In D. Kluka & G. Schilling (Eds.), The business of sport (pp. 39-56). Oxford, Oxfordshire, England: Meyer & Meyer Sport.

Weese, J. W. (2002). Opportunities and headaches: Dichotomous perspectives on the current and future hiring realities in the sport management academy. Journal of Sport Management, 16(1), 1-17.

Author Note

Michael D. Kerr, D.S.M.

2013-11-26T21:15:43-06:00February 18th, 2008|Contemporary Sports Issues, Sports Exercise Science, Sports Facilities, Sports Management, Sports Studies and Sports Psychology|Comments Off on Implementation of a Sport Management Major Within an Undergraduate Exercise and Sport Science Department
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Pain Apperception Among Athletes Playing Contact and Noncontact Sports

Submitted by: William F. Straub, Scott B. Martin, David Z. Williams, and Alyson L. Ramsey

Abstract

Pain intensity and pain duration experienced by male and female athletes playing contact and noncontact sports were measured using the Pain Apperception Test, or PAT (Petrovich, 1957). The PAT consists of 25 line drawings grouped into three series: (a) situations of felt sensation of pain (n = 9); (b) anticipation of pain as opposed to felt sensation of pain (4 counterpart pairs); and (c) origin of pain, either self-inflicted or other-inflicted (4 counterpart pairs). Using a 7-point Likert-like scale, the athletes evaluated each PAT drawing as to the intensity and duration of pain. The drawings feature distinct facial and body characteristics that facilitated the athletes’ projection into the various pain situations portrayed. MANOVA indicated that there were statistically significant differences (.05 level) in pain apperception between (a) male and female athletes, (b) contact and noncontact athletes, and (c) athletes in various sports. Stepwise multiple discriminate function analysis (SMDFA) was used to test the dispersion of group centroids in the discriminate space and to identify the variables that contributed the most variance to the between-group differences. SMDFA’s classification procedures assign athletes to groups based on their pain apperception scores.

Pain Apperception Among Athletes Playing Contact and Noncontact Sports

Pain is often associated with the athletic experience (Addison, Kremer, & Bell, 1998; Cook & Koltyn, 2000). Contact-sport athletes are particularly prone to injuries that can cause acute and chronic pain (Anshel & Russell, 1994). Being able to “play hurt” is often cited as important for success in such sports as lacrosse, football, ice hockey, and wrestling. Authors Iso-Ahola and Hatfield (1986) contend that pain tolerance is the most critical differentiator between successful and unsuccessful athletes in endurance sports.

Despite the attention given to pain by coaches, trainers, and medical personnel, sport psychologists have not systematically studied pain perception/apperception and its far-reaching dimensions (Addison et al., 1998).

Evaluation of reactivity to pain has been approached from the neurological, physiological, cultural, and psychoanalytic points of view. According to Petrovich (1991), overreactions, underreactions, marked fluctuations in thresholds, and marked reactions in the absence of indentifiable stimulus are common. Pain researchers typically focus on sensory endings, nerve tracts, and stimulus intensities (see Cook & Koltyn, 2000). However, the present investigators believe that the study of pain reactions requires a dynamic reconceptualization to advance the evaluation of athletes’ conscious and unconscious attitudes, feelings, and motivations. A projective technique seems most appropriate for studying the psychological aspects of pain.

Apperception, in its original sense dating back to Leibniz (1646-1716), refers to a final, clear perception evidencing recognition, identification, or comprehension of what has been perceived (Reber, 1995). Wundt (1832-1920) used the term similarly to refer to the mental process of selecting and structuring internal experience: of, in other words, focusing attention within the field of consciousness (Reber, 1995). Over the years, however, according to U. Neisser (personal communication, April 16, 2001), apperception has not been used very often, coming to be replaced by the word perception. J. Cutting (personal communication, April 18, 2001) is in agreement with Neisser that apperception and perception are now synonymous. Therefore, our review of literature will focus on pain perception as opposed to pain apperception; pain apperception sport studies were not found.

]Physiological and Psychological Aspects of Pain[

Past and contemporary authors of sport psychology texts have given very little attention to the psychological aspects of pain. For example, Willis and Campbell (1992) indicate that pain is associated with dropout among exercise participants. Van Raalte and Brewer (1996) state that some athletes are using drugs to moderate pain caused by athletic injuries. They devote several pages to the management of pain. Anderson and Williams (1988) have developed a model of stress and athletic injury, but the role of pain is not clearly defined. Although authors such as Andersen (2000) and Weinberg and Gould (1999) do discuss injuries as well as emotions and implications related to injury treatment and recovery, they do not discuss muscle pain or exercise-induced analgesia (i.e., the mechanisms that underlie either muscle pain experienced during exercise or exercise-induced analgesia). Furthermore, they do not cover in much detail (if they cover at all) how the perception of pain or injury influences athletic performance (e.g., the influence on athletes of seeing a gymnast severely injured in a fall from the balance beam). Perhaps the lack of attention authors have given to the psychological aspects of pain results from the dearth of research literature on this important topic.

Conceptualization of Pain

In an attempt to conceptualize pain in sport environments, Addison, Kremer, and Bell (1998) developed an integrative model that stressed action, sensation, cognitive appraisal, and outcome. Drawing on gate control theory (Melzack & Wall, 1965) and the parallel processing model (Leventhal, 1993), the model that Addison and colleagues developed (1993) includes physiological sensation, primary and secondary appraisal, possible outcomes, and cognitive coping strategy. Addison and colleagues also recognized the important role of extrinsic factors (e.g., culture) and intrinsic factors (e.g., personality) in athletes’ pain perception. Focus groups were used to validate the model, and in general they supported its basic premises. The model represents an early attempt to systematize the complex processes involved when athletes experience and respond to pain. As the authors point out, it is anticipated that this model will undergo further elaboration, validation, and confirmation in years to come. Addison and colleagues (1998) also developed a six-factor sport pain taxonomy that includes fatigue/discomfort, positive training pain, negative training pain, negative warning pain, negative acute pain, and numbness.

Athletes’ Tolerance of Pain

During the past decade, there have been numerous investigations of pain in athletic environments. Prokop (2000), for example, summarized well when he stated that pain is a serious warning symptom that places a decisive limit on sports capability in general and on the high performance of the athlete in particular. Addison and colleagues (1998) developed an integrative model linking the physiological sensation of pain to a two-stage process of cognitive appraisal and a series of behavioral responses, mediated by extrinsic and intrinsic factors together with cognitive coping strategies.

Using a controversial pain assessment procedure, Ryan and Kovacic (1966) found that contact-sport athletes tolerated acute pain significantly longer than did noncontact-sport athletes. Both groups tolerated more acute pain than nonathletes. Of particular interest were the assessment procedures used to measure pain. Passing up earlier pain-measurement methods (e.g., cold, heat, noise, electric shock), Ryan and colleagues induced pain by securing a plastic gridiron cleat to an athlete’s leg midway between ankle and knee, using a sphygmomanometer cuff. Inflating the cuff at a slow, constant rate pressed the cleat against the tibia. Inflation continued until the participant indicated that the pain could no longer be endured.

Kress (1999) studied former Olympic cyclists’ cognitive strategies for coping with pain during performance. Using inductive content analysis, he uncovered several higher order themes associated with pain management: pain, preparation, mental skills, mind and body, optimism, control, and “house in order.” Physically and mentally prepared cyclists experienced less pain than their counterparts lacking such preparation. Kress concluded that degree of pain is purely a perception.

Sternberg and colleagues (1998) evaluated experimental pain sensitivity in 36 male and 33 female collegiate athletes  two days before a competition, immediately following that competition, and again two days after the competition. When compared to 20 matched nonathlete controls, the male and female athletes provided data showing that competition dramatically reduced the perception of noxious stimuli. The researchers concluded that competition induces both hyperanalgesic and analgesic states that are dependent on the body region tested and the pain assessment methodology.

Effect of Aerobic and Strength Training

The effect of aerobic and strength training on pain tolerance, pain appraisal, and mood of unfit males, as a function of upper and lower limb pain location, was studied by Anshel and Russell (1994). Unfit males (n = 48) were randomly assigned to one of four groups: aerobic training, strength training, combined aerobic and strength training, and the no training control group. The training regimens consisted of exercising at least 3 times per week for 12 weeks. Pain tolerance, pain appraisal, and mood were assessed before the treatment and after 6 weeks and 12 weeks. MANOVA indicated that the presence of aerobic training increased upper limb pain tolerance and improved vigor, while decreasing fatigue, tension, and depression. Strength training showed no influence on pain tolerance or positive mood state, although it increased depression. Lower limb pain tolerance was unaffected by the treatments.

Scott and Gijsbers (1981) studied pressure pain tolerance of elite (high aerobically conditioned) and nonelite (low aerobically conditioned) swimmers. They found that elite swimmers could tolerate more pain than both club swimmers and noncompetitive swimmers. Club swimmers, in turn, could endure more pain than noncompetitors.

Janal and colleagues (1994) studied stoicism among runners. They compared two independent samples of male regular runners (n = 52) and normally active controls (n = 42) in terms of cold-pressor, cutaneous heat, and tourniquet ischemic pain tests. Results demonstrated that the runners’ threshold for noxious cold was significantly higher than that of controls. The heart rate and blood pressure responses to cold were similar in the two groups. However, signal-detection-theory measures demonstrated that runners discriminated among noxious thermal stimuli significantly better than controls. The researchers concluded that the data did not generally support the hypothesis of stoicism in habitual runners.

Cognitive Appraisal, Cognitive Strategies

The use of cognitive strategies to increase pain tolerance has also been investigated. Spink (1988) found that a dissociative cognitive strategy resulted in marked pain reduction and improved swim time, in contrast to associative cognitive strategy or no-strategy condition. Gauron and Bowers (1986) found that cognitive strategies significantly reduced chronic pain of injured collegiate noncontact sport athletes.

Using pain pressure, Brewer, Van Raalte, and Linder (1990b) found support for the hypothesis that pain inhibits motor performance as a function of task complexity. They reasoned that pain induces a state of overarousal which, in turn, negatively affects performance of difficult tasks. The researchers linked their findings with the inverted-U relationship between arousal and performance.

The present study was designed to test the following hypotheses:

1. There will be significant difference in pain apperception of athletes who participate in contact sports and those who participate in noncontact sports.

2. There will be significant difference in pain apperception of men athletes and women athletes.

3. There will be significant difference in pain apperception of athletes who participate in different sports.

4. There will be significant difference in pain apperception of highly skilled, average skilled, and low-skilled athletes.

]Method[

Participants

The volunteer participants (N = 108) were college-age men athletes (n = 83) and women athletes (n = 25) participating in the sports of football (n = 21), rugby (n = 16), men’s track and field (n = 28), women’s track and field (n = 13) , men’s lacrosse (n = 20), women’s softball (n = 1), and women’s soccer (n = 13 ). Mean age was 22.2 years for the men (SD = 3.87) and 18.5 years for the women (SD = 1.33).

Procedure

This investigation was approved by the Life University IRB. Following the signing of informed consent forms, participants were asked to take the Pain Apperception Test (Petrovich, 1957, 1958a). The PAT consists of 25 TAT-like line drawings grouped into three series: (a) situations of felt pain sensations (n = 9), (b) anticipation of pain versus felt sensation of pain (4 counterpart pairs), and (c) origin of pain, either self-inflicted or other-inflicted (4 counterpart pairs). In all 25 pictures, a male in his middle 30s is shown experiencing or about to experience pain. Examples of these pictures include a man falling from a broken ladder and a man seated in a dentist’s chair about to have a tooth drilled. The pictures were selected based on a survey of undergraduate college students who were instructed to list 10 situations that they associated with pain. The drawings feature distinct facial and body characteristics that facilitated the participants’ projection into the various pain situations portrayed.

Measures of pain intensity and pain duration were obtained for each of the 25 pictures. For the intensity measure, participants were asked to indicate, on a 7-point Likert-like scale, how the man in the picture feels, from 1 (no pain) to 7 (can’t stand pain). For the duration measure, participants were asked, “How long will it hurt him?”; responses again comprised a 7-point scale, from 1 (not at all) to 7 (months). Normative data are reported for three groups: 50 male and 50 female hospital personnel, 100 male hospitalized veterans, and 100 male chronic schizophrenics. Split-half reliabilities for intensity scores range from .56 to .84, with median .70; and for duration scores range from .65 to .89, with median .84 (Spielberger, 1983). Reliabilities are not reported for total scores.

Instructions to participants were as follows:

This is a test of imagination. You will see a number of pictures, one at a time. Each picture has two questions, and each question has seven possible answers to consider. Imagine the feelings of the man in the picture and circle the best possible answer for each question (Petrovich, 1991, p. 21).

According to Petrovich (1957, 1958a), the PAT is a valid and reliable instrument suitable for the assessment and evaluation of psychological variables involved in the experience of pain. The PAT was originally constructed on the basis of logic and empirical findings from extensive research studies done in 1956-1957. Two major premises underlie the PAT. First, each person is predisposed to perceive pain in others in a characteristic and relatively constant manner, stemming from his or her personal, idiosyncratic experiences with, and reactions to, pain. Second, this characteristic perceptual response can be elicited using pictures of persons in pain which require a subject to judge intensity and duration of pain experienced by the persons depicted (Petrovich, 1991).

Results of studies using the PAT indicate intra-individual consistency in pain apperception, neuroticism, and manifest anxiety (Petrovich, 1958a, 1958b, 1958c, 1960a, 1960b). The ability of the PAT to differentiate between normals and disturbed persons was supported by Silverstein and Owens (1961). They found that retarded participants’ painfulness concepts differed quite significantly from those of normal persons, and suggested that strikingly low pain apperception threshold could reflect an emotionally immature pain reaction.

The coaches of the athletes (N = 6) were asked to rate each player as (a) highly skilled, (b) of average skill, or (c) low-skilled. These evaluations were used to determine if athletes of different skill levels differed as to pain apperception. Skill comparisons were made on the basis of the athletic conference in which the athletes participated.

The intraclass correlation (ICC) approach was used to determine the reliability of the PAT (Pain Apperception Test). ICC evaluates the level of agreement between raters in measurements, where the measurements are parametric or at least interval. It may be conceptualized as the ratio of between-groups variance to total variance. According to Portney and Watkins (1993), this method is better than ordinary correlation, as more than two raters can be included. Shrout and Fleiss (1979) also lent support for the use of intraclass correlation when they indicated that it is preferred when sample size is small (comprising fewer than 15). Eleven athletes were tested and retested with a 4-week interval between test administrations. Felt sensation intensity scores ranged from .78 to .86; felt sensation duration scores ranged from .75 to .85.

]Results[

The purpose of this investigation was to determine if there were differences in pain apperception among (a) contact-sport and noncontact-sport athletes, (b) male and female athletes, (c) athletes who play different sports, and (d) athletes of low, medium, and high skill levels. To answer these questions, data were analyzed by means of descriptive and inferential statistical procedures. The primary research question was “What combination of dependent variables distinguishes these groups and which variables contribute the most to the between-group variances?” Therefore, MANOVA and stepwise multiple discriminate function analyses (SMDFA) were used to determine if there were significant differences (.05 level) in pain apperception between male and female athletes, contact and noncontact sport athletes, athletes who participate in different sports, and athletes of different skill levels. SMDFA’s classification procedures were used to assign athletes to groups based on their pain apperception scores. Cohen and Cohen (1983) lent credence to the use of SMDFA when they stated that it is a form of canonical analysis used when the dependent variable is categorical and is especially useful when the dependent variable has more than two categories.

Contact X Gender Pain Apperception

A 2 X 2 MANOVA (Gender X Contact) revealed a significant multivariate effect for gender, Wilks’s lambda = 0.73, F(10, 93) = 3:38, p < 0.001, eta squared = 0.267. Female athletes (n = 25) possessed lower pain apperception than male athletes (n = 83). Therefore, the hypothesis of significant difference in pain apperception between male athletes and female athletes was accepted. SMDFA revealed a significant multivariate effect for gender, Wilks’s lambda = 0.74, F(14, 91) = 2.26, p < 0.01. The variables self-inflicted-pain intensity, F(1, 106) = 14.82, p < 0.001, and self-inflicted-pain duration, F(1, 106) = 9.70, p < 0.001, contributed the most to between-groups differences in pain apperception. Females had lower pain apperception than males on these variables.

Based on their pain apperception scores, SMDFA’s classification procedures assigned 71.3% of the original grouped cases correctly to their respective groups; 71.0%of the males (n = 59) and 72.0% of the females (n = 24) were assigned correctly to their respective groups. Cross-validation procedures indicated that 69.4% of the grouped cases had been correctly classified.

Table 1 shows descriptive statistics for the collegiate athletes, in terms of contact/noncontact and contact/noncontact by gender. Note that the contact-sport athletes’ mean scores for pain apperception variables in all instances are lower than the scores of the noncontact-sport players. In addition, male contact-sport athletes have lower pain apperception scores than male noncontact-sport players. These generalizations are also true for 8 of 10 variables for female contact versus noncontact players. In general, the mean pain apperception scores for contact-sport athletes of either gender are lower than for noncontact-sport athletes.

Table 2 shows univariate F test values of pain apperception for male and female athletes. Statistically significant (.01 level) between-group differences were found for self-inflicted pain intensity, self-inflicted pain duration, and other-inflicted pain duration variables. Female athletes’ pain apperception scores were lower than those of male athletes.

Contact/Noncontact Pain Apperception

MANOVA revealed significant multivariate effect for pain apperception between contact-sport and noncontact-sport athletes, Wilks’s lambda = 0.80, F(10, 97) = 2.32, p < 0.017, eta squared = 0.23. Therefore, the hypothesis of significant difference in pain apperception was accepted. Contact-sport athletes (N = 49) had lower pain apperception than did noncontact-sport athletes (N = 59). SMDFA also revealed a significant between-group difference in pain apperception betweencontact-sport and noncontact-sport athletes, Wilks’s lambda = 0.89, F(1, 106) = 12.97, p < 0.001.

Using the first canonical discriminant function (self-inflicted-pain duration), the dispersion of the group centroids was tested using Wilks’s lambda, which may be interpreted as chi-square. This analysis revealed that the centroids were positioned in the discriminant space a significant distance from each other, Wilks’s lambda = 0.89, chi-square (1) = 12.18, p < 0.001.

SMDFA revealed that self-inflicted-pain duration accounted for the largest amount of between-group variance for contact-sport and noncontact-sport athletes, F(1, 106) = 12.97, p < 0.001, eta squared = 0.109. Other variables that distinguished contact-sport from noncontact-sport athletes were self-inflicted-pain intensity, F(1, 106) = 11.12, p < 0.001, eta squared = 0.095; other-Inflicted-pain intensity, F(1, 106) = 8.26, p < 0.01, eta squared = 0.072; and other-inflicted-pain duration, F(1, 106) = 9.96, p < 0.01, eta squared = 0.086.

SMDFA’s classification procedures assigned 62.0% of the original grouped cases correctly to their respective groups. Cross-validation procedures also indicated that 62.0% of the grouped cases were correctly classified, with 71% of the contact-sport athletes assigned correctly to a group and 67.8% of the noncontact-sport athlete assigned correctly to a group.

MANOVA also produced univariate F values of pain apperception for contact-sport athletes (n = 49) and noncontact sport athletes (n = 59) . Of the 10 dependent variables, 6 reached statistical significance at or beyond the .05 level. In terms of felt sensation pain duration, contact-sport athletes were significantly lower in pain apperception than noncontact-sport athletes, F(1, 106) = 4.56, p < .05, eta squared = 0.41. A significant difference between contact-sport athletes and noncontact-sport athletes was also found for anticipated duration of pain, F(1, 106) = 4.31, p < .05, eta squared = 0.039. Once again, contact-sport performers were lower in their apperception of pain duration than were noncontact-sport athletes. Self-inflicted-pain intensity apperceived by contact-sport athletes was significantly lower than that for noncontact-sport performers, F(1, 106) = 11.12, p < 0.001, eta squared = 0.095. A statistically significant difference in apperception of self-inflicted-pain duration was also found for contact-sport versus noncontact-sport players, F(1, 106) = 12.97, p < 0.001, eta squared = 0.109. Once again, contact-sport players were lower in apperception of self-inflicted-pain duration than were noncontact-sport athletes. Other-inflicted-pain intensity scores for contact-sport athletes were significantly lower than for noncontact-sport performers, F (1, 106) = 8.26, p < 0.01, eta squared = 0.072. Contact-sport athletes were also significantly lower in other-inflicted-pain duration than noncontact-sport athletes, F(1, 106) = 9.96, p < 0.01, eta squared = 0.086.

Gender/Sport Pain Apperception

A 2 X 5 MANOVA (Gender X Sport) revealed a significant multivariate effect for sport, Wilks’s lambda = .361, F (40, 354) = 2.74, p < 0.001, eta squared = 0.225. However, a significant difference was not found for gender, Wilks’s lambda = 0.91, F(10, 93) = 0.97, p > 0.47, eta squared = 0.095. Therefore, the hypothesis of significant differences in pain apperception among athletes in different sports was accepted. The hypothesis of significant differences in pain apperception among male and female athletes in different sports was rejected.

Univariate F-test comparisons of the 10 Pain Apperception Test variables for male athletes (n = 83) and female athletes (n = 25) produced three significant differences. Statistically significant differences (.01 level) were found for self-inflicted-pain intensity, F(1, 102) = 17.75, p < 0.001, eta squared = 0.148; for self-inflicted-pain duration, F(1, 102) = 8.74, p < 0.01, eta squared = 0.079; and for other-inflicted-pain duration, F(1, 102) = 5.68, p < 0.05, eta squared = 0.019. For these variables, female athletes had lower pain apperception scores than male athletes. Using these three variables, MANOVA produced an overall statistically significant difference between male and female athletes, Wilks’s lambda = 0.73, F(10, 93) = 3.38, p < 0.001, eta squared = 0.267.

SMDFA indicated that self-inflicted-pain intensity contributed the most to between-group differences, F(1, 103) = 8.53, p < 0.001]. Felt-sensation pain duration was the second variable in the stepwise procedures, F(2, 103) = 7.69, p < 0.001, that contributed the most to the between-group differences. No other variables reached statistical significance at or beyond the .05 level.

The SMDFA classification procedures indicated that 71.3% of the original grouped cases were correctly classified by their respective sports. Cross-validation procedures indicated that 69.4% of the cases were classified correctly. The correctly classified percentages by sport (with specified sport in parentheses) were as follows: 62.5% (rugby), 12.5% (track and field), 70% (lacrosse), 75.0% (soccer), and 23.8% (football). Of the original grouped cases, 42.6% of athletes were classified correctly. However, cross-validation procedures indicated that 38.9% of the grouped cases were correctly classified.

Table 3 shows descriptive statistics for pain apperception variables for male and female athletes in the sports of track and field, football, lacrosse, rugby, and soccer. Of the 10 comparisons, 7 variables were found to be statistically significant at or beyond the .05 level. Highly significant differences in pain apperception were found for the following:

1. felt sensation intensity, F(4, 102) = 2.79, p < .005, eta squared = 0.099

2. felt sensation duration, F(4, 102) = 3.36, p < 0.01, eta squared = 0.117

3. anticipated pain duration, F(4, 102) = 5.80, p < 0.001, eta squared = 0.185

4. felt sensation anticipated duration, F(4, 102) = 2.70, p < 0.05, eta squared 0.096

5. self-inflicted-pain intensity, F(4,102) = 8.21, p < 0.001, eta squared = 0.244

6. self-inflicted-pain duration, F(4, 102) = 3.43, p < .01, eta squared = 0.118

7. other-inflicted-pain duration, F (4, 102) = 2.56, p < 0.05, eta squared = 0.091

Where statistically significant, univariate, between-sport differences in pain apperception appeared, Bonferroni’s post hoc procedures were used to locate those differences. For felt sensation intensity, it was found that track and field athletes experienced higher apperception of pain than lacrosse and soccer players did. There were no significant differences in pain apperception between track and field athletes and rugby or football athletes. Bonferroni’s post hoc procedures also indicated that there were statistically significant differences in felt sensation duration among athletes who participated in track and field, rugby, and lacrosse, with rugby and lacrosse players scoring significantly lower for pain apperception than did track and field athletes. Significant differences in felt sensation duration were not found between track and field athletes and participants in thesoccer or football.

Statistically significant differences were not found among highly skilled athletes (n = 44), athletes of average skill (n = 42), and low-skilled athletes (n = 22) in terms of pain apperception, Wilks’s lambda = 0.779, F(20, 192) = 1.28, p > 0.200). Univariate F-test comparisons indicated that statistically significant differences in pain apperception were found for felt-sensation-pain duration, F(2, 105) = 3.44, p < .05, and anticipated duration, F(2, 105) = 3.72, p < .05.

]Discussion[

In reviewing the literature, studies of pain apperception in athletes using projective techniques were not found. To date, pain research involving athletes has focused primarily on the use of such assessment procedures as anecdotal and clinical reports, cold-water pressor procedures, and paper-and-pencil tests (e.g., Pain Catastrophizing Scale, McGill Pain Questionnaire). In an early investigation, pain was assessed in athletes by strapping a football cleat to the tibia using a sphygmomanometer (blood pressure) cuff. The cuff was inflated until the athlete could no longer endure the pain.

One of the main purposes of the present study was to determine if there were differences in pain apperception between male and female athletes. MANOVA revealed that female athletes had significantly lower pain apperception than male athletes did. In terms both of self-inflicted-pain intensity and self-inflicted-pain duration, female athletes scored significantly lower than their male counterparts; females also scored significantly lower than males for duration of other-inflicted-pain, although not for intensity of other-inflicted pain.

Comparative data using projective techniques were not found, but Hall and Davies (1991) did report that the data about interaction of gender with experience of pain are contradictory and inconclusive. Using the cold-water pressor test, Hall and Davies’s research on gender differences in athletes’ and others’ perception of pain intensity and affect indicated that nonathletes report significantly higher pain intensity than male and female athletes. Hall and Davies concluded that the literature supports the premise that pain threshold does not vary between males and females, whereas pain tolerance is greater in males (Otto & Dougher, 1985; Petrie, 1960).

In an attempt to explain gender differences, Rosillo and Fogel (1973) suggest that men are culturally conditioned to associate pain tolerance with masculinity. In contrast, women are often culturally and socially conditioned to avoid pain. Although sport-related research on pain is scarce, within the context of athletic performance a different set of social learning factors may be operating (Iso-Ahola & Hatfield, 1986; Jarmenko, 1978). For example, Ryan and Kovacic (1966) reported that female athletes displayed higher tolerance for aversive stimuli (i.e., sphygmomanometer cuff pressure) than did female nonathletes and male nonathletes. However, in a more recent investigation using the cold-water pressor test, Sullivan and colleagues (2000) examined differences in pain perception bewteen varsity athletes and sedentary controls. They found that the athletes reported less pain than the sedentary individuals, with men reporting less pain than women. Regression analyses revealed that catastrophizing accounted for differences between men and women as to pain perception.

In terms of the present study, there are two plausible explanations for the difference in pain apperception bewteen male and female athletes. First, the lower pain apperception among female athletes may result from their relative inexperience with pain, compared to male athletes; it is possible that the women did not know how to respond to the line drawings showing a man in his middle 30s in painful situations. The second explanation is that females actually do have lower pain apperception than males.

Another important objective of this research was to determine if there were pain apperception differences between contact-sport and noncontact-sport athletes. MANOVA revealed a significant multivariate effect for pain apperception among contact-sport as opposed to noncontact-sport athletes, Wilks’s lambda = 0.80, F(10, 97) = 2.32, p < 0.017. Contact-sport athletes had lower pain apperception than noncontact-sport players. Although using a different assessment procedure, Ryan and Kovocic (1966) reported that contact-sport athletes tolerated acute pain significantly longer than nonathletes did. It is likely that the contact sport experience helps athletes manage pain and is thus an influential variable in differences in pain apperception among athletes.

The measurement of pain apperception in athletes in different sports was another important objective of this study. Rugby players and female soccer players scored lowest on four of the pain apperception variables. Among the five groups of athletes, rugby players scored lowest on anticipated pain intensity, anticipated pain duration, felt sensation anticipated intensity, and felt sensation anticipation duration. The female soccer players scored lowest among the five teams on self-inflicted-pain intensity, self-inflicted-pain duration, other-Inflicted-pain intensity, and other-inflicted-pain duration. Since rugby is a contact, or collision, sport in which no protective equipment is used, it is no surprise that rugby players in this study obtained low pain apperception scores (firsthand observation of a rugby game can be convincing, concerning the validity of this statement). However, it is intuitively surprising that female soccer athletes scored lower than male rugby athletes and male football players on 4 of the 10 pain apperception variables, since soccer is often thought of as a semicontact sport.

Our finding, furthermore, is not in agreement with Sullivan and colleagues (2000), who found that male athletes and sedentary males scored lower in pain than did female athletes and sedentary females. Studying pressure pain tolerance of elite (high aerobically conditioned) and nonelite (low aerobically conditioned) swimmers, Scott and Gijsbers (1981) furthermore, reported that elite swimmers tolerated more pain than either club swimmers or noncompetitive swimmers did. Janel and colleagues’ results (1994) are also in conflict with the present findings. The earlier work compared two independent samples, male regular runners and normally active controls, through cold-pressor, cutaneous heat, and tourniquet ischemic pain tests. The runners’ threshold for noxious cold was significantly higher than that of the controls. Differences in pain sensitivity have been due to the instruments used in the various studies.

Finally, it is apparent from the above analyses that the Pain Apperception Test is not a very useful instrument to measure pain apperception in athletes. It is unable, for example, to discriminate among athletes who were obviously very different in their ability to withstand pain (e.g., rugby players vs. soccer players). Test revisions are needed to make the PAT appropriate for athletes. Perhaps sport-specific pain apperception instruments would better allow athletes to relate to portrayed painful situations. Incorporating sport-specific injury within the 25 cards and using line drawings (and/or photographs) of men and women might enhance the validity, reliability, and objectivity of the test.

Author Note

William F. Straub, Scott B. Martin, David Z. Williams, and Alyson L. Ramsey

Appreciation is extended to the players who participated in this study. Appreciation is extended to graduate student Tim Meyers, University of North Texas for his assistance with data collection. Appreciation is expressed to Coaches Rick McGuire and Brian Maggard, University of Missouri; Coach Dave Carty, Fairleigh Dickinson University; Coach John Hedlund, North Texas State University and Coach Mike Spino, Life University. Appreciation is extended to Professors Ulric Neisser and James Cutting, Cornell University, Department of Psychology, for their comments regarding the difference between apperception and perception.

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2013-11-26T21:17:02-06:00February 18th, 2008|Sports Exercise Science, Sports Management, Sports Studies and Sports Psychology|Comments Off on Pain Apperception Among Athletes Playing Contact and Noncontact Sports
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