Sports Studies and Sports Psychology – Page 3

COVID-19 and its impact on student-athlete depression and anxiety: the return to campus

Authors: Peter J Economou, Victoria Glascock, Mark Louie, Polina Poliakova, William Zuckerberg

Graduate School of Applied and Professional Psychology, Rutgers University, USA

Corresponding Author:

Peter Economou
1 Scarlet Knight Way
Piscataway, NJ 08854
[email protected]

Dr. Peter Economou, the Principal Investigator holds a Ph.D in counseling psychology with a concentration in neuropsychology. He conducts research on mindfulness and meditation in sports.

Dr. Mark Louie, a research assistant and Postdoc to the PI, holds an Ed.D in Applied Exercise Physiology, and a Masters in Psychological Counseling from Teachers College, Columbia University. He is a licensed counselor in both New Jersey and New York.

Victoria Glascock, Polina Poliakova, and William Zuckerberg are research assistants for the GSAPP Performance Psychology Center.

COVID-19 and its Impact on Student-Athlete Depression and Anxiety: The Return to Campus

ABSTRACT

The COVID-19 pandemic prompted the NCAA to abruptly cancel all sporting events, to help slow the spread of the virus. As such, measures such as social-distancing and work from home orders, were implemented nationwide. While effective, both safety measures are socially disruptive with the potential to cause psychological disturbances such as post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), depression, anxiety, and other behavioral disorders. To date, there is no literature that examines the consequences of abrupt mid-season cancellation for student-athletes, and the subsequent return to campus in Fall of 2020 brought on by a global crisis like the COVID-19 pandemic. To explore the mental health consequences of such termination and subsequent return to campus, student-athletes were surveyed on their experience with returning to campus amidst a global pandemic. Our results indicate that there were increased feelings of depression and anxiety upon returning to campus in Fall 2020.

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U.S. Sports Academy2023-11-10T14:24:44-06:00October 22nd, 2021|Research, Sports Studies and Sports Psychology|Comments Off

A Review of the Physical, Societal and Economic Effects of Wearable Devices in Sports

Authors: Ashley N. Smith

¹Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Virginia Polytechnic and State Institute, Blacksburg, VA, USA

Corresponding Author:
Ashley N. Smith
[email protected]
336-408-3745

Ashley N. Smith is a graduate student in The Bradley Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, pursuing a master’s degree in computer engineering and specializing in computer vision. Her areas of research interest include: the effects of technology in sports and developing software to reduce costs or improve efficiency for sports organizations.

A Review of the Physical, Societal and Economic Effects of Wearable Devices in Sports

ABSTRACT

Wearable technology has permeated the sports world throughout the last couple of decades because of the numerous advantages from collecting ample device data. Benefits of wearable devices, or wearables, in sports are extensive data analysis on performance, injury mitigation, and encouragement to monitor one’s physical health. With the diffusion of wearables into sports, its resulting effects have influenced all levels of athletes as well as the cadre of athletic personnel. Physical effects include increased general fitness and injury prevention, whereas societal effects encompass ethical changes, unprecedented privacy concerns and added stress on mental well-being. Economic effects consist of additional career opportunities as well as lucrative avenues for professional organizations and sports companies alike. This review of these various consequences helps guide the decision-making process for those investing in existing wearables and those developing novel devices in this nascent industry.

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U.S. Sports Academy2021-08-20T11:43:20-05:00August 6th, 2021|Research, Sports Studies and Sports Psychology|Comments Off

A phenomenological exploration of constraints for varsity football student-athletes with a sport-related concussion

Authors: Wahid Hamidi¹, Yusuf Hamidi², and George Karlis¹

¹Department of Human Kinetics, University of Ottawa, 125 University pvt., Ottawa, ON, Canada, K1N 1A2
²Department of Nursing, University of Ottawa 125, University pvt., Ottawa, ON, Canada, K1N 1A2

Corresponding Author:
Wahid Hamidi, Ph.D. Candidate
125 University pvt.
Ottawa, ON, Canada
K1N 1A2
Email: [email protected]
Phone: 613-558-8279

Wahid Hamidi is a Ph.D. candidate in the School of Human Kinetics at the University of Ottawa, Canada. His area or research focuses on initiating and maintaining physical activity and exercise behavior, and injury prevention and concussion management in the academic and athletic settings for varsity student-athletes. He is a recipient of the University of Ottawa Admission Scholarship.

Yusuf Hamidi is a Master of Science student in the School of Nursing at the University of Ottawa, Canada. His area of research focuses on problem-solving approaches to learning barriers for undergraduate students using simulated-based learning. He is a recipient of the Undergraduate Research Opportunity Program award.

George Karlis is a Full Professor in the School of Human Kinetics at the University of Ottawa, Canada. His area of research focuses on leisure, society, recreation, sport, and community development.

A phenomenological exploration of constraints for varsity football student-athletes with a sport-related concussion

ABSTRACT

Sports-related concussions are an emergent public health concern due to an increase in mortality and morbidity incident rates. The purpose of this study is to identify constraints in academic and athletic settings for varsity football student-athletes with a sport-related concussion. Twelve varsity football student-athletes from one institution who were diagnosed with a sport-related concussion took part in semi-structured interviews. This study used the social ecological model to identify intrapersonal, interpersonal, and environmental factors. Results suggested that varsity football student-athletes with a sport-related concussion experienced several constraining social ecological factors in the academic and athletic settings. Intrapersonal constraints related to loss of motivation, loss of social identification, stress, anxiety and depression, injury-specific issues, and internal pressure to return. Interpersonal constraints related to insufficient social support, lack of awareness and guidance on concussion knowledge, external pressure to return, and lack of academic support post-concussion. Environmental constraints related to return-to-play and return-to-learn protocols. Findings suggested that there remains a need to address constraining factors in the academic and athletic settings for varsity football student-athletes with a sport-related concussion.

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U.S. Sports Academy2021-05-12T09:35:00-05:00May 14th, 2021|Research, Sports Studies and Sports Psychology|Comments Off

The Impact of NBA New Rules on Games

Authors: Mahmoud M. Nourayi¹, Meghna Singhvi²

¹Department of Accounting, Loyola Marymount University, CA, USA
² Department of Accounting, Finance, Economics, and Law, California State University, Dominguez Hills, CA, USA

Corresponding Author:
Meghna Singhvi, PhD., CPA(inactive),MBA, MACC
1000 E. Victoria Street
Carson, CA 90747
[email protected]
310-243-3696

Dr. Mahmoud Nourayi, PhD, CPA, CMA, CFM is the Paul Grosch Professor of Accounting at Loyola Marymount University. He earned this distinct honor by dedicating more than 25 years to LMU teaching various accounting courses at the undergraduate and graduate level. He was named Outstanding Accounting Educator by the California Society of Certified Public Accountants. He regularly presents at U.S. and international academic conferences and has served at various times as Accounting Department Chair, Associate Dean of the College of Business Administration, and as facilitator for the LMU Accounting Society.

Dr. Meghna Singhvi, PhD, is an Associate Professor of Accounting at California State University, Dominguez Hills and her research focuses on corporate governance, gender diversity in the board room and CEO Power. She is a CPA (inactive) and she earned her MBA from Ohio University in 2002 and her Masters in Accountancy from NKU in 2004. She is passionate about inspiring students and has recently established the “THRIVE” mentorship program at CSUDH along with two other faculty members to bridge the gap between industry experts and her students at CSUDH.

The Impact of NBA New Rules on Games

ABSTRACT

The purpose of this study is to examine the impact of rule changes by the National Basketball Association on pace, scoring, physicality, and shot selection in professional basketball games. Method: We use regression analysis to examine the trend of various game indicators about the speed and flow, physical plays, shooting accuracy, and shot selection over time. Results: Our findings showed an upward trend in the number of possessions, Points, and Field Goal Attempts in line with the expectation of the NBA league administrators. We also observed a downward trend in the number of Personal Foul calls, Free Throws Attempts, and Free Throws Made after the rule changes and our findings further indicated an increase in relative number of 3-point shots as well as increased shooting precision in 2-point shots. Based on our hypothetical scoring of the games and analysis, about 10.3% of the wins and 6.5% of losses were attributable to 3-point shots. Conclusion: Our analyses indicate that the 2-point shooting percentage (2P%), on average, improved more than that for 3-point shots over time, and the number of personal foul calls, free throw attempts and free throws made declined under new rules over time. Application in Sports: While 3-point shots did not seem to impact the game outcome for most games, it appears that the involvement of the more skilled and agile players has made the game faster. However, shot selection decision by the teams must be based on game conditions and managed by coaches on a game by game basis, perhaps even quarter by quarter, and player by player.

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U.S. Sports Academy2021-01-07T09:58:40-06:00January 15th, 2021|Sports Studies and Sports Psychology|Comments Off

A longitudinal analysis of the differential performances of seeded male and female Grand Slam tennis players

Author: Raymond Stefani
California State University, Long Beach

Corresponding Author:
Raymond Stefani
25032 Via Del Rio
Lake Forest, CA 92630
[email protected]
949-586-1823

Dr. Raymond Stefani is a professor emeritus at the California State University, Long Beach with 170 publications covering rating systems, individual Olympic sports, team sports, home advantage, and sports history

A longitudinal analysis of the differential performances of seeded male and female Grand Slam tennis players

ABSTRACT

Purpose: This paper evaluates Grand Slam tennis at the most fundamental level, the match-by-match competition between established players and their challengers. The competitive balance of men and women therefore is evaluated in this paper, as measured by the success of lower-seeded or un-seeded competitors at winning matches. Methods: A 14-season database was tabulated, covering 56 Grand Slams for men and 56 for women contested from 2006 through 2019, including nearly 5,000 matches for men and 5000 for women, each involving at least one seeded player. Results and Discussion: Overall, higher seeded players were upset in 25% of women’s matches and in 21% of men’s matches. As an average season progressed, women were involved in more upset matches than men by 28% at the season opening Australian open on hard court, by 15% on red clay at the French Open, by 14% on grass at Wimbledon (where the most upsets happened for both men and women) ending with 11% on hard court at the US Open. Lower-seeded or un-seeded men became consistently more competitive as each season progressed, while women remained at the same highly competitive level. On a year-by-year basis, competitive balance (upsets) have increased somewhat, that is, the predictability of higher-seeded players has decreased over time. Conclusions: The cumulative effect of the upset differential is that spectators watched the progress of the strongest men’s seeds, wondering how they would do against the three dominant men’s players, Nadal, Djokovic, and Federer, who won 48 of the men’s 56 Grand Slams over the 14-year period. In contrast, dynamic new young female players emerged, winning by upset until some became higher seeds and even Grand Slam champions themselves, only to be upset and replaced as champion by a new wave of enthusiastic and compelling competitors, exemplified by the fact that 24 women won their 56 Grand Slams. Applications to Sport: The marketing, advertising, and psychological/physical player preparation should consider the fundamental spectator’s eye views that differentially define men and women’s Grand Slam tennis.

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U.S. Sports Academy2021-01-07T09:57:31-06:00December 25th, 2020|Research, Sports Studies and Sports Psychology|Comments Off