Gymnastik- och idrottshögskolan, GIH

Using a three-wave prospective cross-lagged panel design, the study examined six-month stability of burnout, self-compassion and social support among sports coaches in terms of measurement invariance, mean-level change, rank-order stability, and structural stability. The participating coaches (N = 422; Mage = 44.48, SD = 11.03) completed an online questionnaire measuring self-compassion, social support, coach burnout and demographics at baseline and two follow-ups at three months and six months. The various forms of stability were assessed using structural equation modeling. There was no significant mean-level change in burnout, self-compassion, or social support, and all three constructs exhibited measurement invariance. Rank-order stability remained relatively high, ranging from .78 to .94 across the three time points. For all three constructs, covariances between latent factors were invariant over time, indicating high structural stability. While self-compassion and social support were positively related, both were negatively related to coach burnout. These results confirm the importance of preventing and addressing symptoms of burnout, low self-compassion and poor social support in sports settings.

Using a three-wave prospective cross-lagged panel design, the study examined six-month stability of burnout, self-compassion and social support among sports coaches in terms of measurement invariance, mean-level change, rank-order stability, and structural stability. The participating coaches (N = 422; Mage = 44.48, SD = 11.03) completed an online questionnaire measuring self-compassion, social support, coach burnout and demographics at baseline and two follow-ups at three months and six months. The various forms of stability were assessed using structural equation modeling. There was no significant mean-level change in burnout, self-compassion, or social support, and all three constructs exhibited measurement invariance. Rank-order stability remained relatively high, ranging from 0.78 to 0.94 across the three time points. For all three constructs, covariances between latent factors were invariant over time, indicating high structural stability. While self-compassion and social support were positively related, both were negatively related to coach burnout. These results confirm the importance of preventing and addressing symptoms of burnout, low self-compassion and poor social support in sports settings.

Syfte och frågeställningar

Syftet med studien var att undersöka om en kortare period av motiverande samtal (MI) kunde påverka livskvaliteten positivt hos en arbetande population. De tre frågeställningarna var: Kan en kort period av MI förändra livskvaliteten positivt? Vilka eventuella effekter har en kortare period av MI på livskvaliteten? Finns det några skillnader i eventuell förändring av livskvalitet mellan kön, ålder samt utbildningsnivå?

Metod

Studien bestod av två MI-samtal med tre veckors mellanrum, samt en enkätundersökning som genomfördes före och efter samtalsperioden. Ett företag kontaktades och deltagarna rekryterades genom information på företagets intranät. 25 anmälda bildade MI-gruppen och därefter efterfrågades kontrollgruppsdeltagare via mail, 23 anställda bildade kontrollgruppen. Företaget hade sedan många år tillbaka haft ett nära samarbete med företagshälsovården. En redan framtagen livskvalitetsenkät, SF-36, användes tillsammans med en egen kompletterande enkät om kön, ålder och utbildning. Enkätsvaren kodades om och analyserades enligt manualen för SF-36. Därefter utfördes statistiska tester för att få fram eventuella skillnader inom och mellan grupperna. Det totala bortfallet blev fyra personer från kontrollgruppen, resultatet beräknades utifrån 19 deltagare i kontrollgruppen och 25 deltagare från MI-gruppen.

Resultat

Resultaten visade att en kortare period av MI inte kunde förändra livskvaliteten och att det inte heller fanns någon signifikant skillnad i livskvalitet mellan grupperna. Vi tror att det bland annat kan bero på det tidigare hälsoarbetet på företaget. Däremot kunde en signifikant förbättring av den mentala hälsan inom MI-gruppen konstateras som en effekt. Det fanns inga skillnader i förändring av livskvalitet mellan kön, ålder och utbildningsnivå.

Slutsats

Slutsatsen blev att signifikanta resultat på livskvaliteten inte går att uppnå på så kort tidsperiod som studien avsåg. Utifrån de givna tidsramarna var studiens modell hanterbar och kunde ändå uppvisa resultat i form av en förbättring av mental hälsa hos MI-gruppen.

Abstract

Aim: Since there is a lack of research based educational interventions concerning the relationship between coaches and young athletes, the aim of this study was to implement and examine the effects of sport psychology intervention for coaches in a track and field club. The research questions were: What are the effects of an educational intervention for coaches, with focus on a motivational climate, on: A) the coaches´ coaching approach B) their athletes´ goal orientation and C) their athletes´ perceived competitive anxiety?

Method: The coach education stretched over two months and consisted of four two-hour lessons with focus on motivational climate, goal orientation and sport anxiety. Six coaches (three females, three males), aged 38-52 (M=44.33 years, SD=4.84) and their 59 athletes (27 males and 32 females) aged 12-14 (M=13.10 years, SD=0.82), participated in the study. A control group of 35 athletes (10 males and 25 females), of the same age (M=13.46 years, SD=0.70) and with similar demographic data, was also recruited. Potential effects of the intervention on the coaches and athletes were captured by measuring key constructs twice (pre-/post-test). Measures included a study-specific motivational climate questionnaire for the coaches and two validated questionnaires for athletes: the Achievement Goal Scale for Youth Sports (AGSYS; Cumming, Smith, Smoll & Grossbard 2008) and Sport Anxiety Scale-2 (SAS-2; Smith, Smoll, Cumming & Grossbard 2006). Descriptive statistics, repeated ANOVA and repeated MANOVA were used to analyze the data.

Results: The analyses showed that the participating coaches experienced positive behavioral changes among themselves regarding support of autonomy, belonging, competence, and encouragement to task orientation, five months after the intervention had taken place (F (1, 5) = 6.49, p < .051,  = .56). The analyses did not reveal any statistically significant changes concerning neither the athletes´ goal orientation nor sport anxiety over time or compared to the control group.

Conclusions:The study indicates a continuous need for longitudinal research based sport psychology interventions, especially towards individual sports since they, in many ways, differ from team sports. Future studies ought to complement with qualitative measurements which can bring deeper understanding of how, when and why changes occur. Despite loss effects in the athletes, the coaches´ perceived behavioral changes in themselves indicate that educational interventions are worthwhile in the long run.

Key words: coaches, competitive anxiety, motivation, motivational climate interventions, youth

This study explored the experiences and perceptions of coaches, athletes, and integrated support teams towards the management of three Paralympic teams across North America and Europe. Six focus groups with athletes, three interviews with head coaches, and 10 interviews with support team members were conducted and analyzed using a reflexive thematic analysis. Our analysis resulted in three overarching themes to portray the coaches' role and behaviours in managing their (1) athletes, (2) integrated support teams, and (3) team as a collective unit. All teams were made up of a diverse group of athletes that required individualized considerations regarding age, finances, and disability. Coaches were successful when they fostered autonomy and managed interpersonal conflict by utilizing their integrated support teams to foster cohesiveness. This study provides an in-depth view of the role of the coach in managing national parasport teams by incorporating multiple perspectives from three teams around the world.

The purpose of this study was to explore interpretations and implications of head coaches ' use of humour in three national Paralympic teams from the perspective of athletes and integrated support staff. We conducted six focus groups with 19 Paralympic athletes and individual interviews with 10 support staff members across the teams. Our reflexive thematic analysis resulted in two overarching themes that helped us understand how humour influenced feelings of psychological safety in the team environment, as well as considerations or challenges with using humour as a coaching strategy, including miscommunication or misunderstanding. Relational awareness, emotional intelligence, and effective communication were identified as important coaching competencies to consider when implementing humour as a leadership behaviour, particularly in an environment where power differentials of status and disability were present. The study was among the first to explore interpretations and implications of humour as a coaching strategy from athletes and staff in the high-performance parasport context. Coaches who implement humour within their environments are encouraged to reflect on the receivers of the interaction and how to maximise the facilitative rather than debilitative functions of humour as a "double-edged sword" to ultimately promote team satisfaction, well-being, and success.

Background: Some studies suggest that elite athletes experience adverse mental health symptoms at rates commensurate with the general population, despite the well-established buffering effects of exercise. Within contact sports, such as ice-hockey, recurrent concussions may be a source of this discrepancy. We compared the point prevalence of various mental health outcomes with other athlete and general population samples, as well as investigated their relationship with concussive events.

Methods: We surveyed 648 active ice hockey players from the top two men's tiers and the top women's tier in Swedish elite ice hockey on lifetime concussive events, hazardous alcohol use, problematic social media use, depression, anxiety, and burnout.

Results: Hazardous alcohol use was more prevalent among male ice hockey players (29.5% AUDIT-C ≥ 6) compared to other athlete and general population samples, while other mental health symptoms were less common. Female ice hockey players reported higher hazardous alcohol consumption (36.4% AUDIT-C ≥ 4) than another athlete sample and more burnout (19.1%) than the general population. After adjusting for covariates, athletes with 3+ concussive events had 2.1 times the odds of elevated depressive symptoms and 3.5 times the odds of elevated burnout symptoms compared to those with no concussion history. Treating lifetime concussive events as a continuous predictor revealed positive correlations with all outcomes except for hazardous alcohol use.

Conclusions: Mental health outcome rates among active elite ice hockey athletes differ from those of other athlete and general population samples, whilst concussive events may be particularly linked to elevated symptoms of depression and burnout.

The identification and development of talent is a key concern for many dance educators, yet little research has been conducted in the area. In order to understand better how to optimise dance talent development among young people, systematic and rigorous research is needed. This paper summarises and discusses the key findings of a ground-breaking longitudinal interdisciplinary research project into dance talent development. Over two years, almost 800 young dancers enrolled at one of the eight nationwide Centres for Advanced Training (CATs) participated in the project. Physical factors, psychological characteristics, and injury data were collected quantitatively while the students' thoughts and perspectives on commitment, creativity and cultural variables were captured using qualitative methods. The largest study of its kind, the project yielded a wide range of findings with a number of practical implications. The main focus of this paper is on how the project findings apply to important pedagogic topics such as audition criteria, passion and commitment, and teaching behaviour. The area of talent identification and development is complex, yet this research has begun to shed new light on the notion of talent and has provided novel insights to support its development.

Commitment to an activity forms an essential part of the talent development process, yet little is known about the reasons why young people commit to dance training. The aim of this study was to investigate the factors that affect young dancers’ commitment to a selective dance talent scheme. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 19 committed dancers and transcripts were content analysed. Enjoyment was the most important factor relating to commitment, and stemmed from several sources such as self-expression, movement sensations and feelings associated with performing. Relationships with dance peers and teachers, parental support and the opportunities available on the scheme also enhanced commitment. While some potential barriers to participation were identified, such as concerns about injury, these seemed insufficient to affect the participants’ commitment. The results of the study may help educators to develop young dancers’ talents optimally by enhancing their commitment to training. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Although sport psychology practitioners and researchers acknowledge the importance of continued professional development (CPD) for professional effectiveness and excellence, few studies have explored the influence of CPD activities on the practitioners' practice and thinking. This study examined qualified Swedish sport psychology practitioners' experiences of engaging in a CPD program and how it impacted their professional development. The Swedish Sports Confederation offers a CPD program that targets performance enhancement services and psychotherapy for sport psychology practitioners. We explored the influence of this CPD program on the professional development of 13 graduates (five females; age in years: M = 41.2, SD = 8.3) via semi-structured interviews. Our stance involved a realist ontology and constructionist epistemology. We followed the six-step Reflexive Thematic Analysis procedures to analyze data. We identified four themes of CPD: (1) Critique (participants decided to do the CPD program because of perceived gaps in their knowledge and skills), (2) Change (participants discussed several changes as a result of the CPD program), (3) Context (participants discussed the aspects of the CPD program that promoted change), and (4) Challenge (participants mentioned issues related to having completed the program). The study provides insights into the value of CPD activities for sport psychology practitioners, advances current knowledge on practitioner maturation, and illustrates how CPD fits within a practitioner's lifelong learning. Future research could investigate the professional development of mid-career sport psychology practitioners engaging in other CPD programs to confirm or extend this work.

IntroductionAlthough sport psychology practitioners acknowledge the benefits of continued professional development (CPD), few studies have explored the influence of such activities on the practitioners’ practice and thinking (Quarteroli et al., 2021). This study aimed to examine qualified sport psychology practitioners’ experiences engaging in a CPD program and how it impacted their professional development.MethodsThe Swedish Sports Confederation offers a CPD programme that targets performance enhancement services and psychotherapy for sport psychology practitioners. We explored the influence of this CPD program on the professional development of thirteen graduates (five female; age in years: M = 41.2, SD = 8.3) via semi-structured interviews. Our stance involved a realist ontology and constructionist epistemology (Elder-Vass, 2012). We followed the six-step reflexive thematic analysis procedures to analyze data (Braun et al., 2019).ResultsFour themes of CPD emerged: (1) Critique (participants decided to do the CPD course because of perceived gaps in their knowledge and skills), (2) Change (participants discussed changes they experienced as a result of the course), (3) Context (participants discussed the aspects of the CPD course that helped them change), and (4) Challenge (participants mentioned issues related to having completed the course).DiscussionThe study provides insights into the value of CPD education for sport psychology practitioners, helps bolster confidence in current knowledge on practitioner maturation and illustrates how CPD fits within a practitioner’s lifelong learning. Future research could investigate the professional development of other mid-career sport psychology practitioners to confirm or extend this work.

Syftet med kapitlet är att presentera och diskutera teoretiska och praktiska frågor på ett sätt som främjar ett långlivat och hälsosamt ledarskap med fokus på tävlingsidrotten. Författarna utgår från det förenklade antagandet att «en coach som mår bra» sannolikt är mer framgångsrik och långlivad i jämförelse med en coach som mår dåligt. 

It is common in elite sport to monitor athletes' training load, injuries and illnesses, but mental distress is rarely included. An improved understanding of the epidemiology of mental distress among elite Para athletes and how their coaches perceive such monitoring would allow us to better develop and implement preventive measures. The purpose of this study was therefore to (1) prospectively describe elite Para athletes' mental distress, before, during and after the Beijing Paralympic Games (Paralympics Games 22 = PG22); and to (2) gain a better understanding of if and potentially how awareness of athletes' mental distress changed, through weekly monitoring, and influenced how coachers perceive athletes' mental distress and if they accounted for this before, during and after PG22. A mixed-method study design was used, in which prospective mental distress (depression and anxiety) data were collected weekly from 13 [Swedish] elite Para athletes in preparation, during and after PG22. Data were screened and evaluated weekly by a physiotherapist and a sports psychologist, and coaches also received weekly reports. A focus-group interview with the coaches were conducted post Paralympics to address coaches' awareness about mental distress and athlete health monitoring in Parasport. For data analyses, descriptive statistics was used for the quantitative data and a content analysis was conducted for the qualitative data. The results reveled the following proportion of datapoints indicating symptoms of anxiety and depression: before PG22 (15.8 and 19.1%); during PG22 (47.6 and 38.2%); and after PG22 (0 and 11.8%). The qualitative results indicated that coaches perceived athlete health monitoring as helpful for increasing their awareness of mental distress, and as a useful tool to initiate support for their athletes as well as improving their coaching. In summary, this cohort of elite Para athletes reported a high proportion of mental distress during the Winter Paralympic Games in Beijing. The results also show that it is important and feasible to monitor Para athletes' mental distress to detect and manage early symptoms of mental distress.

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to study the demand-control-support (DCS) model on burnout in male and female managers and non-managers, taking into account genetic and shared family environmental factors, contributing to the understanding of mechanisms of how and when work stress is related to burnout. Design/methodology/approach – A total of 5,510 individuals in complete same-sex twin pairs from the Swedish Twin Registry were included in the analyses. Co-twin control analyses were performed using linear mixed modeling, comparing between-pairs and within-pair effects, stratified by zygosity and sex. Findings – Managers scored higher on demands and control in their work than non-managers, and female managers seem to be particularly at risk for burnout facing more demands which are not reduced by a higher control as in their male counterparts. Co-twin analyses showed that associations between control and burnout as well as between demands and burnout seem to be affected by shared family environmental factors in male non-managers but not in male managers in which instead the associations between social support and burnout seem to be influenced by shared family environment. Practical implications – Taken together, the study offers knowledge that shared environment as well as sex and managerial status are important factors to consider in how DCS is associated to exhaustion. Originality/value – Using twin data with possibilities to control for genetics, shared environment, sex and age, this study offers unique insight into the DCS research, which focusses primarily on the workplace environment rather than individual factors.

Mike at 49 years old is an experienced professional in the field of sport psychology. He holds a dual position as a part-time mental performance consultant and teaching sport psychology as adjunct faculty at a local college. Upon graduation, Mike ended his running career and decided to pursue graduate studies in the United States in applied sport psychology – an emerging professional field internationally. Being on sick leave meant that Mike was able to focus on his recovery and through counseling therapy and mindfulness exercises, he was able to gradually overcome his acute burnout episode. Fellow professionals attending the session thanked Mike for sharing his personal experiences so openly. Several acknowledged that they share similar experiences. Reflecting on the session, the topic of self-care, establishing professional boundaries and preventing burnout, seems to be a prevalent issue for sport psychology professionals.

Mike at 49 years old is an experienced professional in the field of sport psychology. He holds a dual position as a part-time mental performance consultant and teaching sport psychology as adjunct faculty at a local college. A strong work ethic and, at times, perfectionistic tendencies are rooted in his past as an elite athlete. He competed as a distance runner for 13 years. Upon graduation, Mike ended his running career and decided to pursue graduate studies in the United States in applied sport psychology. While flourishing professionally, his personal life had taken a toll. He got married shortly after finishing graduate school and decided to move to Europe. Things got even more challenging with his children's birth and seemed impossible for Mike to juggle the multitude of demands, and to balance time with his family with professional responsibilities. Lack of self-care became a more pressing issue in coping with the multiple demands of consulting, teaching and research. This chapter discusses Mike's story, his experiences, personality traits, situational factors, symptoms experienced, actions taken to overcome his burnout and lessons learned from the experience, and key aspects of a sport psychology professionals regarding prioritizing self-care and preventing burnout.

Ostörd handlar om att värna om, prioritera och förvalta dina mentala tillgångar. Då kan de användas där de behövs som mest och dessutom är roligast att tillämpa i utmanande, kreativt, koncentrerat arbete. 

En intervjustudie med idrottare och deras tränare visar på likheter, men också en del intressanta skillnader i sättet att se på trötthetsbegreppet. Artikeln diskuterar vad det kan bero på och ger förslag på hur tränare kan bli bättre på att läsa av sina utövares trötthet.

Classical ballet training has been criticized for prioritizing technical excellence over creativity,despite 21st century dancers needing to be strong in both aspects. The aim of this study was toinvestigate professional choreographers’ views on (a) how ballet training inspired vs. inhibitedtheir creativity and (b) potential gender differences in this regard. Eight choreographers (50%female) participated in semi-structured interviews, with transcripts analyzed using thematicanalysis. The key theme was created from accounts of how ballet training impacted on interviewees’Intrinsic motivation to create, fed into by experiences of Autonomy, Variety andOpportunities. Experiences of significant autonomy thwarting were considered to have inhibitedcreativity; this was one of several areas of gender difference, and a reason for participants topursue choreography rather than stay employed as dancers. In following the emergentRecommendations for schools, it is possible that Intrinsic motivation to create could be betternurtured in ballet training.

The study investigated the impact of varying combinations of facilitative and debilitative imagery and self-talk (ST) on self-efficacy and performance of a dart-throwing task. Participants (N = 95) were allocated to 1 of 5 groups: (a) facilitative imagery/facilitative ST, (b) facilitative imagery/debilitative ST, (c) debilitative imagery/facilitative ST, (d) debilitative imagery/debilitative ST, or (e) control. Mixed-design ANOVAs revealed that performance, but not self-efficacy, changed over time as a function of the assigned experimental condition. Participants in the debilitative imagery/debilitative ST condition worsened their performance, and participants in the facilitative imagery/facilitative ST condition achieved better scores. These findings demonstrate that a combination of facilitative imagery and ST can enhance performance whereas debilitative imagery and ST can hamper it.

While there is a lack of research into abuse in elite dance, numerous allegations of emotional, sexual and physical abuse of dancers can be found anecdotally in the media, legal convictions and personal accounts. As more dancers speak out, the scale of the problem within preprofessional schools and professional companies is becoming apparent. Accordingly, effective safeguarding mechanisms for preventing, identifying and reporting abuse are urgently needed. This viewpoint is intended to raise health professionals' awareness of factors contributing to abusive practices found in dance environments and the potential clinical implications of abuse to dancers' health and well-being. We also call for research and policy engagement on safeguarding and abuse prevention designed and implemented in partnership with stakeholders, aiming to promote safe and positive dance environments for all.

Early specialisation is largely advised against, partly due to the postulated negative motivational implications. However, early specialisation is commonly considered necessary for high-level performance in aesthetic activities, such as gymnastics and dance. The present study, therefore, explores the relationship between motivation and early specialisation in a sample of Swedish aesthetic performers, from a self-determination theory perspective. The aims of this study were twofold: (1) to identify whether early specialisation is associated with motivation (autonomous motivation, controlled motivation, and dropout intentions) within a sample of aesthetic performers, and (2) to investigate if such relationships are moderated by perceptions of parental influence. Two hundred and ninety high-level aesthetic performers (M=15.88 years old, SD=2.34; 83% female) were recruited from Swedish clubs and schools to complete a questionnaire pack. The questionnaire pack included questions concerning demographic information, specialisation history, motivation, dropout intentions, and perceptions of parental influence. The results of our analyses do not support the claims that early specialisation is associated with negative motivational implications. In fact, the results show that those who reported a higher degree of specialisation ≤ 12 years old reported less controlled motivation than those who reported a lesser degree of early specialisation. Additionally, perceptions of parental influence were not found to moderate the relationship between early specialisation and motivation. These results are discussed in relation to the growing critique regarding the conceptualisation and measurement of early specialisation in sport literature.

In this small-scale study we investigated ballet teachers’ views and experiences of autonomy and autonomy support. For this purpose, we conducted semi-structured interviews with six ballet teachers in a prestigious pre-professional ballet school in Europe. Findings indicate that when and how autonomy was provided seemed to be impacted by whether a teacher either challenged or adhered to ballet ideals. By using the Circumplex Model of motivation, three different levels of autonomy support could be identified: high autonomy support, moderate autonomy support, and controlling approaches. The findings present a nuanced picture of ballet teachers’ views, experiences, and teaching styles and suggest that dance educators move on a continuum of autonomy supportive and controlling behaviors.

INTRODUCTION: Dancers are expected to navigate major challenges in their careers that might take a toll on their physical and mental health. To address underlying factors that might increase dancers' mental and physical health difficulties, research suggests the systematic use of techniques to build mental skills that can reduce risk factors and enhance protective factors against the challenges dancers encounter. However, existing mental skills training interventions in dance present a lack of consistency in design, content and duration, making it difficult to provide evidence-based recommendations. Hence, dance researchers and practitioners would benefit from a mixed methods systematic review (MMSR) of the why, what and how of these interventions. Adopting tools such as the Template for Intervention Description and Replication (TIDieR) can aid this endeavour by describing replicable aspects of interventions, thus offering dance researchers suggestions on how to understand, appraise and report intervention characteristics and processes in dance. Therefore, this protocol outlines a MMSR that will employ TIDieR to identify and assess characteristics of mental skills interventions in dance.

METHODS AND ANALYSIS: A systematic search will be undertaken in Psycinfo, Medline, Embase, Sportdiscus, Web of Science and the first 30 pages of GoogleScholar. Following the search, two reviewers will independently screen identified studies in Covidence. One reviewer will extract data using the TIDieR framework and the Mixed Methods Appraisal Tool (MMAT) for quality appraisal, while a second reviewer will check a sample of extracted studies for accuracy. A convergent integrated synthesis will be conducted where quantitative and qualitative evidence will be integrated by qualitising the quantitative data into textual descriptions.

ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION: There is no requirement for ethical approval for this systematic review as no empirical data will be collected. The findings will be disseminated through a peer-reviewed publication in a scientific journal and presentations in several different forums (eg, a dance psychology network, at scientific and applied conferences).

PROSPERO REGISTRATION NUMBER: CRD42024537249.

Framgångar före och under ett VM ställer stora och olika krav på coachernas kompetens. Behovet av en kontinuerlig kompetensutveckling är stort, men enligt coacherna själva är det inget som sker systematiskt. Det är den egna drivkraften som styr utvecklingen.

Vilka kompetenser behöver en elitcoach ha för att lyckas i ett mästerskap?

Svenska friidrottscoacher lyfter till exempel fram erfarenhet, planeringsförmåga,  stresstålighet, kommunikationsförmåga och kunskaper om formtoppning. Allt ryms inom det forskare kallar för professionell, interpersonell och intrapersonell kunskap.

BACKGROUND: Exercise has mood-enhancing effects and can improve cognitive functioning, but the effects in first-episode psychosis (FEP) remain understudied. We examined the feasibility and cognitive effects of exercise in FEP.

METHOD: Multi-center, open-label intervention study. Ninety-one outpatients with FEP (mean age = 30 years, 65% male) received usual care plus a 12-week supervised circuit-training program, consisting of high-volume resistance exercises, aerobic training, and stretching. Primary study outcome was cognitive functioning assessed by Cogstate Brief Battery (processing speed, attention, visual learning, working memory) and Trailmaking A and B tasks (visual attention and task shifting). Within-group changes in cognition were assessed using paired sample t tests with effect sizes (Hedges' g) reported for significant values. Relationships between exercise frequency and cognitive improvement were assessed using analysis of covariance. Moderating effects of gender were explored with stratified analyses.

RESULTS: Participants exercised on average 13.5 (s.d. = 11.7) times. Forty-eight percent completed 12 or more sessions. Significant post-intervention improvements were seen for processing speed, visual learning, and visual attention; all with moderate effect sizes (g = 0.47-0.49, p < 0.05). Exercise participation was also associated with a positive non-significant trend for working memory (p < 0.07). Stratified analyses indicated a moderating effect of gender. Positive changes were seen among females only for processing speed, visual learning, working memory, and visual attention (g = 0.43-0.69). A significant bivariate correlation was found between total training frequency and improvements in visual attention among males (r = 0.40, p < 0.05).

CONCLUSION: Supported physical exercise is a feasible and safe adjunct treatment for FEP with potential cognitive benefits, especially among females.

Conceptualized within the framework of self-determination theory, the aim of the current study was to investigate the relation between perfectionistic concerns and (a) controlled (non-self-determined) motivation and (b) performance anxiety through basic psychological need frustration (frustration of competence, autonomy, and realtedness), and if these relations would be moderated by controlling teaching/coaching conditions. We used a cross-sectional moderated mediation design and purposefully selected Norwegian elite junior performers (N = 171; mean age = 17.3; SD age = 0.94) from talent development schools, who completed an online questionnaire to report their perceptions of the study variables. Associations were examined using structural equation modeling. The results showed that perfectionistic concerns were positively associated with controlling conditions, basic needs frustration, controlled motivation, and performance anxiety. Reported controlling teaching/coaching conditions moderated the positive indirect relationship between perfectionistic concerns and (a) controlled motivation and (b) performance anxiety through competence need frustration. Specifically, these indirect associations were evident for performers reporting moderate or high levels of controlling teaching/coaching conditions. In contrast, there were no indirect associations via competence need frustration for those performers who reported low levels of controlling conditions. In conclusion, the results indicate that perfectionistic concerns appear to be a vulnerability factor that exposes elite junior performers to higher risks of entering a debilitative motivational process. This seems especially likely when exposed to controlling teaching/coaching conditions. Coaches and teachers working with elite junior performers should avoid using controlling mechanisms and instead foster autonomous functioning.

Elite sport can be stressful, which increases the risk for burnout symptoms to develop. Especially when not balanced with sufficient recovery. To study the burnout–recovery process, eight elite soccer coaches were followed for 10 years. All eight were active elite coaches at the inception of this study and reported elevated emotional exhaustion scores on Maslach’s Burnout Inventory Educators Survey (MBI-ES). The coaches completed MBI-ES three additional times (year 3, 7, and 10), and they were also interviewed on the same occasions. At the 3-year follow-up, seven of the eight coaches reduced their exhaustion scores. The coach presenting with unchanged scores both at the 3 - and 7-year follow-up was the only one still coaching at the elite level. All coaches revealed during the interviews that they struggled to manage their work–life balance well; some worked too many hours, some experienced difficulty in managing conflicting role-demands, and some wrestled with external pressures. Their approach to recovery was, however, similar. Apart from moving away from coaching at the elite level, they unanimously mentioned that they changed their approach to coaching to make recovery possible. They achieved the latter by, for example, increasing control and delegating responsibility. According to our longitudinal results, burnout frequently regarded as an end-state can decrease over time. Provided that decisive action is taken to change situational factors and personal demands. This frequently meant withdrawing from coaching, which in turn explains why coach retention remains a serious challenge for most organizations with teams/athletes competing at the elite level.