A Review of Controlling Motivational Strategies from a Self-Determination Theory Perspective: Implications for Sports Coaches

The aim of this paper is to present a preliminary taxonomy of six controlling strategies, primarily based on the parental and educational literatures, which we believe are employed by coaches in sport contexts. Research in the sport and physical education literature has primarily focused on coaches’ autonomysupportive behaviours. Surprisingly, there has been very little research on the use of controlling strategies. A brief overview of the research which delineates each proposed strategy is presented, as are examples of the potential manifestation of the behaviours associated with each strategy in the context of sports coaching. In line with self-determination theory (Deci & Ryan, 1985; Ryan & Deci, 2002), we propose that coach behaviours employed to pressure or control athletes have the potential to thwart athletes’ feelings of autonomy, competence,and relatedness, which, in turn, undermine athletes’ self-determined motivation and contribute to the development of controlled motives. When athletes feel pressured to behave in a certain way, a variety of negative consequences are expected to ensue which are to the detriment of the athletes’ well-being. The purpose of this paper is to raise awareness and interest in the darker side of sport participation and to offer suggestions for future research in this area

Mycocerosic acid biomarkers for the diagnosis of tuberculosis in the Coimbra skeletal collection

Tuberculosis has been a scourge of humans over many millennia, but questions remain regarding its evolution and epidemiology. Fossil biomarkers, such as DNA and long-chain mycolic acids, can be detected in ancient skeletal and other materials. The phthiocerol dimycocerosate waxes are also robust biomarkers for tuberculosis and sensitive methods are available for the detection of their mycocerosic acid components. The presence of mycocerosic acids was investigated in 49 individuals from the 1837–1936 Coimbra Identified Skeletal Collection (Portugal), half with documentary data indicating tuberculosis as a cause of death. Samples were hydrolysed, acidic components converted to pentafluorobenzyl esters, the non-hydroxylated long-chain esters isolated, and this fraction separated into multimethyl-branched and other esters by normal phase high performance liquid chromatography. Negative ion chemical ionisation gas chromatography mass spectrometry was used to detect diagnostic C29, C30 and C32 mycocerosic acids. Mycocerosic acids were detected in archaeological material for the first time, illustrating that they are valuable biomarkers for the diagnosis of ancient tuberculosis. A 72% correlation with the Coimbra burial record supported TB as the major cause of death. In addition, 30% of the skeletons, positive for mycocerosates, showed the presence of related long-chain mycolipenic acids

Diagnostic continu et analyse géo-localisée du risque appliqués aux digues du petit Rhône

Digues maritimes et fluviales de protection contre les submersions - 2ème colloque national - Digues2013, Aix-en-Provence, FRA, 12-/06/2013 - 14/06/2013National audienceThe purpose of the « petit Rhône » dike reinforcement project is to build dikes which can resist to a millennium flood of the “Rhône” river.SYMADREM, dike maintenance operator, assisted by experts committee including Irstea, assigned a dike diagnostic review mission to SAFEGE and the reinforcement design of the existing dikes, on a 15 km section, downstream of Saint-Gilles lock. During this mission, SAFEGE set up a dike diagnostic method using a linear fine discretization for analysing, on a spreadsheet, parameters that take place in dike failure mechanisms (geometry of the dike, height, water level, geotechnical and geophysical parameters,...), and for assessing different failure risks (overflow, landslide, piping, external erosion).The discretization has been possible thanks to the important quantity of available data (Digital Terrain Model, bathymetry, geophysical and geotechnical measurements, water levels, morphodynamic behaviour study...). In the particular case of mechanical model, correspondence between geophysical and geotechnical soil tests have been analysed. A rate has been defined and used to set up a geotechnical model based on geophysical results.The method benefits are: its accuracy (800 points on a 15 km section) compared with the usual homogeneous section method, the compilation of all technical parameters in a single spreadsheet, and the possibility for operators to use this tool during dike existence and to make surveillance programeasier. The limitations of the method come from the lack of accuracy of the geophysical results compared with geotechnical soil tests and from lack of accuracy of failure risk calculation compared with finite element analysis.All along this article, the method is compared with other approaches developed through different research projects (FloodProbe, ILH, DIGSURE).L'opération de « Renforcement des digues du Petit Rhône » a pour objectif de construire des digues capables de résister à la rupture jusqu'à la crue millénale du Rhône. Dans ce contexte, le SYMADREM, maître d'Ouvrage, assisté d'un collège d'experts comprenant Irstea, a confié à SAFEGE une mission d'études de diagnostic et de sécurisation des digues existantes du Petit Rhône, sur un tronçon de 15 km, situé en aval de l'écluse de Saint Gilles, dans le département du Gard. Dans le cadre de sa mission, SAFEGE a mis en place une méthode de diagnostic des digues par une discrétisation détaillée du linéaire qui permet d'analyser, sur un tableur, l'ensemble des paramètres (géométrie des digues et du ségonal, hauteur, niveau des eaux, géotechnique, géophysique...) susceptibles d'influer sur les aléas de rupture auxquels la digue est soumise (surverse, glissement , érosion interne, affouillement externe) et d'évaluer les risques de rupture associés.Cette modélisation détaillée a pu être réalisée par l'ampleur des données mises à disposition (modèle numérique de terrain, bathymétrie, relevés géophysiques et géotechniques, lignes d'eau extraites de modèle 2D, étudemorphodynamique...). Pour le cas particulier du modèle mécanique, la correspondance entre sondages géotechniques et reconnaissances géophysiques en continu a été analysée. Un taux de correspondance a été défini et a permis d'établir un modèle « géotechnique » discrétisé sur la base des résultats de la géophysique. Cette méthode, qui discrétise le linéaire de digue en tronçons élémentaires (800 tronçons de 20 m pour 15 km de digue) au lieu du découpage habituel en tronçons homogènes, a pour avantages une caractérisation systématique des risques de ruptures la compilation de tous les paramètres techniques dans un outil unique, outil utilisable par l'exploitant afin d'entretenir et surveiller l'ouvrage plus efficacement. L'outil trouve cependant ses limites dans le manque de précision des interprétations géotechniques issues des reconnaissances géophysiques et dans le manque de précision des calculs des risques de ruptures basés sur des formules empiriques ou simplifiées. Dans l'article, la méthode utilisée est décrite et comparée à d'autres approches, dont une méthodologie de diagnostic de digues de protection développée au travers de différents projets de recherche (FloodProbe, ILH, DIGSURE)