Are you lookin’ at me? A mixed-methods case study to investigate the influence of coaches’ presence on performance testing outcomes in male academy rugby league players

Richardson, B., Dobbin, N., White, C., Bloyce, D., & Twist, C., Are you lookin’ at me? A mixed-methods case study to investigate the influence of coaches’ presence on performance testing outcomes in male academy rugby league players, International Journal of Sports Science and Coaching, (Journal Volume Number and Issue Number) pp. xx-xx. Copyright © [2022] (Copyright Holder). Reprinted by permission of SAGE Publications.The study used a mixed-methods approach to examine how the presence of coaches influenced male academy rugby league players’ performance during physical performance testing. Fifteen male rugby players completed two trials of 20 m sprint, countermovement jump and prone Yo-Yo test; one with only the lead researcher present and a second where the lead researcher conducted the battery with both the club’s lead S&C coach, academy manager, and the first team assistant and head coach present. Players and coaches then completed one-to-one semi-structured interviews to explore their beliefs, attitudes and opinions towards physical performance testing. In all tests, the players’ performance was better when the coaches were present compared to when this was conducted by the sport scientist alone. Interviews revealed performance testing was used by coaches to exercise their power over players to socialise them into a desired culture. Players’ own power was evident through additional effort during testing when coaches were present. Practitioners should ensure consistency in the presence of significant observers during performance testing of male rugby players to minimise their influence on test outcome

Are you lookin’ at me? A mixed-methods case study to investigate the influence of coaches’ presence on performance testing outcomes in male academy rugby league players

The study used a mixed-methods approach to examine how the presence of coaches influenced male academy rugby league players’ performance during physical performance testing. Fifteen male rugby players completed two trials of 20 m sprint, countermovement jump and prone Yo-Yo test; one with only the lead researcher present and a second where the lead researcher conducted the battery with both the club’s lead S&C coach, academy manager, and the first team assistant and head coach present. Players and coaches then completed one-to-one semi-structured interviews to explore their beliefs, attitudes and opinions towards physical performance testing. In all tests, the players’ performance was better when the coaches were present compared to when this was conducted by the sport scientist alone. Interviews revealed performance testing was used by coaches to exercise their power over players to socialise them into a desired culture. Players’ own power was evident through additional effort during testing when coaches were present. Practitioners should ensure consistency in the presence of significant observers during performance testing of male rugby players to minimise their influence on test outcome

Criterion and Construct Validity of an Isometric Midthigh-Pull Dynamometer for Assessing Whole-Body Strength in Professional Rugby League Players

Purpose: To examine the criterion and construct validity of an isometric midthigh-pull dynamometer to assess whole-body strength in professional rugby league players. Methods: Fifty-six male rugby league players (33 senior and 23 youth players) performed 4 isometric midthigh-pull efforts (ie, 2 on the dynamometer and 2 on the force platform) in a randomized and counterbalanced order. Results: Isometric peak force was underestimated (P  .05) between the predicted and peak force from the force platform and an adjusted R2 (79.6%) that represented shrinkage of 0.4% relative to the cross-validation model (80%). Peak force was greater for the senior than the youth professionals using the dynamometer (2261.2 ± 222 cf 1725.1 ± 298.0 N, respectively; P < .05). Conclusion: The isometric midthigh pull assessed using a dynamometer underestimates criterion peak force but is capable of distinguishing muscle-function characteristics between professional rugby league players of different standards

Toward a Theory of Child Well-Being

Assuring the well-being of children has emerged over the past several decades as an important goal for health and social policymakers. Although the concept of child well-being has been operationalized and measured in different ways by different child-serving entities, there are few unifying theories that could undergird and inform these various conceptual and measurement efforts. In this paper, we attempt to construct a theory of child well-being. We first review the social and policy history of the concept of child well-being, and briefly review its measurement based on these conceptualizations. We then examine three types of theories of well-being extant in philosophy - mental states theories, desire-based theories and needs-based theories - and investigate their suitability to serve as prototypes of a theory of child well-being. We develop a constraint that child well-being is important in and of itself and not merely as a way station to future adult well-being (we call this a non-reduction constraint). Using this constraint, we identify the limitations of each of the three sets of theories to serve as a basis for a theory of child well-being. Based on a developmentalist approach, we then articulate a theory of child well-being that contains two conditions. First, a child's stage-appropriate capacities that equip her for successful adulthood, given her environment; and, second, an engagement with the world in child-appropriate ways. We conclude by reviewing seven implications of this theoretical approach for the measurement of child well-being. Key Words Child well-being, philosophy, social policy, child developmentNoneThis is the author accepted manuscript. The final version is available from Springer via http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s11205-014-0665-

Management of multidrug resistant Gram-negative bacilli infections in solid organ transplant recipients: SET/GESITRA-SEIMC/REIPI recommendations

Solid organ transplant (SOT) recipients are especially at risk of developing infections by multidrug resistant (MDR) Gram-negative bacilli (GNB), as they are frequently exposed to antibiotics and the healthcare setting, and are regulary subject to invasive procedures. Nevertheless, no recommendations concerning prevention and treatment are available. A panel of experts revised the available evidence; this document summarizes their recommendations: (1) it is important to characterize the isolate´s phenotypic and genotypic resistance profile; (2) overall, donor colonization should not constitute a contraindication to transplantation, although active infected kidney and lung grafts should be avoided; (3) recipient colonization is associated with an increased risk of infection, but is not a contraindication to transplantation; (4) different surgical prophylaxis regimens are not recommended for patients colonized with carbapenem-resistant GNB; (5) timely detection of carriers, contact isolation precautions, hand hygiene compliance and antibiotic control policies are important preventive measures; (6) there is not sufficient data to recommend intestinal decolonization; (7) colonized lung transplant recipients could benefit from prophylactic inhaled antibiotics, specially for Pseudomonas aeruginosa; (8) colonized SOT recipients should receive an empirical treatment which includes active antibiotics, and directed therapy should be adjusted according to susceptibility study results and the severity of the infection.J.T.S. holds a research contract from the Fundación para la Formación e Investigación de los Profesionales de la Salud de Extremadura (FundeSalud), Instituto de Salud Carlos III. M.F.R. holds a clinical research contract “Juan Rodés” (JR14/00036) from the Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness, Instituto de Salud Carlos III

Corporate governance and financial stability in US banks: Do indirect interlocks matter?

In the context of the Depository Institution Management Interlocks Act of 1978 (Interlocks Act), we investigate the structure and implications of the professional connections among bank directors. Based on a hand-collected unique dataset for a sample of 168 US commercial banks listed continuously from 2009 to 2015, we find that the barriers set out in the Interlocks Act have been circumvented by the establishment of indirect interlocks that allow for mass professional connections among bank directors. Our evidence suggests that bank well-connectedness through indirect interlocks has a significant impact on financial stability. In particular, we find, in support of the extended resource-based view (RBV), that well-connected banks mitigate their credit and insolvency risks but, contrary to our expectation, lower bank capitalisation. Our evidence suggests that the Interlocks Act and bank governance reforms need to consider the role of professional communications among bank directors to fully achieve their intended goals

Perturbed autophagy and DNA repair converge to promote neurodegeneration in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis and dementia

Maintaining genomic stability constitutes a major challenge facing cells. DNA breaks can arise from direct oxidative damage to the DNA backbone, the inappropriate activities of endogenous enzymes such as DNA topoisomerases, or due to transcriptionallyderived RNA/DNA hybrids (R-loops). The progressive accumulation of DNA breaks has been linked to several neurological disorders. Recently, however, several independent studies have implicated nuclear and mitochondrial genomic instability, perturbed co-transcriptional processing, and impaired cellular clearance pathways as causal and intertwined mechanisms underpinning neurodegeneration. Here, we discuss this emerging paradigm in the context of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis and frontotemporal dementia, and outline how this knowledge paves the way to novel therapeutic interventions

Factors Associated with Revision Surgery after Internal Fixation of Hip Fractures

Background: Femoral neck fractures are associated with high rates of revision surgery after management with internal fixation. Using data from the Fixation using Alternative Implants for the Treatment of Hip fractures (FAITH) trial evaluating methods of internal fixation in patients with femoral neck fractures, we investigated associations between baseline and surgical factors and the need for revision surgery to promote healing, relieve pain, treat infection or improve function over 24 months postsurgery. Additionally, we investigated factors associated with (1) hardware removal and (2) implant exchange from cancellous screws (CS) or sliding hip screw (SHS) to total hip arthroplasty, hemiarthroplasty, or another internal fixation device. Methods: We identified 15 potential factors a priori that may be associated with revision surgery, 7 with hardware removal, and 14 with implant exchange. We used multivariable Cox proportional hazards analyses in our investigation. Results: Factors associated with increased risk of revision surgery included: female sex, [hazard ratio (HR) 1.79, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.25-2.50; P = 0.001], higher body mass index (fo

Are you lookin’ at me? A mixed-methods case study to investigate the influence of coaches’ presence on performance testing outcomes in male academy rugby league players

From Crossref journal articles via Jisc Publications RouterHistory: epub 2022-09-21, issued 2022-09-21Publication status: PublishedThe study used a mixed-methods approach to examine how the presence of coaches influenced male academy rugby league players’ performance during physical performance testing. Fifteen male rugby players completed two trials of 20 m sprint, countermovement jump and prone Yo-Yo test; one with only the sport scientist present and a second where the sport scientist conducted the battery with both the club's lead strength and conditioning coach, academy manager, and the first team assistant and head coach present. Players and coaches then completed one-to-one semi-structured interviews to explore their beliefs, attitudes and opinions towards physical performance testing. In all tests, the players’ performance was better when the coaches were present compared to when tests were conducted by the sport scientist alone. Interviews revealed performance testing was used by coaches to exercise their power over players to socialise them into the desired culture. Players’ own power was evident through additional effort during testing when coaches were present. Practitioners should ensure consistency in the presence of significant observers during performance testing of male rugby players to minimise their influence on test outcome