Experiences of Burnout Among Adolescent Female Gymnasts: Three Case Studies

Within the current study, the process of adolescent burnout is considered in relation to perceived contributors, symptoms, consequences, and subsequently, effective and ineffective coping strategies. Through case studies, the researchers sought the burnout experiences of three competitive female gymnasts. Participants were selected based on scores obtained from Raedeke and Smith’s (2001) Athlete Burnout Questionnaire. To gain a comprehensive understanding of the process, athlete data were considered in tandem with interviews from at least one parent and one coach. Transcribed data were segmented into meaning units, coded into a hierarchy of themes and verified by each respondent. Despite common trends among the participants, differences were also found in relation to symptoms, contributors, and the progression of the condition. Implications are provided for the athlete/parent/coach triad and also for sport psychologists

The Role of Families in Youth Sport Programming in a Canadian Aboriginal Reserve

Background: There has been a recent push in the sport psychology literature for sport participants to be approached based on their cultural backgrounds. However, there are few examples where a cultural approach is considered, such as a culturally reflexive version of participatory action research (PAR). In the current study, the role of family is considered in relation to the sport engagement of Canadian Aboriginal youth. Methods: Mainstream researchers teamed with co-researchers from the Wikwemikong Unceded Indian Reserve for 5 years. Community meetings and talking circles were employed as culturally sensitive data collection techniques to uncover how to encourage youth participation in Wikwemikong’s sport programs. The overarching methodology for the project is PAR. Results: Themes and subthemes were determined by community consensus with terms indigenous (ie, culturally relevant) among the local Aboriginal culture. Family was considered important for youth involvement in Aboriginal community sport programs. Parents were expected to support their children by managing schedules and priorities, providing transportation, financial support, encouragement, and being committed to the child’s activity. Aunts, uncles, cousins, siblings, grandparents, and the family as a whole were seen as sharing the responsibility to retain youth in sport through collateral support (ie, when gaps in parental support arose). Conclusions: Suggestions are proposed regarding how families in Aboriginal communities can collaborate to facilitate sport and physical activity among their youth. Further suggestions are proposed for researchers engaging in culturally reflexive research with participants and coresearchers from oppressed cultures

It takes a community to train a future physician: social support experienced by medical students during a community-engaged longitudinal integrated clerkship

Background:Social support may be beneficial for medical students who must develop adaptive strategies to respond to the demands and challenges during third-year clerkship.We provide a detailed description of the supportive behaviours experienced by third-year students during a longitudinal integrated clerkship (LIC) in the context of rural family medicine. Methods:Informed by a social constructivist research paradigm, we undertook a qualitative study to understand from the students’ perspectives the presence and characteristics of social support available during a LIC.Data were collected from conversational interviews at three points during the eight-month clerkship year, pre-, during, and post-clerkship, to explore how 12 medical students experienced social support. We employed an innovative methodological approach, the guided walk method, to gain the students’ stories in the contexts where they were taking place. Results: The participants described the relationships they developed with various sources of social support such as (a) preceptors, (b) peers, (c) family, (d) health professionals, and (e) community members.  Conclusion:Various individuals representing communities of practice such as the medical profession and community members were intimately related to the longitudinal aspects of the students’ experiences. The findings lend credence to the view that it really does take a community to train a future physician

Considerations Regarding Graduate Student Persistence

Completion of graduate studies is a central issue for universities. Over the past decade researchers interested in higher education have become concerned with graduate student completion rates. Possible reasons underlying variations in graduate student persistence have included the amassed learning experiences and subsequent perceptions of graduate students, supervisory committee members, and other department staff. This article addresses some of the psychosocial considerations that underlie the complex interactions among students, supervisory committees, and departmental support staff, referred to here as the "academic triad." Using Seligman's (1991) explanatory framework and Bandura's (1986) self-efficacy theory, this article explains how student persistence is closely tied to the behavior of students, academics, and departmental support staff. Further, the article provides two frameworks to gain a broadened understanding of the relationship between the academic triad and graduate student persistence. Recommendations are provided as to how to foster graduate student persistence through improved personal and interpersonal reflexivity.L'obtention par les étudiants d'un diplôme de deuxième ou troisième cycle constitue une question centrale pour les universités. Depuis les dix dernières années, les chercheurs dans le domaine de l'éducation postsecondaire se penchent davantage sur les taux de réussite chez les étudiants du deuxième ou troisième cycle. Parmi les raisons évoquées pour expliquer la variation dans la persévérance des étudiants du deuxième ou troisième cycle, on a proposé trois facteurs: l'accumulation des expériences d'apprentissage et les perceptions qu'en ont les étudiants, les membres du comité de thèse et finalement, les membres du personnel non-académique des départements impliqués. Cet article étudie quelques-unes des considérations psychosociales qui sous-tendent les interactions complexes entre les étudiants, les comités de thèse et le personnel non-académique. On nomme ces trois groupes la «triade académique». En s'appuyant à la fois sur le cadre de Seligman (1991) et la théorie d'auto efficacité de Bandura (1986), les auteurs expliquent le lien serré entre la persévérance des étudiants d'une part et le comportement des étudiants, du personnel académique et du personnel non-académique d'autre part. Les auteurs fournissent en plus deux cadres permettant de mieux comprendre le rapport entre la triade académique et la persévérance des étudiants de deuxième ou troisième cycle. Sont également présentées des recommandations pour favoriser la persévérance des étudiants de deuxième ou troisième cycle par le biais d'une autoréférence personnelle et interpersonnelle améliorée

An Examination of the Challenges Experienced by Canadian Ice-Hockey Players in the National Hockey League

Semistructured interviews were used in this study to learn about the challenges experienced by four groups of National Hockey League (NHL) players (N=11): prospects (n=3), rookies (n=3), veterans (n=2), and retirees (n=3). The database is comprised of 757 meaning units grouped into 11 contextual challenges pertaining to scouting demands, training camp, increased athletic demands, team expectations, and earning team trust. The veterans spoke mostly of challenges including scouting demands, athletic demands, and team expectations. Retirees considered mostly challenges pertaining to team expectations, athletic demands, lifestyle, media demands, transactions, cross-cultural encounters, and playoffs. An expert panel ensured that the interview guide, data analysis, and the findings represented the participants’ experiences in the NHL. Recommendations for practitioners and researchers working with NHL players are proposed

The COVID-19 pandemic and Olympic/Paralympic athletes’ developmental challenges and possibilities in times of a global crisis-transition

Our aim in this invited commentary is to stimulate discussion among sport psychology researchers and practitioners regarding the unique developmental challenges and possibilities that Olympic and Paralympic athletes are undergoing during their final – extended year of the Tokyo 2020 quadrenium. We begin the commentary with COVID-19 pandemic (C-19) context setting, proceed with discussing transitional and holistic perspectives on athletes’ Olympic/Paralympic journey, outline three potential pathway scenarios and “C-19 as a possibility-provider” coping (meta-) scenario for Olympic/Paralympic athletes, and finalise our commentary with a summary of messages intended to invite further discussion and collaboration

Guidelines for writing applied case studies in sport and exercise psychology

While there has been a significant expansion of continued professional development opportunities in recent years, there has often, historically, been a reluctance for sport and exercise psychologists to both share, and receive feedback on their professional practice (Cotterill, Weston and Breslin, 2016). The recent development of the new Case Studies in Sport and Exercise Psychology journal, a flagship journal of the Association for Applied Sport Psychology, supports an increasing appetite for this type of dissemination. Building upon these recent developments this paper draws on the experience of several experienced practitioners, who are also supervisors, assessors and journal editors in applied sport and exercise psychology. Guidelines for the preparation of applied case studies are offered as an aid for practitioners who are seeking to both publicise and share their work, and/or contribute to the literature and current knowledge in this area. We argue that the voices of practitioners represent an important component of any scientific literature, and we encourage practitioners to both share their work; reflect on the effectiveness of different approaches and techniques, and engage in the ongoing debate that characterizes scientific progress. In this way, we seek to help address the criticism that literature in sport and exercise psychology is too theoretically focused, and not representative of the 'real-world'. We seek to help close the research-practice 'gap'.Aunque ha habido una expansión significativa de las oportunidades de desarrollo profesional continuado en los últimos años, históricamente ha habido una renuencia de los psicólogos del deporte y del ejercicio a compartir y recibir sugerencias y comentarios sobre su práctica profesional (Cotterill et al., 2016). El reciente desarrollo de la nueva revista de Estudios de Casos en el Deporte y la Psicología del Ejercicio, una revista emblemática de la Asociación de Psicología del Deporte Aplicado, apoya el creciente interés por este tipo de difusión entre profesionales. Basándose en estos recientes desarrollos, este trabajo se basa en la experiencia de varios profesionales experimentados, que también son supervisores de estudiantes, asesores y editores de revistas en el deporte aplicado y la psicología del ejercicio. Las guías para la preparación de estudios de casos aplicados se ofrecen como una ayuda para los profesionales que buscan publicar y compartir su trabajo y / o contribuir a la literatura y el conocimiento actual en esta área. Parecería que las voces de los practicantes representan un componente importante de cualquier literatura científica, y animamos a los practicantes a compartir su trabajo; Reflexionar sobre la eficacia de los diferentes enfoques y técnicas y participar en el debate actual que caracteriza el progreso científico. De esta manera, tratamos de ayudar a abordar la crítica de que la literatura en el deporte y la psicología del ejercicio es demasiado teórica, y no representativo del "mundo real". Buscamos ayudar a cerrar la "brecha" entre la investigación y la práctica

The Adaptation Challenges and Strategies of Adolescent Aboriginal Athletes Competing Off Reserve

Within the motivation literature, it has been indicated that athletes respond more effectively to sport’s contextual challenges through effective adaptation skills. Fiske identified five core motives as facilitators of the adaptation process across cultures: belonging, understanding, controlling, self-enhancement, and trusting. Through a cultural sport psychology approach, the adaptation challenges and strategies of Canadian Aboriginal adolescent athletes from one community (Wikwemikong) are described as they traveled off reserve to compete in mainstream sporting events. Concurrently, Fiske’s core motives are considered in relation to youth sport participants from the aforementioned Aboriginal community. Culture sensitive research methods among the Wikwemikong, including community meetings, talking circles (TCs), indigenous coding, and coauthoring, were employed in this article. Data are reflected in three themes: (a) challenges pursuing sport outside of the Aboriginal community in advance of bicultural encounters, (b) challenging bicultural encounters in Canadian mainstream sport contexts, and (c) specific responses to racism and discrimination

PV module current gains due to structured backsheets

We evaluate the optical performance of PV modules with respect to an increase in short circuit current density. Our evaluation is based on the combination of ray tracing simulations and measurements on test modules with four types of backsheets: Two of them are structured, the third is white and diffusively reflecting and the fourth reflects no light. Under normal incidence, structured backsheets reflect incoming light at an angle that causes total internal reflection at the glass/air interface, which guides the light to the solar cell surface. Three different irradiance conditions are studied: a) standard testing conditions (STC) with light incident perpendicular to the module surface, b) variation in the angle of incidence and c) light source with mean annual distribution of angles of incidence. Using the measured refractive index data in ray tracing simulations we find a short circuit current density (Jsc) gain of up to 0.9 mA/cm2 (2.3%) for monofacial cells and a structured backsheet, when compared to a white backsheet with diffuse reflection. For bifacial cells we calculate an even larger Jsc increase of 1.4 mA/cm2 (3.6%). The Jsc increase is larger for bifacial cells, since some light is transmitted through the cells and thus more light interacts with the backsheet. Our optical loss analysis reveals the best performance in STC for edge-aligned Ag grooves. This structure reduces absorption losses from 1.8 mA/cm2 to 0.3 mA/cm and reflection losses from 0.7 mA/cm to 0 mA/cm. This trend also holds under various angles of incidence as confirmed consistently by Jsc measurements and ray racing simulations. Simulations using an annual light source emitting a mean annual distribution of angles of incidence reveal grooves in both orientations edge alignment and east-west alignment achieve similar current gains of up to 1.5% for mono- and of 2.5% for bifacial cells compared to modules with white back sheets. This indicates that for modules with light guiding structures such as these backsheets optimization for STC differs from optimization for annul yield