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This article focuses on two popular sports that can put male athletes at risk of developing an eating disorder: bodybuilding and running. Bodybuilders concentrate on gaining muscle mass and runners on leaning body mass. Based on the trans-contextual model of motivation, this study aimed to better understand the psychological mechanisms underlying eating disorders in these athletes. In all, 272 male bodybuilders and 217 male runners completed measures of sport motivation, theory of planned behavior variables (i.e., attitude, subjective norm, perceived behavioral control, and intention to gain muscle mass/lean body mass), and eating disorders (dieting, control, and bulimia behaviors). The results revealed satisfactory fit indices for both samples. Autonomous and controlled motivations for sport were positively directly and indirectly related to eating disorders in these athletes. This motivational mechanism needs more in-depth investigation, and motivational profiles might help distinguish athletes with and without eating disorders.

Context:Firefighters participating in mandatory physical exercise sessions are exposed to a high risk of ankle sprain injury. Although both physiological and psychological risk factors have been identified, few prospective studies considered the complex interaction of these factors in firefighters.Objective:To prospectively determine whether intrinsic physical risk factors and work-related environments predict ankle sprains occurring during on-duty physical exercise in firefighters during an 8-month follow-up period.Design:Prospective.Setting:Fire Department and Rescue Service.Participants:Thirty-nine firefighters were selected based on convenience sampling.Intervention:Participants performed physical tests and completed questionnaires.Main Outcome Measures:Lower Quarter Y-Balance Test, Weight-Bearing Lunge Test, anthropometric measures, postural stability, chronic ankle instability (Cumberland Ankle Instability Tool) scores, previous injuries, and perceived psychosocial work environment (Copenhagen Psychosocial Questionnaire [COPSOQ]).Results:During the follow-up, 9 firefighters sustained an injury. Lower Quarter Y-Balance Test and Weight-Bearing Lunge Test performances, Cumberland Ankle Instability Tool scores, history of previous ankle sprain, and specific dimensions of the COPSOQ significantly differed between injured and uninjured firefighters. Lower-limbs asymmetries of the Lower Quarter Y-Balance Test (ie, anterior, posteromedial, and posterolateral directions) and the Weight-Bearing Lunge Test were predictors of ankle sprains.Conclusions:These findings originally provide evidence that intrinsic factors mainly contribute to ankle sprains, although psychosocial work environment assessment could also characterize firefighters at risk.

This study presents a complete psychological skills training (PST) program with a wheelchair athlete and examines the program effectiveness using a mixed-method approach. After initial testing, the athlete followed a two-month program of self-confidence building, motivational, visualization/relaxation, and injury management techniques. Quantitative and qualitative methods were used to examine the impacts on performance and psychological abilities. The triangulated results suggest that the PST program was perceived as effective by the athlete in terms of his sporting performances and mental skills. The characteristics and implications of a PST program with this wheelchair athlete are discussed, as well as the study limitations and the perspectives for future research.

Based on game reasoning theory (Shields & Bredemeier, 2001) and related research, the present study aimed at describing young elite athletes’ perceptions of rules compliance and transgression in competitive settings, as well as the underlying reasons for these actions. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 10 young elite athletes. The qualitative analysis showed that respect and transgression of rules in competitive settings were perceived to depend upon the athletes’ individual characteristics (e.g., desire to win), their social environment (e.g., coach’s pressure, team norms), sports values and virtues (e.g., fair play, the effort ethic), and modern sports rewards (e.g., media recognition, financial rewards). These results confirmed and expanded game reasoning theory and illustrated moral disengagement mechanisms (Bandura et al., 1996) in the sport domain.

International audience; Based on the dynamical systems perspective, the present study aimed to ex-plore how states of involvement toward mastery, performance-approach, and performance-avoidance goals (Elliot & Church, 1997) flow, are interrelated, and are activated during a practice judo combat. Using a retrospective video recall method, two male national level judo competitors expressed on a com-puter their moment-to-moment level of involvement toward each goal. Self-confrontation interviews also based on the video were immediately conducted. Analyses of variance revealed differences in levels of each goal between peri-ods of the combat. Windowed cross-correlation analyses showed that the pat-terns of relationships between the time series of the different goals considered two-by-two included either high positive, high negative, or zero correlations, depending on the moment. Qualitative data analyses supported these findings and suggested that goal involvement states emerged and fluctuated according to the ecological constraints of the situation, such as the initial contextual conditions and the course of action.

International audience; This study examined the effectiveness of an imagery training program in improving national softball players' selective attention. A multiple-baseline design across individuals was used. There were four participants. One remained at baseline, while the other three spent 10 min a day practicing an audio-taped imagery program composed of 28 sessions. Measures of selective attention were collected via a baseball/softball batting specific version stemming from Nideffer's (1976) Test of Attentional and Interpersonal Style (TAIS). The results demonstrated that the imagery training program generally enhanced the ability of softball players to integrate external stimuli without being overloaded with them and to narrow attention. Results were discussed in relation to the usefulness of multiple-baseline designs for investigating individual differences among elite athletes. Practical pedagogical considerations for coaching are proposed.

International audience; This study examined the potential benefits of a peer tutoring program for tutors in a physical learning setting. Gender differences were also explored. Thirty-two college-age males and females identified as novices in a French boxing task were assigned in a 2 × 2, Gender × Training Type: Physical Practice (PP) versus Physical Practice associated with Peer Tutoring (PT) factorial design. All the participants were given six 2-hr French boxing lessons. The PT program included 6 min of peer coaching per lesson. Results indicated that the PT program entailed higher scores in boxing performance form, self-efficacy, interest-enjoyment, and personally controllable causal attributions and lower scores in tension-pressure. Males reported more certain expectancies and displayed higher performance outcomes than did females. Results are discussed in relation to the educational psychology literature.

Based on Nowak and Vallacher’s (1998) dynamic approach to social psychology, the purpose of the present study was to capture how thoughts pertaining to the perception of control, anxiety, and self-confidence vary and are interrelated during a timeout in volleyball. Right after an important game, one female national-level volleyball competitor listened to the audiotape of a selected timeout of the game. While listening, she had to continuously express on a computer her reactions to the content of the coach’s speech in regard to a single item reflecting one of the variables under study. This procedure adapted from Vallacher and Nowak (1994) was renewed for each variable. Perception of control item was adapted from the CDS II (McAuley, Duncan, & Russell, 1992). Anxiety and self-confidence items stemmed from the CSAI-2 (Martens, Burton, Vealey, Bump, & Smith, 1990). Multivariate and univariate analyses of variance (p < .001) revealed important differences in the scores of each variable, at different moments of the timeout. Cross-correlation analyses also revealed important variations in the patterns of synchronization between perception of control and anxiety (–.98 ≤ r ≤ .93), perception of control and self-confidence (–.78 ≤ r ≤ .99), and self-confidence and anxiety (–.99 ≤ r ≤ .98), at different moments of the timeout. A dynamic approach to sport psychology could provide promising research for overcoming some inconsistencies that static approaches have yielded concerning the relationships between performance related thoughts and emotions.