Qualitative analysis of the factors associated with whistleblowing intentions among athletes from six European countries.

Although whistleblowing is thought to represent an effective mechanism for detecting and uncovering doping in sport, it has yet to become a widely adopted practice. Understanding the factors that encourage or discourage whistleblowing is of vital importance for the promotion of this practice and the development of pedagogical material to enhance the likelihood of whistleblowing. The current study employed a qualitative methodology to explore the personal and organisational factors that underpin intentions to blow the whistle or that may lead to engagement in whistleblowing behaviours in sport. Thirty-three competitive athletes across a range of sports took part in a semi-structured interview which sought to explore what they would do should they encounter a doping scenario. Content analysis revealed that whistleblowing is a dynamic process characterised by the interaction of a range of personal and organisational factors in determining the intention to report PED use. These factors included moral reasoning, a desire to keep the matter "in-house", perceived personal costs, institutional attitudes to doping, and social support. Analysis revealed a number of "intervening events", including a perceived lack of organisational protection (e.g., ethical leadership) within some sporting sub-cultures, which present an important obstacle to whistleblowing. The intention to report doping was underpinned by a "fairness-loyalty trade-off" which involved athletes choosing to adhere to either fairness norms (which relate to a sense that all people and groups are treated equally) or loyalty norms (which reflect preferential treatment towards an in-group) when deciding whether they would blow the whistle. The promotion of fairness norms that emphasise a group's collective interests might encourage athletes to view whistleblowing as a means of increasing group cohesiveness and effectiveness and thereby increase the likelihood of this practice.

Snitches Get Stitches and End Up in Ditches: A Systematic Review of the Factors Associated With Whistleblowing Intentions.

Blowing the whistle on corruption or wrongdoing can facilitate the detection, investigation, and then prosecution of a violation that may have otherwise gone undetected. The purpose of this systematic review was to identify the factors that are associated with intentions to blow the whistle on wrongdoing. We searched Academic Search Premier, CINAHL Complete, Education Research Complete, ERIC, Medline, PsycARTICLES, PsycINFO, Regional Business News, and SPORTDiscus in January 2020. The quality of evidence was assessed using the Cochrane risk of bias tool. Of the 9,136 records identified, 217 studies were included in this systematic review. We identified 8 dimensions, 26 higher-order themes, and 119 lower-order themes. The whistleblowing dimensions were personal factors, organizational factors, cost and benefits, outcome expectancies, the offense, reporting, the wrongdoer, and social factors. Based on the findings, it is apparent that organizations should empower, educate, protect, support, and reward those who blow the whistle, in order to increase the likelihood on individuals blowing the whistle on corruption and wrongdoing. A combined approach may increase whistleblowing intentions, although research is required to test this assertion. From a policy perspective, more consistent protection is required across different countries.

Inter-rater and inter-session reliability of lumbar paraspinal muscle composition in a mobile MRI device.

OBJECTIVE: To assess the reliability of measurements of paraspinal muscle transverse relaxation times (T2 times) between two observers and within one observer on different time points. METHODS: 14 participants (9f/5m, 33 ± 5 years, 176 ± 10 cm, 73 ± 12 kg) underwent 2 consecutive MRI scans (M1,M2) on the same day, followed by 1 MRI scan 13-14 days later (M3) in a mobile 1.5 Tesla MRI. T2 times were calculated in T2 weighted turbo spin-echo-sequences at the spinal level of the third lumbar vertebrae (11 slices, 2 mm slice thickness, 1 mm interslice gap, echo times: 20, 40, 60, 80, 100 ms) for M. erector spinae (ES) and M. multifidius (MF). The following reliability parameter were calculated for the agreement of T2 times between two different investigators (OBS1 & OBS2) on the same MRI (inter-rater reliability, IR) and by one investigator between different MRI of the same participant (intersession variability, IS): Test-Retest Variability (TRV, Differences/Mean*100); Coefficient of Variation (CV, Standard deviation/Mean*100); Bland-Altman Analysis (systematic bias = Mean of the Differences; Upper/Lower Limits of Agreement = Bias+/-1.96*SD); Intraclass Correlation Coefficient 3.1 (ICC) with absolute agreement, as well as its 95% confidence interval. RESULTS: Mean TRV for IR was 2.6% for ES and 4.2% for MF. Mean TRV for IS was 3.5% (ES) and 5.1% (MF). Mean CV for IR was 1.9 (ES) and 3.0 (MF). Mean CV for IS was 2.5% (ES) and 3.6% (MF). A systematic bias of 1.3 ms (ES) and 2.1 ms (MF) were detected for IR and a systematic bias of 0.4 ms (ES) and 0.07 ms (MF) for IS. ICC for IR was 0.94 (ES) and 0.87 (MF). ICC for IS was 0.88 (ES) and 0.82 (MF). CONCLUSION: Reliable assessment of paraspinal muscle T2 time justifies its use for scientific purposes. The applied technique could be recommended to use for future studies that aim to assess changes of T2 times, e.g. after an intense bout of eccentric exercises.

Intraindividual Doppler Flow Response to Exercise Differs Between Symptomatic and Asymptomatic Achilles Tendons.

OBJECTIVE: This study investigated intraindividual differences of intratendinous blood flow (IBF) in response to running exercise in participants with Achilles tendinopathy. DESIGN: This is a cross-sectional study. SETTING: The study was conducted at the University Outpatient Clinic. PARTICIPANTS: Sonographic detectable intratendinous blood flow was examined in symptomatic and contralateral asymptomatic Achilles tendons of 19 participants (42 ± 13 years, 178 ± 10 cm, 76 ± 12 kg, VISA-A 75 ± 16) with clinically diagnosed unilateral Achilles tendinopathy and sonographic evident tendinosis. INTERVENTION: IBF was assessed using Doppler ultrasound "Advanced Dynamic Flow" before (Upre) and 5, 30, 60, and 120 min (U5-U120) after a standardized submaximal constant load run. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE: IBF was quantified by counting the number (n) of vessels in each tendon. RESULTS: At Upre, IBF was higher in symptomatic compared with asymptomatic tendons [mean 6.3 (95% CI: 2.8-9.9) and 1.7 (0.4-2.9), p < 0.01]. Overall, 63% of symptomatic and 47% of asymptomatic Achilles tendons responded to exercise, whereas 16 and 11% showed persisting IBF and 21 and 42% remained avascular throughout the investigation. At U5, IBF increased in both symptomatic and asymptomatic tendons [difference to baseline: 2.4 (0.3-4.5) and 0.9 (0.5-1.4), p = 0.05]. At U30 to U120, IBF was still increased in symptomatic but not in asymptomatic tendons [mean difference to baseline: 1.9 (0.8-2.9) and 0.1 (-0.9 to 1.2), p < 0.01]. CONCLUSION: Irrespective of pathology, 47-63% of Achilles tendons responded to exercise with an immediate acute physiological IBF increase by an average of one to two vessels ("responders"). A higher amount of baseline IBF (approximately five vessels) and a prolonged exercise-induced IBF response found in symptomatic ATs indicate a pain-associated altered intratendinous "neovascularization."

Mental Well-Being or Ill-Being through Coaching in Adult Grassroots Sport: A Systematic Mapping Review.

There is convincing evidence on the effects of sport and exercise on mental health and well-being. Less evidence is provided about how to achieve these benefits in the context of grassroots sport coaching. We systematically reviewed the scientific literature of three databases to narratively synthesize the current knowledge about which coaching-related factors influence well-being or ill-being, and how to promote mental health in adult athletes through sport coaches. The review includes 52 studies with different methodological and theoretical approaches and mental health outcomes. The wide range of themes were mapped and synthesized within two clusters, i.e., coaching behavior, antecedents, and context; and coach-athlete relationship and social support. The results highlight the importance of the promotion of empowering environments, autonomy-supportive coaching behavior, and coach-athlete relationship quality that relate to the satisfaction of basic psychological needs. The review also calls for a critical perspective, in the sense that the coaching context and working environment may not be empowering and supportive to the well-being of coaches and consequently to the athletes, and that coaches who want to provide autonomy-supportive environments may face various obstacles. Finally, the review synthesizes recommendations for the training of coaches, as one piece of a holistic mental health promotion.

The Effect of Body Composition on Cycling Power During an Incremental Test in Young Athletes.

ABSTRACT: Schomöller, A, Schugardt, M, Kotsch, P, and Mayer, F. The effect of body composition on cycling power during an incremental test in young athletes. J Strength Cond Res 35(11): 3225-3231, 2021-As body composition (BC) is a modifiable factor influencing sports performance, it is of interest for athletes and coaches to optimize BC to fulfill the specific physical demands of one sport discipline. The purpose of this study is to test the impact of body fat (BF) and fat-free mass (FFM) on aerobic performance in young athletes. Body composition parameters were evaluated among gender and age groups of young athletes undergoing their mandatory health examination. The maximal power (in Watts per kilogram body mass) of a stepwise incremental ergometer test was compared between 6 BC types: high BF, high FFM, high BF and high FFM, normal BC values, low BF, and low FFM. With increasing age (11-13 vs. 14-16 years) BF decreased and FFM increased in both genders. Both BC parameters, as well as body mass, correlated moderately with performance output (r = 0.36-0.6). Subjects with high BF or high FFM or both had significantly lower ergometer test results compared with those with low BF and FFM in all age and gender groups (p < 0.05). The finding that high levels of BF and FFM are detrimental for cycle power output is important to consider in disciplines that demand high levels of aerobic and anaerobic performance.