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Nearly 1 in 5 US College Athletes Reports Abusive Supervision by Their Coaches

The AHA! Team — Wed, 11 Jun 2025 05:39:51 +0000

BMJ Group via EurekAlert! – Athletes with disabilities and those in team sports most at risk, survey reveals. Nearly 1 in 5 college athletes reports some form of abusive supervision —defined as sustained hostile verbal and non-verbal behaviours—by their coaches, reveals an analysis of survey responses, involving National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) athletes, and published online in the British Journal of Sports Medicine. While there is no evidence of vulnerability according to race/ethnicity, sexual orientation, or gender, athletes with disabilities and those participating in team sports seem to be most at risk, the findings indicate. Athletes view their coaches as role models, which makes their interactions susceptible to supervised abuse, say the researchers. “While transformational leadership can inspire players and impart valuable life lessons that positively impact athletes’ play and contribute to their development, an unethical leader can severely negatively affect an athlete’s mental health, quality of life, and wellbeing in adulthood,” they point out. Given that most coaches identify as White, male, cisgender, able-bodied and straight, the researchers wanted to find out if race/ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation and disability, were distinguishing features of abusive coach supervision. They drew on data from the 2021–22 myPlaybook survey administered by the University of North Carolina Greensboro Institute to Promote Athlete Health & Wellness in collaboration with Stanford University’s Sports Equity Lab. The dataset included 4337 NCAA athletes from 123 universities across the USA. The validated Tepper 2000 questionnaire was adapted to ask respondents whether they had experienced certain abusive coaching behaviours, with each answer ranging from 1 to 5, representing frequency. Four additional questionnaires probed athlete autonomy, team culture, perceived coach leadership skills and care for their athlete’s wellbeing. In all, 3317 respondents provided complete data on abusive supervision and 1926 (58%) provided complete data on this plus the areas covered by the other 4 questionnaires. Most respondents (89%; 2959) were aged between 18 and 21, and male respondents made up 57% (1891) of the total. Sexual orientation was reported as predominantly straight (3125). And as only 19 identifed themselves as non-binary, transgender, or ‘other’, their number was too small to be statistically meaningful, and they were excluded from the analysis. Some 81% (2689) of respondents were involved in non-lean sports—where leanness is not considered a competitive advantage—and about 75% (2480) participated in team sports. Around three quarters of participants shared the same gender as their coach: 1844 male–male pairs; 660 female–female pairs. Of the total number of respondents, 2699 reported no abusive supervision, but 618 (nearly 19%) said they had experienced it. There was no significant age difference between those who reported abuse and those who didn’t. And gender identity analysis revealed that while women were slightly more likely to report abuse, this wasn’t statistically significant. Race/ethnicity data indicated that nearly two thirds (2162) of participants were White, but there was no significant difference between the different racial groups in terms of reporting abuse. After accounting for potentially influential factors, significant differences were noted in the type of sport played as team sports participants were 10% more likely to report abusive supervision than their peers who participated in individual sports. And non-lean sports participants reported more abusive supervision than those participating in lean sports, although this didn’t reach statistical significance. The prevalence of disability was just under 3% (88), and after accounting for potentially influential factors, those reporting a disability were 17% more likely to say they had experienced abusive supervision than their able-bodied peers. Coach behaviours indicative of concern for the athlete’s wellbeing were associated with a lower risk of abusive supervision reports. Coaches who reacted harshly and who focused predominantly on team success/outcomes were deemed more abusive, with a 24%-47% heightened risk of an abusive supervision report. On the other hand, those who were attentive to, and respectful of, their athletes’ needs and efforts; who were demonstrably accountable; and who regularly communicated respectfully with their athletes were deemed more supportive. Their risk of being reported as abusive was around 35% lower. The researchers acknowledge that the survey responses reflect just one point in time, and would not have captured those who discontinued their sporting careers because of the abuse they endured. And the findings might not be applicable to other age groups, sports organisations, or athletes worldwide, they add. But they nevertheless comment: “Overall, these findings are concerning as we know from prior research the role abusive coaching plays in psychological, training, performance and academic outcomes in comparison with coaches who use a more athlete-centred and humanistic approach.” They continue: “Promoting positive coaching strategies that prioritise athlete wellbeing, motivation and teamwork is essential to protecting collegiate athletes and facilitating their development. “Therefore, NCAA member institutions should consider a nationwide policy that mandates the implementation of a standardised educational programme and training created by the NCAA e-learning team for coaches to recognise and address abusive supervision behaviours while recognising and amplifying supportive supervision behaviours.” They conclude: “Ultimately, dealing with this problem is crucial for safeguarding NCAA athletes, particularly those from equity-deserving groups. Further solutions-focused research is necessary to advance the goal of fostering a safe sporting environment for collegiate athletes to thrive both on and off the field.” Journal British Journal of Sports Medicine DOI 10.1136/bjsports-2024-108282 To read the original article click here.

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Feeling Burnt Out? These 7 Mental-Health Techs Can Help

AHA Publisher — Tue, 02 Feb 2021 08:00:51 +0000

Abigail Klein Leichman via Israel21c – Anxiety, depression, burnout, loneliness –2020 was the most stressful year in many people’s lives, according to an international study from Oracle and Workplace Intelligence. The study revealed that 78 percent of the global workforce aged 22 to 74 feels higher levels of daily stress and anxiety than ever before. Eighty-five percent reported their mental state is harming their sleep, physical health, happiness at home, and relationships with family and friends. So far, not surprising. But the study also found that 82% of 12,347 employees, managers, HR leaders, and C-level executives from across 11 countries would prefer to try an artificially intelligent technological solution for their mental-health issues before turning to a human for help. It’s fair to say that their answers reflect a growing trend in the broader population as everyone has gotten comfortable with video conferencing and other tech tools. And that means these Israeli technologies and apps to improve mental health are coming to market at exactly the right time. Some can be effective on their own or as a first line of defense, while others aid professional clinicians in bringing relief to their patients. CalmiGo Dendro Technologies claims that using its CalmiGo device for a few minutes each day can reduce symptoms of anxiety and stress, change the stress response and shorten episodes of distress. The $180 device has three components: a personalized breathing regulator using lights and vibrations; multisensory stimulation for grounding and focus; and a relaxing aromatherapy scent based on lavender. The device is geared for all ages. It was tried on students with test anxiety at private university IDC-Herzliya and is being evaluated for cancer patients at Tel Aviv Sourasky Medical Center. The US Department of Veterans Affairs subsidizes the cost of CalmiGo for veterans suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder and anxiety. CalmiGo’s cofounder, Adi Wallach, partnered with physician and serial entrepreneur Dr. Orna Levin to develop the device due to her own struggles with anxiety attacks. MindReset British “mental coach” Matt Hudson helps clients de-stress and overcome various mental health conditions. Due to congenital hearing problems, he can pick up tiny nonverbal signs of physiological stress, such as eye movements, and then helps clients vanquish those subconscious stress triggers. Hoping to make his technique available widely, Hudson contacted Jerusalem-based Umoove, an innovator of mobile eye-tracking technology. Together, they developed and launched the MindReset stress-busting app for iOS and Android. The two-minute voice-led sessions pinpoint subconscious stress triggers while the phone’s camera observes eye movements and processes the images securely on the phone. A visual element interrupts the brain’s reaction to the trigger, resulting in immediate reduction of stress levels that can be measured by monitoring devices such as Garmin watches. A test carried out on Garmin wearers found that 90% had a measurable decrease in daily average stress levels during the first week of using MindReset for a few minutes a day. “You don’t need to dive into your trauma or negative experiences or even to know exactly what they are on a conscious level,” says Yitzi Kempinski, founder-CEO of Umoove and CTO of MindReset. “And the amazing thing is that this app can make a significant improvement very quickly.” Kempinski tells ISRAEL21c that ongoing studies show initial promising results for MindReset’s impact on stress, work burnout and depression, as well as “Long Covid” (long-term mental and physical effects of Covid-19). The company will soon launch a new version with specially designed programs for people dealing with chronic stress, chronic fatigue, depression and more. “Anxiety and chronic stress are growing rapidly worldwide, especially lately with the Covid-19 pandemic and all that comes with it,” said Hudson. “There are many meditation apps out there, but most people don’t have time or patience to meditate effectively. So, a solution that is both effective but only takes moments is just what is needed.” Predictix Clinical depression is the leading cause of disability worldwide. Yet it’s estimated that half of the people treated for depression go through trial and error to find a medication providing complete relief. Israeli mental health startup Taliaz recently received CE (European Union) approval for Predictix Digital, an artificial intelligence (AI) tool providing instant digital prescribing recommendations during a patient’s face-to-face or virtual visit. Predictix Digital analyses each patient’s clinical and demographic data, then translates these thousands of data combinations into a recommendation report that ranks antidepressants by their predicted efficacy and anticipated side effects. Wisdo The Wisdo app provides access to a social network where users can connect over mutual experiences with more than 100 concerns such as “coping with depression,” “heartbreak” and “loneliness.” Cofounder and CEO Boaz Gaon got the idea for the app when seeking emotional support during his father’s eight-year battle with cancer. Its tagline is “Learn from people who’ve been there.” Wisdo was Google Play’s #1 app for social impact and personal growth in 2019 and is a five-time App Store “App of the Day.” MoodKnight by 4Girls MoodKnight analyzes social-media posts in Hebrew or English, using artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning and natural language processing, to detect and classify mental-health distress such as loneliness, anxiety, violence victimization and suicidal thoughts. Instances are detected and ranked by severity — low, medium (professional help needed) or high (emergency) – and sends an alert to the client. For now, MoodKnight is working with Israel’s Ministry of Health and Ministry of Welfare and Social Services. Potential clients include mental-health divisions of hospitals and HMOs that want to track patients for risk assessment, as well as helplines, e-therapy and telemedicine providers, parenting applications and social-media platforms themselves. “Our technology is trained to look at people ages 12 to 30 because these are the people sharing their distress online,” says head of business development Amir Gefen, whose PhD in education focused on adolescent cyberbullying. “We are raising funds and looking to acquire commercial clients for this technology,” Gefen tells ISRAEL21c. “We could collaborate with other mental health and wellness applications,” Gefen adds. “Our technology will help them fit their app to the needs of the users. Right now, these apps are based on self-reporting. We can go beyond that by analyzing a text written by the person.” GGTUDE GGtude offers a variety of free iOS and Android apps that guide users through cognitive behavioral therapy techniques for changing negative thought habits. The apps aim to improve emotional wellbeing in the areas of self-esteem; OCD, anxiety and depression; and self-care. Two to three daily exercises per topic are available for free. Sessions last three minutes each. A paid premium membership entitles the user to more than 500 daily exercises. GGtude has published seven research studies on its mobile mental health platforms. Its personalized content delivery engine is at the core of BrainsWay’s newly launched wellness app for depression. BRAINSWAY BrainsWay’s main product is a non-invasive deep transcranial magnetic stimulation (Deep TMS) platform technology. Itis FDA approved for treating major depressive disorder, obsessive-compulsive disorder and smoking addiction. Clinical trials are underway for various psychiatric, neurological, and addiction disorders. The BrainsWay coil technology inside a flexible helmet is designed to maximize electrical stimulation of deep brain regions. The product to treat major depression – for patients who tried antidepressant medications with no improvement — is also in clinical trials at various stages for the treatment of bipolar disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder and schizophrenia. To read the original article click here. For more articles from Israel21c click here.

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