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Aligned with research recommendations (e.g., Wadey & Everard, 2021), the purpose of this multi-method multi-study investigation was to construct a measure of athletes' experiences of growth following sport injury. Study 1 systematically reviewed the literature on sport injury-related growth (SIRG) and extracted a pool of relevant and specific items organised in themes. In Study 2, a panel of experts (i.e., academics, sport psychologists, and previously injured athletes) was asked to quantitatively and qualitatively assess the items for relevance, clarity, and specificity. These two studies provided evidence for the content validity of the pool of items. Study 3 tested the psychometric properties of the instrument on a sample of previously injured athletes (N = 452), identifying satisfactory factor structure, concurrent validity, and reliability. Collectively, the multi-study supports the construct validity of a 24-item scale, named the Sport Injury-Related Growth Inventory-24 (SIRGI-24), measuring eight sub-dimensions of SIRG: sense of mastery, positive relations with others, responsibility for one's health, self-awareness, emotional ability, purpose in life, purpose in sport, and body awareness. To conclude, the SIRGI-24 allows researchers and sport psychologists to assess the SIRG experienced by injured athletes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract\nLay Summary\nPRACTICAL IMPLICATIONSHeeding calls to expand the resources and approaches to psychologically support injured athletes, this study explored the applied value of socio-cultural sports injury narratives for athletes, coaches, and practitioners. Informed by narrative inquiry and pedagogy, six evidence based sports injury narratives were shared and discussed with 69 elite participants (i.e., athletes, coaches, and practitioners) across 11 focus group interviews. A reflexive thematic analysis identified five themes: (1) Forewarned is Forearmed, (2) Building Blocks to Constructing Meaning(s), (3) Fostering Interpersonal Connections, (4) A Common Language, and (5) Promoting Communal Responsibility. Overall, these themes advance empirical understandings of how narratives can inform professional practice by supporting injured athletes across personal (e.g., meaning making), social (e.g., enhancing interpersonal relationships), and cultural (e.g., promoting communal responsibility) levels.Findings highlight the applied value of socio-cultural sports injury narratives for professional practice. Not only can they assist athletes in navigating their future injury experiences and making sense of their past and current injury experiences, but they can also foster dialogue around injured athletes’ experiences, create more interdisciplinary conversations, and promote greater communal responsibility.Sports injury narratives act as resources that enable athletes to make sense of, construct, and communicate their own injury story.Sport injury narratives enhance relationships between athletes and support networks by facilitating empathy and understanding and promoting more communal dialogue.Sports injury narratives promote a broader duty of care toward injured athletes by raising awareness of how broader socio-cultural contexts constrain and/or enable their experiences.Sports injury narratives act as resources that enable athletes to make sense of, construct, and communicate their own injury story.Sport injury narratives enhance relationships between athletes and support networks by facilitating empathy and understanding and promoting more communal dialogue.Sports injury narratives promote a broader duty of care toward injured athletes by raising awareness of how broader socio-cultural contexts constrain and/or enable their experiences. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A knowledge-transfer 'gap' exists within the sport injury psychology literature. This gap has led to recent calls to translate the evidence base in more accessible, relevant, and multi-sensory formats to facilitate research uptake and impact. Heeding this recommendation and informed by narrative inquiry, the purpose of this multi-study paper was twofold: Study 1 aimed to construct videos that translated evidenced-based narratives of sports injury experiences by working collaboratively with a digital learning practitioner, videographer, and user-group (i.e., elite athletes). Study 2 explored end-users' perspectives of these video narratives in communicating sports injury research by conducting 11 focus group interviews with 69 participants (i.e., athletes, coaches, and practitioners). A reflexive thematic analysis identified that the video narratives communicated sport injury psychology research in accessible, evocative, and relevant ways. Considerations of how to implement these video narratives into professional practice are critically discussed. Lay summary: This study addressed the knowledge-transfer gap in sport injury psychology by constructing and exploring how video narratives communicate research findings. Findings identified that the videos translated knowledge in accessible, evocative, and relevant ways. This study bridges the knowledge-transfer gap in sport injury psychology by constructing and exploring end-users' perspectives of video narratives in translating and disseminating sport injury psychology research This study provides an evidence-base, methodology, and practical know-how for future researchers aiming to translate and disseminate their research to end-users in accessible and engaging ways Six video narratives are offered that can be accessed and used in professional practice [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Underpinned by critical feminist psychology and in response to repeated calls to explore how the dynamics of gender inform coaching practices, this study aimed to explore the experiences of men and women coaches to better understand the role of gendered expectations in elite sports environments and how these are reproduced within a Western European country's elite sport system. Data were collected over 18 months via fieldwork observations and semi-structured interviews with 10 elite coaches, from five Olympic and professional sports. Data were analyzed using reflexive thematic analysis. Using the concept of hegemony as a theoretical lens to interpret the data, macro (i.e., wider socio-cultural norms), meso (i.e., organizational practices), and micro (i.e., coaches experiences working with women athletes) levels were identified. The findings demonstrate that each level plays a role in actively producing and reproducing the broader power relations between genders within and beyond the sporting environment. 'Moments of intervention' are offered to coaches and sports personnel to create more inclusive environments to provide optimal support for women athletes. Lay summary: Over an 18-month period of observations and interviews, this research explores elite coaches' perceptions of working with world-class women athletes across a range of sports. Underpinned by critical feminist psychology, the importance of using a holistic approach to understand how multi-level factors impact the support elite women athletes receive was identified. The findings demonstrate the need to encourage people working in elite sports to reflect on their underlying gender biases. Coaches should be cautious of stereotyping elite women athletes, with an aim instead to understand individuals against the backdrop of a gendered world. Gender should be seen as a complex set of social relations that requires open and frequent dialogue to assess and challenge the narrative of how women athletes are viewed, spoken about, and treated within the elite sports environment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study examined the relationship between basic psychological skills usage (i.e., goal-setting, imagery, self-talk, and relaxation) and the intensity and directional dimensions of competitive anxiety. Semistructured interviews were used on a sample of 15 elite athletes (M age = 24.3 years, SD = 4.2) from a variety of team and individual sports. Findings revealed that the participants maintained the intensity of their anxiety response prior to competition and could deploy goal-setting, imagery, or self-talk to enable facilitative interpretations of anxiety-related symptoms to performance. Higher levels of self-confidence and an optimistic outlook toward forthcoming competition were also expressed. The underlying mechanisms perceived to be responsible for these effects included effort and motivation, attentional focus, and perceived control over the anxiety response. (Contains 4 figures.)

Despite recent conceptual, methodological, and theoretical advancements in sport-injury-related growth (SIRG), there is no research on sport psychology consultants' (SPCs) experiential knowledge of working with injured athletes to facilitate SIRG. Toward this end, this study examined SPCs' perspectives on facilitating SIRG to provide an evidence base for professional practice. Participants (4 female, 6 male; mean 19 years' applied experience) were purposefully sampled and interviewed. Transcripts were thematically analyzed. Methodological rigor and generalizability were maximized through self-reflexivity and eliciting external reflections. Five themes were identified: Hear the Story, Contextualize the Story, Reconstruct the Story, Live the Story, and Share the Story. Findings offer practitioners a novel approach to working with injured athletes. Rather than focusing on returning to preinjury level of functioning, the findings illustrate how SPCs can work with injured athletes to help transform injury into an opportunity to bring about positive change. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]