THE MENTAL GAME: SUPERSTITIONS, RITUALS, AND MENTAL CONTROL IN COMPETITIVE ATHLETES

Abstract Objectives The German Society of Craniomandibular Function and Disorders recommends that patients suffering from temporomandibular dysfunctions should practice sports in order to compensate for everyday stress. This raises the question as to what extent competitive athletes develop temporomandibular dysfunctions or whether their athletic activities protect them. With the present literature review, the authors intend to give an overview of the currently available publications on this topic. Materials and methods A literature research in the PubMed and Google Scholar databases was performed to filter out the currently available publications on the topic ‚sports, and temporomandibular dysfunction. Results Out of 114 available articles, seven met the inclusion criteria. Two other relevant articles were found in the list of references, so that in total, nine publications were picked for the review. In case numbers ranging from eight to 347 subjects, a temporomandibular dysfunction was detected with a prevalence between 11.7% and 100% for athletes and between 11.11% and 14.3% for non-athletes. Different kinds of sports were evaluated, all of them contact sports: basketball, handball, wrestling, boxing, karate, mixed martial arts, field hockey, water polo, and soccer. One study compared athletes with and without consumption of anabolic steroids, regardless of the type of sport. The level of athletic performance varied across the different studies. Conclusions Currently, studies dealing with the effect of competitive sports on temporomandibular dysfunction are scarce. Inconsistent methodological procedures permit only limited comparability. Clinical relevance A general trend, however, can already be discerned: professional athletes suffer from temporomandibular dysfunctions more frequently than non-athletes.

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Letter by Corrado et al Regarding Article, “Sudden Deaths in Young Competitive Athletes: Analysis of 1866 Deaths in the United States, 1980–2006”

Circulation ◽

10.1161/circulationaha.109.875351 ◽

2009 ◽

Vol 120 (16) ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

Domenico Corrado ◽

Cristina Basso ◽

Gaetano Thiene

Keyword(s):

United States ◽

The United States ◽

Competitive Athletes

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The emotional coaching model: quantitative and qualitative research into relationships, communication and decisions in physical and sports rehabilitation

Joints ◽

10.11138/jts/2015.3.4.191 ◽

2015 ◽

Vol 03 (04) ◽

pp. 191-200 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Stefano Respizzi ◽

Elisabetta Covelli

Keyword(s):

Cruciate Ligament ◽

Self Determination Theory ◽

Coaching Model ◽

Quantitative And Qualitative Research ◽

Analysis Theory ◽

Competitive Athletes ◽

Model Treatment ◽

Anterior Cruciate ◽

Methods Of Treatment ◽

Experimental Stage

The emotional coaching model uses quantitative and qualitative elements to demonstrate some assumptions relevant to new methods of treatment in physical rehabilitation, considering emotional, cognitive and behavioral aspects in patients, whether or not they are sportsmen.Through quantitative tools (Tampa Kinesiophobia Scale, Emotional Interview Test, Previous Re-Injury Test, and reports on test scores) and qualitative tools (training contracts and relationships of emotional alliance or “contagion”), we investigate initial assumptions regarding: the presence of a cognitive and emotional mental state of impasse in patients at the beginning of the rehabilitation pathway; the curative value of the emotional alliance or “emotional contagion” relationship between healthcare provider and patient; the link between the patient’s pathology and type of contact with his own body and emotions; analysis of the psychosocial variables for the prediction of possible cases of re-injury for patients who have undergone or are afraid to undergo reconstruction of the anterior cruciate ligament (ACL).Although this approach is still in the experimental stage, the scores of the administered tests show the possibility of integrating quantitative and qualitative tools to investigate and develop a patient’s physical, mental and emotional resources during the course of his rehabilitation. Furthermore, it seems possible to identify many elements characterizing patients likely to undergo episodes of re-injury or to withdraw totally from sporting activity. In particular, such patients are competitive athletes, who fear or have previously undergone ACL reconstruction.The theories referred to (the transactional analysis theory, self-determination theory) and the tools used demonstrate the usefulness of continuing this research in order to build a shared coaching model treatment aimed at all patients, sportspeople or otherwise, which is not only physical but also emotional, cognitive and behavioral.

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Auditory comprehension and aging: Decline in syntactic processing

Applied Psycholinguistics ◽

10.1017/s0142716400005865 ◽

1991 ◽

Vol 12 (4) ◽

pp. 433-452 ◽

Cited By ~ 63

Author(s):

Loraine K. Obler ◽

Deborah Fein ◽

Marjorie Nicholas ◽

Martin L. Albert

Keyword(s):

Short Term Memory ◽

Age Groups ◽

Reaction Times ◽

Syntactic Processing ◽

Auditory Comprehension ◽

Short Term ◽

Mental Control ◽

Syntactic Structures ◽

Age Related ◽

Neuropsychological Tasks

ABSTRACTComprehension of six syntactic structures was tested across four age groups. Each structure was presented with both plausible and implausible content. The contribution of cognitive nonlinguistic factors important for comprehension (attention, short-term memory, and mental control) was tested via standard neuropsychological tasks. Sixty-six women aged 30–79 were tested. Both errors and reaction times increased with age, especially for more complex syntactic types and implausible sentences. The neuropsychological factors tested contributed minimally to an age-related decline in comprehension, suggesting that the subtle breakdown seen in syntactic processing may be a language-specific impairment.

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Aging of Competitive Athletes

Gerontology ◽

10.1159/000477722 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 63 (5) ◽

pp. 488-494 ◽

Cited By ~ 5

Author(s):

Hirofumi Tanaka

Keyword(s):

Older Adults ◽

Poor Quality ◽

Negative Stereotypes ◽

Age Related ◽

Masters Athletes ◽

Competitive Athletes ◽

Vascular Stiffening ◽

High Motivation ◽

Clinical Conditions

Demographics of human aging are rapidly changing. As illustrated in the biomedicalization of aging, an ever increasing number of older adults is affected by a variety of clinical conditions and diseases, including vascular stiffening, sarcopenia, physical disability, and poor quality of life. One population that is situated in the opposite end of the health and functional spectrum to the sedentary frail elderly is Masters athletes. These older competitive athletes are endowed with substantial functional capacity, overall long-term health, high motivation, and psychosocial outlook. Masters athletes are combating the dogma and negative stereotypes of older adults and aging. From the scientific standpoint, examining Masters athletes can provide insight into preventive gerontology, primary prevention of age-related diseases and dysfunctions, and exercise-based medical practices. Moreover, the study on Masters athletes is simply joyous and entertaining as they often remind us what can be possible in aging.

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