Alcohol use in the NFL

High profile alcohol-related incidents involving NFL players seem to be becoming more and more common; just ask Cedric Benson, Odell Thurman, and Adam Jones.  But, given the substantial body of negative health and professional effects alcohol abuse poses, why would such high profile professional athletes engage in such behavior?

The Center for Science in the Public Interest has proposed one possible source contributing to the problem - the advertising and alcohol policies of the NFL teams themselves.  Judge John Burlew recently summarized the problem in a hearing related to linebacker Odell Thurman's alcohol related arrest:  "The allegations are that you had a legal substance—alcohol—in your body, a substance which they advertise and get money from, millions of dollars a year from."

In summary, the CPSI proposes that the NFL hypocritically punishes its players severely for alcohol related incidents while simultaneously profiting from beer advertising and sales in the stadiums.  They propose a complete ban of alcohol related sales and advertising at NFL games.  The root of the CPSI's concern is that young sport viewers could possibly view athletics and alcohol as inherently related, and be more likely to develop alcohol problems.

But why could alcohol abuse be more common among professional athletes?  Is it more common at all among pros than other populations?  Some reasons for alcohol abuse among high profile athletes can include:

Stress - athletics can impart extreme physical and psychological stress, and alcohol could be used as a form of "escape"

Social situations - any new athletes who enter into an established culture of drinking are likely to engage in the same behavior

Modeling - young athletes may be more likely to abuse alcohol if it becomes associated with role model athletes - an association which both increased alcohol advertising during sporting events and media coverage of athletes and alcohol may lead to

A healthy education of young athletes about normal and responsible behavior around alcohol, and demonstration of healthy behavior by parents, are both key to preventing youth alcohol abuse.

Read the whole CPSI report here.

Sport Psychologists advice spurs Maryland to NCAA title in Field Hockey

Maryland was defending back-to-back national titles a season ago when the school hosted the field hockey final four.  There was just one problem:  The Terrapins hadn't made the tourney.  The experience was not a pleasant one for the team.  

However, the coach credits the asssistance of sport psychologist Joel Fish.  Primarily, his worked involved re-establishing and fortifying team camaraderie and unity, which had been lost after a slow start in which some focus had been lost as players also competed for national teams.  

Maryland coach Missy Meharg described her teams performance: "Our girls played very mature mentally.  They didn't allow anything to unsettle them."

Read the whole report from the Baltimor Sun here.

Burnout - A Cautionary Tale

Rewind several months. Elena Delle Donne was the nation's top women's basketball player, prepping for the upcoming season at national power UConn, seemingly the world at her feet. Fast forward to now - Elena has quit the UConn team, resigned her scholarship, enrolled at Delaware, and walked onto the volleyball team, a sport she played for the first time last year.

Why? In a word, burnout. Elena personally admitted she was burned out and fed up with basketball at 18. Perhaps the Delaware volleyball coach, Bonnie Kelly, said it best: "Adults need to pay attention. It’s a problem in youth sports. These kids are burned out. From 12 to 18, I bet Elena can count on her hands the amount of weekends she didn’t have anything to do related to sport. She’s missed the opportunity to be a kid.”

An all-comsuming focus from a young age on athletics, to the detriment of other activities, can lead to burnout among youth athletes. Outside pressures, including those from parents and coaches, can cause burnout - as can internal pressures from self-driven athletes.

In Elena's case, perhaps it's interesting to note that she received her first college scholarship offer in the seventh grade.

Read the whole New York Times article here.

Physically strong = emotionally strong?

Elevated to astronomical social heights, seen as role models and heroes, and paid handsomely for their efforts, professional athletes rarely give us an insight into their personal lives. Not so with Cleveland Cavaliers point guard Delonte West, who recently went public regarding his battles
with a mood disorder and depression. Said West, "I removed myself from the team so I could get myself together so I could not be a distraction to the team and what we're trying to accomplish here. For a while, you feel like a weaker man because you've got to raise your hand and ask for help. But I found out over the last week that made me a stronger person."

The key point here is at the end. Sometimes, counseling and sport psychology are viewed with a negative stigma and the belief that those seeking the assistance of a counselor are weak. However, this is not the case, and in West we can see that seeking and finding help is a sign of strength, not weakness.

Read the whole article from Philly.com here.

Parent behavior in youth sport – nightmare vs. reality

Media coverage in recent years would make us think that violence and aggression among parents in youth sports is the norm, not the extreme. A simple google search for violence in youth sports will return hundreds of stories detailing such incidents. Certainly, such violent behavior among parents and family members is out of line and not the normal baseline for spectator behavior.

But what does parent behavior and comments actually look like? Athletic Insight, online sport psychology journal, has published a new study detailing the actual content of parent comments during youth athletic events. Their research, reviewing over 2,000 comments by over 100 parents, showed that 52% of observed comments were positive, while 32% were negative and 16% were neutral. Comments which were viewed as negative were those which were scolding, sarcastic, and instructional/correcting in nature. Some examples of these comments include “let’s see some hustle out there,” “Suck it up,” or “throw it to first”.

The study gives us an outline of the frequency and content of negative comments and behaviors – so what are some positive behaviors parents of young athletes can use? SPINW has compiled a list of positive traits for parents and coaches of young athletes below.

-Encourage, but don’t force – encourage children to play sports, but don’t force them if they really don’t want to.

-Set limits on participation – base participation of children on their physical and emotional readiness. Doing too much can lead to injury or burnout.

-Set goals – help children set realistic goals for performance.

-Winning isn’t everything – keep your child’s focus on having fun and giving their best effort, not winning at all cost.

-Let the coach coach – when a child is at practice or a game, parents should let coaches do their job, and avoid giving advice or criticisms.

Read the whole article from Athletic Insight here.