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College athletes are at risk for heavy alcohol use, which jeopardizes their general health, academic standing, and athletic performance. Effective prevention programming reduces these risks by targeting theory-based intermediate factors that predict alcohol use while tailoring content to student-athletes. The purpose of this study was to examine the impact of the myPlaybook online prevention program on student-athletes’ social norms, negative alcohol expectancies, and intentions to use alcohol-related harm prevention strategies. NCAA Division II student-athletes were recruited from 60 institutions across the United States to complete myPlaybook and pretest/posttest surveys measuring demographics and targeted outcome variables. Participants were randomly assigned to the treatment group (pretest-program-posttest; final n = 647) or the delayed treatment “control” group (pretest-posttest-program; final n = 709). Results revealed significant program effects on social norms (p < .01) and intentions to use harm prevention strategies (p < .01), while the effect on negative alcohol expectancies was nonsignificant (p = .14). Implications for future research and practice are discussed.

Athlete burnout is an important psychological health concern that may be influenced by coach behaviors. Participants were 933 collegiate soccer coaches who described their utilization of burnout prevention strategies. Deductive content analysis was used to categorize and interpret responses. The most frequently endorsed prevention strategies involved managing/limiting physical stressors. Reducing nonsport stressors and promoting autonomy and relatedness were also endorsed. Motivational climate changes and secondary prevention strategies were infrequently reported. These findings can help inform the design of educational programming to ensure that all coaches are aware of the range of ways in which they can help prevent athlete burnout.

An in vivo exposure and response prevention procedure consisting of seven treatment and generalization sessions was used to aid a 50-year-old woman with a lifelong fear and avoidance of swimming in the ocean. Subsequent to treatment, the subject, already a competent pool swimmer and an accomplished athlete, swam in the ocean, reduced her swim time by over 50%, and placed second in her age group while competing in a major triathlon. A 1-year follow-up indicated that she was still swimming in the ocean and participating in triathlons. The athlete/sport psychologist relationship is discussed in reference to the athlete’s compliance with treatment recommendations.

This study addresses performance-enhancement drug (PED) consumption in amateur sport by investigating the relationship between psychosocial factors and PED use in amateur cyclists. Participants were asked whether they had ever taken PED. They were also asked whether they had any experience in competitive cycling, and the degree to which they participated in the event with a competitive aim. In addition, they completed the Performance Enhancement Attitude Scale, the Rosenberg self-esteem scale, and a bespoke self-efficacy questionnaire, and they rated the percentage of cyclists they believed took PED. Between-groups comparisons and two multiple regression analyses were performed. Overall, the results of our study point to adult amateur cyclists in general, and amateur cyclists with experience in competition in particular, as groups at risk for PED use. This study highlights the value of measuring psychosocial variables as a tool to assess PED use, a current issue at both sport performance and health levels.

In recent years drug abuse by college athletes has received greater attention. Because of the recognition of the growing problem of drug use in athletics, the new NCAA drug testing policy, and recent deaths of elite athletes, the sport psychologist should be prepared to deal with this issue. In many college settings the sport psychologist may be expected to provide support with counseling or participate in the development of a drug abuse prevention program for student athletes. Therefore sport psychologists need to closely examine the factors that may predispose athletes toward using drugs, understand the role of prevention, and develop a thorough knowledge of positive, viable alternatives to drugs. This article addresses five important issues that relate to drug abuse in college athletics: (a) why athletes are at risk, (b) athletic leadership and its relationship to substance abuse, (c) the role of the sport psychologist, (d) issues related to the effectiveness of drug education for athletes, and (e) recommendations for athlete drug education programs.

Substance abuse by the collegiate athlete has become a major concern. Drug testing programs are viewed as one method of combatting this problem; however, more emphasis should be placed upon developing effective drug prevention programs. The current study addresses this need by (a) designing a multifocused prevention program specifically for student-athletes based on the previous literature, (b) evaluating its overall effectiveness as well as that of its individual components, and (c) identifying factors associated with preintervention usage patterns of student-athletes for the purpose of guiding future program development efforts. Although 110 student-athletes indicated a willingness to participate in the study, only 58 completed the assessment packet. These 58 were randomly assigned to intervention and control conditions. Few differences were found between the treatment and control groups. Perhaps the most important finding was that social-environmental factors and pro-usage attitudes were related to previous patterns of alcohol, drug, and tobacco use prior to the student-athlete’s arrival at college. Results are discussed in terms of their impact upon future program development and evaluation.

A broad spectrum systems theory approach to the delivery of psychological services is presented. The target population includes the athletes, coaches, administrators, ski company representatives, and family members. The delivery of service involves individual dyadic and group sessions. The methods of service include educational, clinical, organizational, and a research data base. The major goal is to instill individual self-monitoring and self-control of personal well-being and achievement. Utilizing several theoretical frameworks such as behavioral, cognitive, humanistic, group dynamics, and insight oriented has worked best. Success of the program is multifactored: (a) being willing to commit a major amount of time to a single sport; (b) providing a broad range of services, from mental skills training, crises intervention, injury prevention and rehabilitation to team building, communication, and referral of individual to practitioners; (c) attending to organizational issues and program evaluation; and (d) common sense, practicability, and a willingness to be flexible with programs.

Research on how to recover from athlete burnout is scarce. The current aim is therefore to describe an intervention with an elite shooter suffering from burnout, and the use of mindfulness and Qigong to reestablish sport functioning as well as general well-being. The participant used mindfulness and Qigong exercise on a daily basis. Exercise frequency, exercise time, concentration level and Qigong state were noted daily, and levels of stress, energy and primordial force were self-rated weekly for 20 weeks, and followed up after 30, 40 and 50 weeks. The participant recovered from burnout to a state of general well-being (energy and primordial force changed from weak to strong), and her ability to stay concentrated in a Qigong state changed from weak to strong. Her capacity to shoot high scores was reestablished, even if her shooting endurance was not fully recovered. Mindfulness and Qigong techniques may be useful in the prevention of and recovery from athlete burnout.

The purpose of this study was to characterize recovery experiences of female collegiate athletes who have suffered from eating disorders. Participants were 16 collegiate female athletes who experienced recovery from an eating disorder. Participants told their recovery stories in semistructured interviews regarding factors that initiated, assisted, and hindered recovery. The most common turning point to initiate recovery was experiencing negative consequences from the eating disorder. Factors that most frequently assisted recovery included making cognitive and behavioral changes, supportive relationships, and seeking professional care. Hindering factors most commonly included lack of support from others, professional care complaints, and spending time with others with eating disorders. Results suggested that unique features of the sport environment, including coaches’ behavior and team norms, introduce either positive or negative influences on athletes as they work to recover from an eating disorder. Based on these findings, specific treatment and prevention recommendations for athletes are discussed.