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This study examined the effect of ball size on the movement patterns used by children and adults to grasp a ball and then to throw it as hard as possible. A total of 104 kindergarten, second-grade, fourth-grade, eighth-grade, and young adult males and females were asked to pick up six styrofoam balls of different diameters (from 4.8 to 29.5 cm) four times each as they were presented in random order, and then throw them as hard as possible at a wall 6.7 m away. Transitions from one- to two-hand grasps were made as ball diameters increased, with older subjects switching at significantly larger diameters than younger subjects (p<.0001); however, when ball size was scaled to hand size, older subjects switched at significantly smaller relative diameters than younger subjects (p<.Ol), indicating that hand size may be a critical factor in determining grasp form. Transitions from one- to two-hand throws were made by less than 25% of the subjects (mostly kindergartners and females), demonstrating a strong preference by older children and adults for throwing with one hand, even with ball diameters larger than a subject’s hand size.

Visual demonstrations have long been regarded as a critical instructional method for children’s motor skill and social-emotional development. Despite their widespread importance, skill demonstrations have often been characterized by a failure to consider age related differences in children’s cognitive and physical abilities. Similarly, the potential psychological effects of modeling on children’s behaviors in the physical domain have rarely been discussed. Thus the purpose of this paper is to review theoretical and research perspectives from the motor behavior and psychology literatures about developmental and psychological factors associated with children’s modeling of motor skills. Specifically, this paper will emphasize (a) how children perceive characteristics of a visual demonstration, (b) how they translate perceptions to actions that attempt to match the skill demonstration, and (c) how observational learning can be used to enhance self-confidence and motivation in youth. Practical implications for maximizing motor skill and psychosocial development in children are addressed in each section of the paper.

The psychology of sport concussions consists of psychological, psychiatric, and psychosocial factors that contribute to sport concussion risks, consequences, and outcomes. The purpose of this paper is to present a sport concussion-adapted version of the integrated model of psychological response to sport injury and rehabilitation (Wiese-Bjornstal, Smith, Shaffer, &#x0026; Morrey, 1998) as a framework for understanding the roles of psychological, psychiatric, and psychosocial factors in sport concussions. Elements of this model include preinjury psychological risk factors, postinjury psychological response and rehabilitation processes, and postinjury psychological care components. Mapped onto each element of this model are findings from the research literature through a narrative review process. An important caveat is that the subjective nature of concussion diagnoses presents limitations in these findings. Future research should examine psychological contributors to concussion risk, influences of physical factors on psychological symptoms and responses, and efficacy of psychological treatments utilizing theory-driven approaches.

The purpose of this study was to explore religiosity/spirituality (R/S) in coping with sport injuries, based on predictions of the integrated model of psychological response to the sport injury and rehabilitation process. A concurrent mixed methods design framed an online survey incorporating quantitative measures of R/S identification and commitment, health locus of control for sport injury, and ways of coping with sport injury, as well as qualitative open-ended questions about mechanisms through which R/S affected and was affected by coping with sport injuries. Participants included 49 physically active adults who experienced sport injuries, with 37 identifying as R/S. Quantitative findings among R/S participants showed religious commitment was a predictor of God health locus of control and positive religious coping. Quantitative results relative to differences between R/S and no-R/S participants showed that those self-identified as R/S relied on a God health locus of control and utilized active coping more so than did those self-identified as no-R/S, whereas no-R/S participants relied more than did R/S participants on an internal health locus of control. Thematic analyses exploring qualitative data revealed three main themes characterizing mechanisms through which R/S affected and was affected by coping with sport injuries: positive, negative, and no R/S coping strategies and effects. Findings support the predictions of the integrated model of psychological response to the sport injury and rehabilitation process and provide evidence-bases for clinical and counseling interventions that reflect cultural competence in accommodating patient or client R/S during recovery from sport injury.

Injuries contrast with the overwhelmingly positive benefits of sports participation for female athletes, with estimates of a third or more of all female athletes sustaining injury in any given season. Media headlines convey the impression that female athletes are more vulnerable to sports injuries than male athletes are. This observation led to our first purpose, which was to use evidence from the sports injury surveillance literature to examine the facts about female athlete risks of injury and compare these risks to those of male athletes. In light of Gill and Kamphoff’s (2010) observation that we largely ignore or underrepresent female experiences in the sport and exercise psychology literature, our second purpose was to highlight examples of the psychological, behavioral, and social aspects of female athletes’ injury experiences, and provide comparisons to male experiences within this realm of sports medicine psychology. These evidence-based observations guide our concluding recommendations for injury reporting, prevention, and rehabilitation roles of those in the media and sports professions.