Digital Commons Network^™

The Tripartite Influence Model Of Body Image And Disordered Eating Among Female Athletes: Testing An Expanded Model, Emma Nyrup Tonsberg

Honors Theses

The aim of the study was to investigate how different sources of sociocultural pressure (family, media, peers) described in the Tripartite Influence Model, and additions of teammate- and coach pressures, were associated with thinness-and muscularity internalization and appearance comparisons among athletes. Subsequently, these potential mechanisms were explored as predictors of disordered eating among athletes. Analyses included 71 female athletes. Athletes were recruited through a student subject pool recruitment portal, as well as with local and regional flyers and emails. Participants completed a series of self-report measures in Qualtrics. Hierarchical linear regression analysis was utilized to test the hypotheses. Partial support …

Mental Health Among D1 Female College Athletes: Prevalance And Links To Athletic And Academic Performance, Mary Goebel

Honors Theses

Background. NCAA Division I female student-athletes are underrepresented in mental health research; existing research among female athletes tends to focus only on disordered eating and body appearance. This study aims to 1) describe the prevalence of mental health issues (i.e., anxiety, depression, and stress) among female Division I college athletes, and 2) assess the association between mental health issues and the student-athlete experience (i.e., athletic and academic performance).

Methods. This was a quantitative, cross-sectional study that used a self-administered online survey. The participants were NCAA Division I female student-athletes, mainly from the University of Mississippi. Demographics and sample characteristics were …

Calculating Risk: A Scoping Review Of Ncaa D1 Football Players’ Motivations To Play And The Correlation To Demographic Characteristics And Injury Experiences, Kathleen D. Walsh

Honors Theses

The purpose of this research was to investigate the motivations of National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division 1 (D1) football players for playing the game and how these motivations are associated with their socioeconomic status (SES). Further, the research aimed to investigate how the uncovered motivations were linked to injury experiences. The original project was designed as a survey-based mixed methods study on a national scale. However, issues with participant recruitment led to sidelining of that primary research. The research presented is a scoping review of the available literature pertaining to the research question: What is known from existing literature …

Ethnicity, Nationalism, And Football: Exploring The Construction Of Ethnic Identities And Their Manifestations For Athletic Club Bilbao And Celtic Football Club, Kelly Wetherton

Honors Theses

This thesis centers on the construction of ethnic identities for fans of Athletic Club and Celtic F.C. and the two clubs’ roles in evincing nationalism. Utilizing survey data from an online, anonymous survey posted to fan forums, the research aimed to determine which of the three leading theories of ethnicity—primordialism, instrumentalism, or social constructivism—was most applicable to the formation of identities for Basque Athletic Club fans and Irish Celtic fans. The results demonstrated that the theory of social constructivism most closely aligns with the case of Basque Athletic Club fans while the identities of Irish Celtic fans can best be …

A Necessary Evil: A Leadership Analysis Of Major League Baseball’S Best Managers, Samuel Shapiro

Honors Theses

This study aims to contribute to the literature assessing the success of baseball managers relative to the context that governed their roles. More specifically, it seeks to address the presence of universal leadership styles, traits, and characteristics that have persisted across different eras and contexts.

Offense Or Defense? Leadership Of The Nba And Nfl In Response To Athlete Activism, Katrina Hale

Honors Theses

Over the past decade, the Black community of the United States has faced great discrimination and violence leading to various protests and instances of activism across the county. In the world of sports, where one may think that political engagement has no relation, some Black athletes use their platforms to speak up about these issues. The National Football League (NFL) and the National Basketball Association (NBA) recruit the largest percentage of Black athletes compared to any other professional league in the U.S., but their reactions to racial activism on the field and on the court appear very different. In order …

The Effects Of Covid-19 On The Home Court Advantage, Dempsey Horton

Honors Theses

No abstract provided.

A New Generation Of The Ncaa: How Two Major Rules Have Changed The College Landscape, Brennan Saunders

Honors Theses

This paper is designed to take a look at the effect of two new rule changes the NCAA has established within the past two years. Through an explanation of what led to the NIL and transfer portal rulings, what NIL involves, and the long-term effects that NIL and the transfer portal are going to have on future athletes’ decisions, we will find that the NIL and transfer portal are the biggest rule changes in NCAA history and will have major ramifications for years to come.

Adapting, Overcoming, And Connecting: How College Sports Social Media Responded To Covid-19, Jackson Sepko

Honors Theses

This project, inspired by the researcher’s own experience as a digital media marketing assistant for Ole Miss Athletics, investigates how certain NCAA team accounts grew their social media engagement in the 2020-21 seasons despite the challenges and interruptions of COVID-19. First, metrics from data analytics firm SkullSparks were analyzed to determine which accounts increased their engagement metrics the most or performed strongly compared to their peers. Then, those accounts’ posts were analyzed using CrowdTangle, a Facebook-owned data analytics tool, and using Twitter’s advanced search features to see which posts overperformed compared to each account’s average posts.

From there, with an …

Hitting It Out Of The Park: How Major League Baseball Changed The Game By Not Changing Anything At All, Kyle Sorgi

Honors Theses

In this paper, I will examine the integration of baseball into American culture and statistics’ involvement in that process. This paper will paint a clear picture of the emergence and acceptance of analytics in baseball through a gradual transformation of the style of play spanning the past few decades in the form of increased strikeouts, homeruns, and extra-base hits. Furthermore, this paper will explore the polarizing implications of analytical baseball on and off the field. One of the main questions that this paper will explore is whether or not MLB can go too far with its statistic-minded initiative (if it …

More Than An Athlete: A Qualitative Analysis Of How Student-Athletes Develop Self-Authorship Through Their Experiences In Athletics, Haley Kate Webb

Honors Theses

Within the context of the newly instituted NCAA Name, Image and Likeness legislation, student-athletes are able to profit from their personal brands. This legislation presents newfound exposure to student-athletes. In order to assess the preparedness of student-athletes to benefit monetarily from their personal brands, an analysis of student-athlete development provides beneficial insight regarding their cognitive development. Using self-authorship theory as a guide, this qualitative research used long interviews to explore how student-athletes are developing their identities through their journeys with athletics. The research analyzes the lived experiences told by five athletes from a medium-sized faith-based NCAA Division II university. The …

A Post Title-Ix Analysis Of American Sports Culture: The Women Aren’T Done Yet, Bridget Schauder

Honors Theses

This thesis seeks to examine the disparities women continue to face in the realm of athletics since the enactment of Title IX in 1972. This research is important because throughout history women have been left behind in society compared to men and athletics is just another social space where that occurs. Additionally, sports are so important to American culture, yet women still struggle to gain the respect and recognition they deserve. Feminist theory suggests that sports are gendered activities because the knowledge is grounded in the values and experiences of men. This thesis uses interview and survey analysis to understand …

The Emergence Of Esports Through The Last Five Years, Jordan Donald

Honors Theses

Esports has been a significant new topic over the past decade but their place in the sports industry has not been specifically defined over the years. The birth of what we know as Esports came upon us in 1972 and has only had exponentially grown in the success it has had over the past fifty years. It all started with a popular little arcade game that is still played to this day, Space Invaders. Space Invaders has evolved over the years, laying the foundation and the blueprint for success for companies to follow. Esports easily had a drastic take off …

Retrospective Analysis Of Injuries And Persisting Injury Effects Among Students Who Have Participated In Club Sports And Intramural Activities During The Prior Year, Daylia Wallace

Honors Theses

Research suggests that previous injury and history of sport-related concussion place athletes at a greater risk for subsequent injury. The primary purpose of this study was to assess the validity of self-perceived wellness and performance capabilities survey responses for retrospective classification of the injury risk status of individual athletes as a means to estimate risk magnitude for intramural and club sport athletes. The surveys used to collect this data were the Sport Fitness Index (SFI), Overall Wellness Index (OWI), Depression, Anxiety, and Stress Survey (DASS), and the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI). The SFI was a strong discriminator (AUC= .728) …

The Effect Of Chronic Alcohol Consumption On Exercise-Induced Muscle Damage In Young Men, Emma Hamilton, Grant Hilliard

Honors Theses

PURPOSE: To investigate the effects of chronic alcohol consumption on exercise-induced muscle damage of the knee extensors in young men. METHODS: Twenty-one males (age 21.9 ± 1.1 yr; weight 183.4 ± 27.6 lbs; height 174.0 ± 13.1 cm) performed 100 maximal eccentric contractions at 30°/sec of the knee extensors using their non-dominant leg. The isometric and isokinetic muscle strengths (60°/sec and 180°/sec) were measured pre-exercise and immediately, 24 h, 48 h, 72 h, 96 h, and 120 h post-exercise. Muscle soreness and plasma creatine kinase (CK) activity were measured pre-exercise and 24 h, 48 h, 72 h, 96 h, and …

College Football Recruiting And The Correlation To Success, Bryce Mclaughlin

Honors Theses

This research paper will explore the recruiting aspect of college football and its importance regarding the overall success of the team. The introduction will inform the reader of the recruiting aspect of college football and the basics of the recruiting world. Following this will be a section discussing schools within the Power Five conferences (more specifically the Big Twelve, Pacific-12 Conference, and the Southeastern Conference) including their recruiting budgets that lead to fruitful results based on the talented recruits that they pull in. After an examination of these schools, the following section will discuss schools in the Group of Five …

Informational And Normative Influences In Youth Sport, Hannah Von Zup

Honors Theses

It is widely accepted that participation in youth sport has abundant benefits. These include improving overall fitness, higher self-esteem, and socialization with others. In a 2014 study on those between the ages of six to 18, 27 million reported participating in team sports, and 60 million reported participating in any form of organized athletics within the United States (DiFiore et al.). Sports are an enormous part of American society and a great pastime for viewers and players alike. Most athletes report starting their sport at an early age, and many adults claim some of their best memories are from their …

Kinesthetic Aftereffects And Anticipation Timing Of A Weighted Bat Warm-Up In Softball Players, Kylee L. Hill

Honors Theses

Abstract

It has long since been a tradition for baseball players to use weighted bats in the on-deck circle and for many sport companies to market these training aids with promises to “increase swing velocity” and “improve hand speed and strength”. Increased research in the area has indicated the potential adverse effects of weighted-bat warm up, including potential impacts on swing mechanics, bat swing velocity, and anticipation timing. Since bat swing velocity and interceptive timing are crucial elements to success in baseball and softball batting, there is a need to further investigate the effects of weighted bat warm-up. In this …

"You Play Like A Girl": How Alternative Conceptualizations Of Sexism Impact Attitudes Toward Women In Professional Sports, Kate Wigod

Honors Theses

This thesis examines whether alternative conceptualizations of sexism impact attitudes towards women in professional sports. Specifically, this thesis focuses on the United States Women’s National Soccer Team (USWNT), who sued their governing body in 2018 on the bases of unequal treatment and pay. The choice to focus on this particular team is because these women generate more revenue and outperform the United States Men’s National Soccer Team; two factors that are normally used to justify why female athletes should not be paid equally. To measure sexist attitudes, a survey of 74 questions was administered through Lucid and served as the …

The Effects Of Acute Exercise And Psychological Stress On Episodic Memory, Lauren Koehler

Honors Theses

Research has suggested that exercise has an effect on memory function. Studies have also shown that exercise mitigates the effects of stress. The relationship between exercise and stress in regard to memory function is noteworthy. There has been little research on this relationship in young adults. This thesis discusses the effects of acute exercise on the episodic memory of young adults when they are exposed to a psychosocial stressor. The results of the research study show that acute aerobic exercise before memory encoding or consolidation was not associated with memory function after exposure to a stressor. Future research in this …

Title Ix And The Responsibility Of Leadership In Collegiate Athletics, Regan J. Mccomb, Chelsea Kaunert

Honors Theses

Typically, when we hear about Title IX, we think of scholarship dollars, ratio of men’s and women’s sports, and equal funding, but in the past several years we have seen a shift in focus to sexual misconduct. Studies have repeatedly shown that sexual assault rates on college campuses are not on the decline. With one in five college students graduating a victim of sexual misconduct, we must now demand more of those we consider leadership in the university setting. Recently we have seen a trend of prominent women, including female athletes, speaking out about their experience with sexual assault. We …

Corporate Social Responsibility And Minor League Baseball: The Pacific Association And Community Engagement, Rachel Blackman

Honors Theses

Attendance at all levels of baseball is the lowest it has been in 15 years (Kessler, 2018). And with decreasing levels of and social capital, communities are losing trust and civic engagement (Putnam, 2000). Sports teams foster higher levels of trust within their communities (Walker & Kent, 2009). Corporate Social Responsibility provides a way to foster this trust through activities led by sports teams in a community. This includes players visiting schools, libraries, or hosting camps and clinics. This makes Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) much more effective with the inclusion of sports teams (Walker & Kent, 2009). Previous studies addressed …

Leaving A Legacy: Empowering Students To Give Back, Eric Schutter

Honors Theses

Most college universities struggle to convince alumni to give back to their former institutions. Currently, only 19.9% of college alumni give back to their former colleges (Alumni Factor, 2018). Despite the amount of time and energy that schools invest in their students, many of the students are not making any sort of commitment in return. However, there is a solution. If college programs found ways to create avenues for students, both current and former, to give back outside of just university general funds, they could see an increase in student giving from both parties. While there is a notion that …

An Analysis Of Performance-Based Perception In Competitive Baseball Players, Grant Schlimgen, Michael Dodd

Honors Theses

Abstract: The correlation between performance hitting a baseball and perceived ball size has been described in previous work (Witt & Proffitt, 2005). The article in question used recreational softball players to demonstrate that greater performance led to a perceived change in softball size, but discussed a desire to replicate their experiment with competitive professionals. Using athletes from a semi-collegiate baseball team during their summer season, we were able to find a correlation that although weaker, continues to propagate the relationship found in previous studies. The finding of a weaker relationship also sheds new insight into why elite athletes may fare …

A Statistical Analysis Of The Ouachita Baptist University Men's Baseball Team, Evan Nelson

Honors Theses

In this paper, I use sabermetrics to analyze the Ouachita Baptist University men’s baseball team. I run correlation and regression analyses on the hitting and fielding and pitching statistics for games the Tiger baseball team have played from the 2003 season through the 2018 season. Using these analyses plus other information on sabermetrics I have studied, I determine which statistical categories lead to success for the Ouachita baseball team. Using these determinations, I create formulas that analyze player production for position players and pitchers on the 2018 Ouachita Baptist University men’s baseball team.

These formulas isolate four important factors for …

An Economic Analysis Of The Rise In Franchise Values In The Four Major North American Sports Leagues From 2008-2016, Anthony Alan Desantis

Honors Theses

North American professional sports franchise values have been growing rapidly over the last 10 years, leading some to wonder how this rise might mirror previous economic booms such as those of the internet and housing sectors, and thus impact the future of the sport industry. To investigate this phenomenon, financial and other team-specific data was acquired from Forbes, while metropolitan area statistics were mostly gathered from the Bureau of Economic Analysis and the U.S. Census. The results of this study showed that revenue, metropolitan area population and GDP, multiple teams in the same metro area and the same league, and …

Does Player Performance Outside Of Major League Baseball Translate To The Mlb?, Ian Vogt

Honors Theses

Statistical analysis has transformed the way front offices across Major League Baseball manage the rosters of their teams. However, much of this statistical analysis is limited to evaluating players playing in the American major league environment. Little has been done in the way of using statistical analysis to evaluate how performance translates from league-to-league, and the market for international and college players remains highly inefficient, despite expansion of these player pools. My study is an attempt to make this market a more efficient one.

I measure the correlation between performance in two top international baseball leagues (Nippon Professional Baseball and …

Changing The Game: The Effects Of Social Media On The Business Of Sport, Jacqueline Avola

Honors Theses

This thesis will examine the way in which social media has revolutionized three major components of fan engagement. First, it illustrates how social media dramatically increases the immediacy by which fans receive sports news and information. Second, the thesis demonstrates the importance of social media to enable fans to develop intimate relationships with their favorite teams and players. Third, this thesis illustrates how social media sites considerably increase the accessibility of sporting events to fans.

Winning Off The Field: How Social Media Analytics Measure The Sports Industry, Ryan Mcgarvey

Honors Theses

Since Facebook became available to the public, social media (SM) has become the most popular online activity. Currently, 91% of adults are active SM users. Of this 91% of adults on SM, more than 20% of their time online is spent on networking sites like Facebook and Twitter (Weiguo and Gordon, 2014). These powerful tools connect people around the world and show no signs of slowing down.

SM has become a popular online activity for individuals, especially for those involved in business. SM is seen as a tool to aid businesses in spreading their own message, at little to no …

Amateurism And The Ncaa: The Controversy (A Legal Review), Mitchell Pollard

Honors Theses

The NCAA has experienced controversy for many years now, but it may have another issue to grapple with because of their “amateurism” clause. Many student-athletes are concerned about the NCAA amateur clause and its impact on their “right of publicity”. The NCAA has consistently argued that athletes should not be paid because they are in fact students and are most likely on scholarship, either academic or athletic. Additionally, student-athletes are claiming that their intellectual property rights are being violated in “fair trade” and the unfair use of “image likeness” in the NCAA video game issue brought forward in the Ed …