Digital Commons Network^™

Corruption And Soccer In Africa: Empirical Evidence On The Determinants Of Association Soccer Success In The Continent, Mustafa Zahid

Undergraduate Honors Theses

Despite the popularity of soccer in Africa, African teams tend to underperform in international competitions such as the World Cup relative to European and South American teams. Studies have been conducted on what determines performance in international soccer. These studies stress the importance of wealth, talent pool, and soccer culture on determining performance. However, these studies focus more generally on the entire world, and, in some instances, omit African nations due to a lack of data. Additionally, the focus on a wide sample of the world results in the omission of some potentially crucial variables in relation to Africa, specifically …

I Skate Therefore I Am: Athletic Identity Amongst Collegiate Level Hockey Players, Rachel E. Berg

Honors Theses and Capstones

This study explores athletic identity among men’s, women’s and sled hockey athletes and whether or not there is significant differences between the groups. An exploratory study was done that consisted of a quantitative survey that utilized the Athletic Identity Measurement Scale, better known as the AIMS, in order to look in to the three types of athlete’s identity (Brewer, Van Raalte, & Linder, 1993). A snowball sample was used to garner participants from men’s, women’s and sled hockey teams from a moderately sized New England College, for the survey. There were 7 responses from each team, a total of 21 …

Crash And Burnout: The Sophomore Slump In College Athletics, Jessica Ferguson

Undergraduate Honors Theses

This study analyzed and compared the severity of performance slumps of collegiate student-athletes in general and across academic years. The factors examined with performance slumps included athlete burnout, academic burnout, relationship satisfaction, and grade point averages. The first hypothesis was that reduced accomplishment scores from the athlete burnout questionnaire would indicate the severity of performance slumps. The results did not support the hypothesis. The second hypothesis was that the severity of performance slumps would positively correlate with academic burnout and negatively correlate with relationship satisfaction. The results supported this hypothesis. The third hypothesis was that student-athletes who experienced a performance …

Collegiate Recreation Participation And Student Retention, Progression, And Graduation, Gabriela Mccollum

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between collegiate recreation participation and students’ retention, progression, and graduation (RPG) rates. This study employed a quantitative, ex post facto research design along with descriptive analyses of two research questions. Archival data were gathered for an incoming first-year cohort of 3,516 students at a research-intensive university in the Southeast United States. The present study found that participants within the cohort who were classified as high participation in collegiate recreation were more likely to be retained from the first to the second year. Evidence of this finding was presented with statistical …

Self-Efficacy, Implicit Theories Of Ability, And 2 X 2 Achievement Goal Orientation: A Mediation Analysis In Collegiate Athletics, Cory Cottrell

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Achievement goal theory encompasses the adaptive and maladaptive responses to achievement situations and has a strong background in sport research. (Dweck, 1986; Nicholls, 1984; Senko, Hulleman, & Harackiewicz, 2011). A 2007 meta-analysis established self-efficacy and implicit theories of ability as antecedents of achievement goal orientation (Payne, Youngcourt, Beaubien, 2007). Using the 2 x 2 achievement goal paradigm the purpose of the study looks to evaluate antecedents of self-efficacy and implicit theories of ability on achievement goal endorsement in collegiate student athletes. The current study examined implicit theories of ability as a mediator between self-efficacy and each of the 2 x …

Going Undrafted: Survival Of Undrafted Free Agents And Seventh Round Draft Picks In The Nfl, Trey Smith

CMC Senior Theses

Over the years there have been a lot of undrafted free agents that have had successful careers in the NFL. The monopsony structure for rookies entering the NFL and the fact that undrafted free agents get to pick what team they play for suggests that there is an advantage in not getting picked in the draft. To explore this possibility, this paper compares the probabilities of remaining in the NFL for undrafted free agents and seventh round draft picks through logit regressions and survival analysis. In doing so, this paper describes the processes the NFL takes in order to find …

Jocks For Justice: How Sports Media Reflects And Propagates Societal Narratives, Laura Kathryn Reifsnyder

CMC Senior Theses

Sports presents one of the most popular forms of entertainment in society, and sports media continues to expand its billion-dollar influence through new television deal and broadcasting rights. But with a population of journalists who are overwhelmingly white, straight, and male, sports media is promoting the hegemony of said image by reproducing stereotypes in its broadcasts to audiences around the country. Mainstream media regurgitates these stereotypes in their coverage of minority athlete by portraying black players as unintelligent or “thug”-ish, women as “butch”, and gay athletes as effeminate. These representations allow for the perpetuation of the white, heterosexual male narrative …

Can A Comprehensive Transition Plan To Barefoot Running Be The Solution To The Injury Epidemic In American Endurance Runners?, Michael A. Scarlett

CMC Senior Theses

Fossils belonging to the genus Homo, dating as far back as two million years ago, exhibit uniquely efficient features suggesting that early humans had evolved to become exceptional endurance runners. Although they did not have the cushion or stability-control features provided in our modern day running shoes, our early human ancestors experienced far less of the running-related injuries we experience today. The injury rate has been estimated as high as 90% annually for Americans training for a marathon and as high as 79% annually for all American endurance runners. There is an injury epidemic in conventionally shod populations that …

Fifa World Cup: Factors That Explain The Performances Of National Football Teams, Shivaan Seth

CMC Senior Theses

This paper examines the determinants of FIFA World Cup performances of nations. The study incorporates socioeconomic, cultural, demographic and football-specific factors to investigate how World Cup results can be explained. A linear regression is used to study the last five tournaments, and the model finds that being seeded for the draw, and the host country effect are statistically significant variables. Additionally, I discover two new variables – namely, having a star player and having become a member of FIFA before 1924, as being statistically significant in my analysis.

Analysis Of The Economic Impact Of Constructing A Nba Arena On The Host City, Grant Gilchrist

CMC Senior Theses

Using economic data collected from 24 different Metropolitan Statistical Areas in the US, this thesis investigates the impact of constructing a new National Basketball Association (NBA) arena on the host city’s economy. When a simplistic model is implemented, which does not control for other economic factors or individual subject heterogeneity, significantly positive economic impacts of arena construction are observed. However, when a more appropriate model specification is implemented that controls for economic activity and individual heterogeneity, these effects are no longer statistically significant. This comparative analysis ultimately highlights the importance of appropriate model specification and supports the conclusion that new …

Coaching Life Skills Through Sport: An Application Of The Teaching Personal And Social Responsibility Model To Youth Sport In Eswatini, Zenzi Huysmans

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports

Adolescence is a formative developmental period where youth learn the life skills and values needed to become compassionate and civically-engaged young people and navigate increasingly challenging global environments. Youth in eSwatini face major context-specific challenges that impede their healthy development as well as limited engagement with government initiatives intended to support their development. This feasibility study aimed to employ youth sport as a creative and engaging context to facilitate life skills development in underprivileged youth in eSwatini. Specifically, this study explored the youth participation experiences, positive youth outcomes, and implementation successes and challenges of a sport program for underprivileged youth …

Project Spraoi: The Effectiveness Of A Nutrition And Physical Activity Intervention On The Dietry Intake, Dietary Patterns, Nutritional Knowledge And Markers Of Health Of Irish Primary School Children, Alison Merrotsy

PhDs

Aim: To implement and evaluate the effectiveness of a nutrition and physical activity (PA) intervention (Project Spraoi) on dietary intake (DI), dietary patterns (DP), nutritional knowledge (NK), cardiorespiratory fitness (CRF), blood pressure (BP) and markers of health of Irish children in one primary school in Cork. The relationship between DP and NK, CRF, BP and anthropometric data will also be examined.

Design: Cross-sectional and longitudinal study. Food diary, NK questionnaire and 550m walk/run test were used to assess DI, DP, NK and CRF, respectively. BP, body mass index (BMI) and waist to height ratio (WHtR) were also calculated.

Setting: Two …

Evaluation Of A Family Fitness Program: The Fit Fam Program, Steven Childs

Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects

Background: One method to increase physical activity levels and overall health of children with disabilities is to involve entire families in physical activity programs. Purpose: The purpose of this study was to evaluate the seven-week self-directed fitness program, the Fit Fam program. Methods: Six parents of children aged six to 20 with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) participated in a one week in-person educational fitness program prior to participating in a seven-week self-directed family fitness program in which participants utilized skills learned and a provided, individually-tailored physical activity program for their family and tracked each family members physical activity on …

Baseball In The Background: Season Ticket Holder Retention In Summer Collegiate Baseball, Susan Wallrich

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to investigate season ticket purchasing motives in summer collegiate baseball, specifically in the Northwoods League. The Sport Fan Motivation Scale (Wann, Schrader, & Wilson, 1999) was used in this study to determine fan attendance motives at summer collegiate baseball games. The literature review examines fan motivation, sports as entertainment, and season-ticket holder retention. The results from this study were obtained by administering a modified version of the Sport Fan Motivation Scale (Wann et al., 1999), a 20-question, 5 point, Likert scale survey to season ticket holders of a Northwoods League team. The outcome of …

Racial Complexities Of Outdoor Spaces: An Analysis Of African American’S Lived Experiences In Outdoor Recreation, Matthew Charles Goodrid

University of the Pacific Theses and Dissertations

This thesis examines the racial power imbalances that exists within the outdoor recreation industry. Despite participation rates being quantified, limited research explores the lived experiences and perspective of people of color. In this study, I explore the socio-historical development of outdoor recreational spaces, existing environmental habitus and African Americans lived experiences in outdoor recreation. To emphasize the voice of the participants, twelve African American millennials were interviewed. Questions in the interviews revolved around their perception of outdoor recreation and personal experiences while participating in outdoor recreation. Three overarching themes emerged from their stories, i) the typology of outdoor recreation, ii) …

Perspectives Of Female Athletic Trainers Working In Male Professional Sports, Taylor Mae Temnick

Online Theses and Dissertations

"In athletic training, males have dominated the profession for the initial 30 years of its existence, opening the doors for women only as recently as the 1970s" (Dieringer, 2007, p. 106). There has been a limited amount of research and data regarding female athletic trainers working with and at the level of professional sports, particularly with male teams. Within the last decade there has been an increase in interest of female athletic trainers and their professional pursuits; especially since 2007, there have been more females in the field of athletic training than males. The following literature and results provide various …

Resisting Gendered Sport Roles: A Criminological Sports Analysis Of Women's Rugby In The U.S., Kelsey Basham

Online Theses and Dissertations

The passing of Title IX has allowed women of all ages to begin engaging with contact sports in the United States. Although growing, women's participation in contact sports remains adolescent in comparison to men's. The elements of physicality, masculinity, and gendered expression often associated with rough sports may affect women's willingness to play them as well as others' perceptions of the women who play them. Rugby, a high-intensity contact sport played by both men and women throughout the world, is one of the fastest growing sports in the U.S. Rugby offers a unique opportunity for women to play against other …

A Profile Of Game Style, Physical, Technical And Tactical Skills, And The Pathways That Underpin Expertise In Australian Youth Soccer Players, Bradley Scott Keller

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

The attainment of expertise has been the focus of research in many domains including music, chess and sport. This research has progressed with many theories detailing the best way to develop expertise and nurture talent in sport. Soccer is a multifaceted sport which requires a number of physical, technical and tactical skills to be successful, making it difficult to achieve expertise. Although Australia’s performance on the international stage is improving, there is a lack of evidence to inform the most effective development pathways to support the next wave of talented youth soccer players. Therefore, the aim of the thesis was …

The Mechanics Of Front Leg Loading During Cricket Fast Bowling: Delivery Variations, Spell Demands, And The Effects Of Strength Training, Samuel J. Callaghan

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

The goal of fast bowling in cricket is to dismiss a batsman for as few runs as possible. To assist this goal, fast bowlers will attempt to maximise ball release velocity (BRV) to decrease the decision-making and stroke execution time of the opposing batsmen. Fast bowlers will also employ various delivery lengths (i.e. short, good and full) to assist in affecting a batsman’s stroke execution.

Several issues remain to be addressed with regards to the biomechanical assessment of fast bowling. This is particularly evident when analysing fast bowling performance (i.e. BRV), the implications of front foot loading (i.e. vertical and …

Effects Of Long-Term Participation In Tennis On Cognitive Function In Elderly Individuals, Scott Culpin

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

Many studies have reported the relationship between exercise and cognition with conflicting results. This may be due to differences in intervention durations, session lengths, intensities, and type of exercise. It has been suggested that exercises requiring greater cognitive demand such as football, basketball and racquet sports, are protective against cognitive decline, compared to less cognitively demanding exercises such as swimming, cycling and running, however, research concerning exercise types are currently limited. The present study tested the hypothesis that elderly individuals who had been regularly playing tennis more than 10 years, would have greater cognitive function than those who had been …

An Investigation Into The Creation Of Goal Scoring Opportunities In Women’S International Football; And A Comparison To Men’S International Football, Mark Scanlan

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

Football is the most popular sport in the world, played in over two hundred countries and it is governed by the Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA), who host a World Cup every four year for both men and women. Women’s football is growing in terms of popularity, with this growth in popularity, research into the women’s game has begun to emerge. However, to date there is very little published research in women’s football that describes effective attacking strategies and the creation of goal scoring opportunities (GSO). Video of each match (52) from the Women’s World Cup (Canada 2015) was …

What Happens Now? Coaching And Leading Following A Student-Athlete Death - A Phenomenological Study, Peter Mcgahey

All Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Other Capstone Projects

College students die and sometimes these students are student-athletes. This transcendental phenomenological study described and explored the lived leadership experiences, related to the components of Transformational Leadership, of NCAA sports team coaches who led their team following an unexpected death of a student-athlete. No research to date had focused on this leadership phenomenon. Five NCAA sport team head coaches participated in semi-structured interviews to learn more about their coaching leadership experiences during this time of crisis. The study participants shared their intensely emotional and personal leadership experiences of leading and coaching their teams during a time of crisis. There were …

The Spirit-Led Coach: An Alternative Approach To Athletic Coaching, Sean Silverii

Doctor of Ministry

The world of sports is an approximate 620 billion dollar industry, claiming an attendance of a little over 124 million fans in 2016 just within the top five professional sports leagues. In the United States alone, it is estimated 20 to 30 million kids play recreational sports, while another 10 million teenagers play interscholastically each year. With these factors in mind, all forms of power, greed, corruption, violence, selfindulgence, etc. has seeped its way into athletics and culture like a virus. Recently, a bleacher report revealed that findings of an FBI probe into college basketball is expected to be released …

Loyalty Program Effectiveness: An Examination Of Mainstream And Niche Sport Fan-Team Relationships, Lisa S. Rufer

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to explore the efficacy of using loyalty programs on sport fans’ relationship quality and fan engagement toward sport organizations. This study also sought to explore which relationship quality and fan engagement factors potentially differed as a result of using loyalty programs. Since there are two major defined sport levels, differences were explored across niche and mainstream sport organizations. Using relationship marketing as the theoretical framework, participants (n = 678) were administered a 55-item instrument that included revised relationship quality and fan engagement scales. Quantitative data were used to run confirmatory factor analyses, analyses of …

Exploring The Relationship Between Group Cohesion And Compassion In Varsity Athletes, Theo Chu

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

Compassion is a prosocial behaviour characterized by kindness and a non-judgmental attitude to reduce one’s suffering. Typically, it is thought of as a behaviour we express outwardly to others, but compassion can also be directed internally toward ourselves. This is known as self-compassion. The benefits of having compassion for other people have been largely studied in employment settings and everyday life behaviours. Moreover, research has shown self-compassion is also related to many positive outcomes. Compared to compassion for others, self-compassion has been studied in sport, however it is still in its infancy. Although research has demonstrated the importance of both …

The Effects Of Two Different Sports Drinks On Rpe And Finishing Speed Of An Endurance Run In Highly Trained Distance Runners, Matthew J. Feldhake

Masters Theses

The purpose of this study was to compare the effects of a protein-containing sport drink with a traditional non-protein sport drink has on ratings of perceived exertion (RPE) and finishing speed of an half marathon. Of the possible factors that would support including protein in a sport drink the primary one was its inhibitory effect on serotonin release in the brain. This could help attenuate perceived exertion, thus allowing individuals to compete at a higher level for longer durations (Davis, Alderson, & Welsh, 2000).

This study was conducted using nine members of the Eastern Illinois University Men's Cross Country team. …