Table Of ContentThe Psychology
of Sports Injury
The Psychology of Sports Injury: From Risk to Retirement provides a critical over-
view of the psychology of sports injury, covering the 5Rs of sports injury: risk,
response, rehabilitation, return to sport and retirement.
Drawing on a range of expert international perspectives from the fields of
sport psychology and sport and exercise medicine, The Psychology of Sports Injury
covers the psychological considerations associated with sports injuries, prior to
the onset of injury through to supporting athletes with post-injury retirement.
In addition to this injury lifespan perspective, the book features special inter-
est topics including anterior cruciate ligament injury, sport-related concussion,
spinal cord injury and the role of coaches in achieving athlete and team medical
outcomes. Additionally, case studies provide the opportunity to apply learning
from each chapter.
By covering the sports injury journey from risk factors to retirement and
including athlete mental health during sports injury, The Psychology of Sports
Injury is an essential text for students, instructors and practitioners in sports psy-
chology, sport and exercise medicine and other related fields.
Dr Adam Gledhill is Course Director in Sport, Exercise and Health Sciences at
Leeds Beckett University, UK. He is a Fellow of the British Association of Sport
and Exercise Sciences (BASES) and a BASES Accredited Sport and Exercise Sci-
entist. Dr Gledhill is the Chair of the BASES Division of Psychology and devel-
oped the psychology of sports injury and rehabilitation standards for the British
Association of Sports Rehabilitators and Trainers Education Framework.
Dr Dale Forsdyke is Senior Lecturer in Sports Injury Management at York St
John University, UK and a Society of Sports Therapists Accredited Sports Thera-
pist. Dale is an experienced educator and practitioner, with 20 years’ experience
of teaching on sports injury related courses, research interests in psychological
factors and return to sport outcomes, and over 10 years’ experience as an injury
practitioner across a range of sports.
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The Psychology
of Sports Injury
FROM RISK TO RETIREMENT
Edited by Adam Gledhill
and Dale Forsdyke
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First published 2021
by Routledge
2 Park Square, Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon OX14 4RN
and by Routledge
52 Vanderbilt Avenue, New York, NY 10017
Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group, an Informa business
© 2021 selection and editorial matter, Adam Gledhill and Dale
Forsdyke; individual chapters, the contributors
The right of Adam Gledhill and Dale Forsdyke to be identified as
the authors of the editorial material, and of the authors for their
individual chapters, has been asserted in accordance with sections 77
and 78 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or
reproduced or utilized in any form or by any electronic, mechanical,
or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including
photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or
retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publishers.
Trademark notice: Product or corporate names may be trademarks
or registered trademarks, and are used only for identification and
explanation without intent to infringe.
British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Names: Gledhill, Adam, editor. | Forsdyke, Dale, editor.
Title: The psychology of sport injury: from risk to retirement / edited
by Adam Gledhill, Dale Forsdyke.
Description: Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon; New York, NY:
Routledge, 2021. | Includes bibliographical references and index.
Identifiers: LCCN 2020034378 (print) | LCCN 2020034379 (ebook) |
ISBN 9780367028664 (hardback) | ISBN 9780367028695 (paperback) |
ISBN 9780429019227 (ebook)
Subjects: LCSH: Sports injuries—Psychological aspects.
Classification: LCC RD97 .P788 2021 (print) | LCC RD97 (ebook) |
DDC 617.1/027—dc23
LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2020034378
LC ebook record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2020034379
ISBN: 978-0-367-02866-4 (hbk)
ISBN: 978-0-367-02869-5 (pbk)
ISBN: 978-0-429-01922-7 (ebk)
Typeset in Palatino
by KnowledgeWorks Global Ltd.
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For Harry. This one’s for you, little man. After all,
you kept me company, you sat on my knee, you
pressed some of the buttons and you kept me
smiling. Thanks for keeping me company during
this, although we both know that you really
just wanted to write a book with
‘Uncle Dale’ ☺
Daddy will keep you safe,
warm and loved, always.
Adam
Of most importance I would like to dedicate this
book to my seminal influences, my family. To my
wife Sophie and children Isla and Leo, you are
beautiful, talented and funny in equal measure,
and you are my driving force. Additionally, I would
also like to thank the injured athletes that
I have learnt from over the years, as I have
become a better educator, practitioner and
researcher as a result.
Dale
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CONTENTS
Foreword ix
sue smith
Preface x
Acknowledgements xiii
Contributors xiv
Part I
The role of psychology in sports injury risk and injury risk reduction 1
Chapter 1 The injury-prone athlete: Psychosocial risk factors
in sports injury 3
professor urban johnson
Chapter 2 Prevention is better than cure: The role of psychological
interventions in sports injury risk reduction 16
dr andreas ivarsson
Part II
Psychological responses to sports injury 31
Chapter 3 Personal and situational factors affecting psychological
response to sport injuries 33
diane m. wiese-bjornstal
Chapter 4 The downside of sports injury: Poor mental health
in injured athletes 63
dr adam gledhill
Chapter 5 The upside of sports injury and disability:
Personal growth following adversity 76
dr chris hammer, dr leslie podlog and dr adam gledhill
Part III
Enhancing sports injury rehabilitation experiences
for injured athletes 91
Chapter 6 Believe in your ability to create change: Psychosocial factors
influencing sports injury rehabilitation adherence 93
dr adam gledhill and dr andreas ivarsson
Chapter 7 Are you a buffer or an amplifier? The role of social
support in the effective return to sport following injury 107
dr dale forsdyke
vii
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viii Contents
Chapter 8 Seeing is believing: The role of imagery in sports injury
rehabilitation 117
dr adam gledhill and dr dale forsdyke
Chapter 9 Does it pay to pay attention? Making a case for
mindfulness-based approaches in injury rehabilitation 126
dr adam gledhill
Part IV
The psychology of return to sport decisions 137
Chapter 10 Is my athlete really ready to return to sport?
Psychological factors and returning to sport
following injury 139
dr dale forsdyke and dr adam gledhill
Chapter 11 They think it’s all over: Injury-related retirement
from sport 152
dr adam gledhill and dr dale forsdyke
Part V
Special interests in sports injury 161
Chapter 12 The psychological aspect of anterior cruciate
ligament injuries 163
dr kate e. webster
Chapter 13 ‘It’s my concussion story, and I want it to be heard’:
Understanding the psychology of concussion
experience 181
dr osman hassan ahmed, dr eric e. hall
and dr caroline j. ketcham
Chapter 14 Spinal cord injury and sport 193
dr toni louise williams
Chapter 15 ‘But I need you to play’: Coach influences on athlete
and team medical outcomes 202
dr adam gledhill
Chapter 16 The coffee break to close the book …
Where do we go from here? 211
dr adam gledhill and dr dale forsdyke
Index 216
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FOREWORD
Having been an international footballer for over 15 years my career was certainly
touched by sports injury. Throughout a long career you have to live with risk of
becoming injured and hope that you are lucky enough to avoid significant injury.
It was in 2012 when making a club debut that I wasn’t lucky. The game started
off fantastically for me as I scored a debut goal; however, it ended with me being
stretchered off having ruptured my anterior cruciate ligament. Personally, and
professionally sustaining this injury like this was a disaster as I was a 32 years
old footballer in the twilight of her career and because of the injury I missed
out on a once in a lifetime chance of representing my country at an Olympic
games. During the recovery from the injury, while I could cope with the phys-
ical restrictions and pain, I found the psychological side a real challenge. Fear,
anxiety, guilt, isolation, frustration and doubt are just some of the things I felt.
No-one really prepares you for this either before injury or afterwards. While
I was unlucky to get injured, I was lucky in the sense I had an understanding
and supportive team around me and I was able to return to football and remain
relatively injury free. This allowed me to keep motivated, picked me up when
I was down, and managed my expectations. However, I know of many players
that weren’t so lucky. For me books such as this are really important in allowing
people to manage injured players like me. From preventing injury to returning to
sport and then retirement, I am sure this book will provide a comprehensive and
valuable resource to everyone that works with athletes. Looking back, I wished
I hadn’t got injured because of the negative impact on my career and when I
did return to football I never really felt psychologically ready so this book really
resonates with my journey as an international footballer.
Sue Smith
England footballer 93 caps
International player of the year 1999, 2001
ix
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