Keeping the body in play: pain, injury, and socialization in male rugby.
This paper discusses participant observation studies of two rugby seasons--one rural high school and one university club--in which one author served as a first aid provider and student athletic trainer, respectively. Through analysis using triangulation, we explored how the rules, athlete's status, and return-to-play boundary influenced decisions when the athlete was in pain and/or injured. The results varied between the groups, suggesting a need for further research on behavioral patterns of high school and university athletes. This study effectively illustrates how social pressure and an athlete's socialization affect individual responses to pain and/or injury and how both pressure an athlete to learn to physically tolerate increasing amounts of pain.
Fenton
Lindsay T
LT
School of Recreation Management and Kinesiology at Acadia University, Wolfville, Canada.
Pitter
Robert
R
D000223:Adaptation, Psychological; D000293:Adolescent; D001290:Attitude; D003657:Decision Making; D005538:Football / Q000293:injuries* / Q000523:psychology*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D010146:Pain / Q000523:psychology*; D017288:Pain Threshold; D012647:Self-Assessment; D012951:Socialization; D055815:Young Adult