Key points are not available for this paper at this time.
Returning to sport following a serious injury can be a difficult process for competitive athletes (Bianco, 2001 Bianco, T. 2001. Social support and recovery from sport injury: Elite skiers share their experiences. Research Quarterly for Exercise and Sport., 72: 376–388. PUBMEDINFOTRIEVECSATaylor Bianco, Malo, Gould, Udry, Bridges, & Beck, 1997 Gould, D., Udry, E., Bridges, D. and Beck, L. 1997. Stress sources encountered when rehabilitating from season-ending ski injuries. The Sport Psychologist., 11: 361–378. [CSACrossref, Web of Science ® , Google Scholar). Unfortunately, no qualitative longitudinal studies were found that examine athlete return-to-sport experiences following injury recovery. The purpose of this study was to examine the experiences of competitive athletes' returning to sport following a serious injury over a period of up to 8-months. Salient themes relating to motives to return to sport, return-to-sport appraisals and emotions and decision-making processes were identified in participant interviews. Athletes also described their experiences in overcoming return-to-sport fears and concerns, and how they dealt with adversity. Finally, the enjoyable aspects of the return to competition and the positive consequences of injury were articulated. Findings from this research indicate that self-determination theory (Ryan & Deci, 2000 Ryan, R. M. and Deci, E. L. 2000. Self-determination theory and the facilitation of intrinsic motivation, social development, and well-being. American Psychologist., 55: 68–78. PUBMEDINFOTRIEVECSACROSSREFCrossref, PubMed, Web of Science ® , Google Scholar) may offer a valuable framework for coaches and practitioners hoping to better understand and assist athletes with the return-to-sport process.
Podlog et al. (Wed,) studied this question.