Iyer Shivani, Bachynski Kathleen
Department of Public Health, Muhlenberg College, Allentown, Pennsylvania.
AJPM Focus. 2023 Feb 8;2(2):100078. doi: 10.1016/j.focus.2023.100078. eCollection 2023 Jun.
Despite the high incidence rate of concussions in women's lacrosse, there is substantial push back against the use of helmets at the secondary educational and collegiate levels in the U.S. This study examines the social factors influencing the controversy surrounding the use of protective headgear and how the recent development of headgear specific to the women's game has shaped ongoing debates.
Purposeful sampling was used to recruit interviewees with research knowledge or firsthand experience with injury and protective headgear in girls' lacrosse. Semistructured interviews were conducted and subsequently coded using qualitative research software to identify key themes and patterns.
Sixteen respondents participated in this study; 4 players, 4 coaches, 3 researchers, and 5 administrators were represented in this sample. Overarching themes identified across these interviews included playing through pain, health consequences of concussions, concussion prevention strategies and the potential role of headgear, symbolism of headgear, gender dynamics, autonomy, and decision making.
This qualitative study shows the importance of attention to the unique history of girls' lacrosse and current narratives surrounding headgear in the sport. There is a need for greater collaboration and consensus between all relevant groups to ensure that headgear best addresses the concerns of the people who will ultimately be using it. Future qualitative research should build on this preliminary study with a larger and more diverse sample to follow up on key themes and ultimately inform effective safety measures to protect athletes.
尽管女子长曲棍球运动中脑震荡的发病率很高，但在美国的中等教育和大学层面，对于使用头盔存在相当大的阻力。本研究考察了影响围绕使用防护头盔的争议的社会因素，以及女子比赛专用头盔的最新发展如何塑造了正在进行的辩论。
采用目的抽样法招募在女子长曲棍球运动中具有损伤和防护头盔研究知识或第一手经验的受访者。进行了半结构化访谈，随后使用定性研究软件进行编码，以识别关键主题和模式。
16名受访者参与了本研究；样本中有4名运动员、4名教练、3名研究人员和5名管理人员。这些访谈中确定的总体主题包括忍痛比赛、脑震荡的健康后果、脑震荡预防策略以及头盔的潜在作用、头盔的象征意义、性别动态、自主权和决策。
这项定性研究表明了关注女子长曲棍球独特历史以及当前围绕该运动中头盔的叙述的重要性。所有相关群体之间需要加强合作并达成共识，以确保头盔能最好地解决最终使用它的人们的担忧。未来的定性研究应以这项初步研究为基础，采用更大、更多样化的样本，跟进关键主题，并最终为保护运动员的有效安全措施提供信息。
