Bullying behaviours in young athletes
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.47197/retos.v42i0.87189Keywords:
verbal bullying, physical bullying, play, prevention, intervention, coachAbstract
The aim of the paper was to describe the nature of bullying behaviours among federated sport athletes in the Trás-os-Montes and Alto Douro region, Portugal. Thirteen federated sports athletes were interviewed, using semi-structured interviews. The data was analysed using the content analysis technique. The results suggest that bullying behaviours occur in sport. The respondents characterized bullying as behaviours of mockery, play and physical violence. They also identified the most common types of bullying as verbal and physical. The most likely places for bullying episodes to occur are changing rooms, training and games, due to the lack of adult supervision and aggressiveness between peers. Athletes reported that the coach has an important role in reducing bullying behaviours in sport. The athletes mentioned that bullying should be the object of scientific investigation, as well as in prevention and intervention programs both in sport and school contexts, in order to increase awareness on this issue.
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