Effects of permitted forms of performance enhancement on determinants of doping in UK student-athletes

Chandler, Martin ORCID: 0000-0001-6442-8303 (2024). Effects of permitted forms of performance enhancement on determinants of doping in UK student-athletes. University of Birmingham. Ph.D.

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Abstract

Elaborating psychosocial mechanisms that influence doping in sport is important considering societal concerns around health harms and fairness in sport. A key influence identified in the literature is the use of dietary and ergogenic supplements (Backhouse et al., 2013; Ntoumanis et al., 2014). Despite the associated risks of supplement use, evidence shows a high prevalence of use amongst athletes (Daher et al., 2022) but limited knowledge of the risks (Daher et al., 2021; Trakman et al., 2016). This is of particular concern given evidence to show possible ‘gateway effects’ of supplement use on doping (Backhouse et al., 2013; Hurst, 2023). A related theoretical model is the Incremental Model of Doping Behaviour that builds on the underlying concept of the gateway model, with two alterations; firstly, it frames progression to doping in terms of performance gains, rather than a desire to cheat. Secondly, it incorporates, and distinguished between, explicit functional and moral attitudes to performance enhancement. However, research to date has not investigated gateway effects over time, and the IMDB remains largely untested, thus limiting conclusions that can be drawn.
Motivations for supplement use by athletes have been widely studied, but to date, no research has qualitatively examined athlete’s perceptions of possible gateway effects of supplement use. Related, findings from research on educational interventions with athletes are equivocal (Bates et al., 2019; Hauw, 2016) and no research has qualitatively examined athlete’s views on optimal educational modalities in relation to supplement use. In particular, research has not yet explored whether the use of supplements could be positioned as an alternative, rather than precursor, to doping.
The present thesis sought to address these gaps in the literature. Chapter 2 provides a narrative review of relevant literature on athlete nutrition and supplement use, attitude research and its relevance to doping, methodological issues in extant literature, the rationale for exploring these issues in adolescent athletes and the choice of reflexive thematic analysis. Chapter 3 describes the development of the two scale instruments used in the quantitative chapter. Evidence to support distinctions between functional and moral attitudes is presented alongside evidence to show validity and stability of the measures.
Further empirical support is shown for a novel taxonomy of supplements and medication grouping supplements into conceptually sound categories based on factor analysis.
Chapter 4 presents the results of two-wave (Study 1) and three-wave (Study 2) cross-lagged panel analyses. The findings show strong support for the stability of the novel attitude variables over time and limited cross-lagged effects between muscle building supplements and functional doping attitudes. Results are somewhat inconsistent and methodological issues that may have affected the results are discussed.
Chapter 5 presents qualitative work exploring athlete’s approach to nutrition and supplement use and their views on optimal nutrition education, in individual interviews (Study 3) and focus groups (Study 4). Data analyses reveal a complex pattern of influences that reflect disparate strands of extant literature, previously largely unconnected. Athletes had poor knowledge of nutrition and supplements but many used supplements frequently. Drivers for this are discussed, including convenience, poor food skills and multiple influences (e.g. peers, coaches, lifestyle). Discussions on educational interventions, alongside reviews of the literature, highlighted the need for personally relevant, multi-faceted approaches that encompassed both knowledge and skill acquisition. The implications of this thesis for policy and practice are discussed in Chapter 6.

Type of Work:

Thesis (Doctorates > Ph.D.)

Award Type:

Doctorates > Ph.D.

Supervisor(s):