2026 Volume 24 Pages 45-52
The purpose of this study was to examine the factors associated with experiences after severe sports injuries, known as posttraumatic growth (PTG). A total of 54 female soccer players (38 from the Japan Women’s Football League and 16 from the U-18 category) were asked to respond to a questionnaire survey. This survey included questions on demographic characteristics, sports injuries, and the Expanded version of the PTG Inventory (PTGI-X). The most common injury was anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury. Thirty-four players reported engaging in conditioning routines, primarily nutritional management and injury prevention training, whereas sleep management was reported by only a few. Additionally, the majority of players reported receiving social support, particularly from trainers and medical personnel. Multiple regression analysis was performed, with demographics and sports injury-related items as predictors, and the PTGI-X mean score as the dependent variable, with a significance level of 5%. The results revealed that the model was significant (R2=.357, p<.001), and higher PTGI-X scores were significantly associated with three variables: high psychological impact (β=.321, p=.009), surgical history (β=.294, p=.015), and injury during a match (β=.284, p=.018). Other factors such as training content, nutrition management, and sleep management, did not show significant associations with the PTGI-X scores. Furthermore, comparisons of the PTG five domains showed that scores for Relating to Others, New Possibilities, and Personal Strength were particularly high, whereas Spiritual and Existential Change was significantly lower than the other four domains (p<.001). Future study should examine how psychological and social resources may enable players to transform their experiences of severe sports injuries into PTG, especially when the athletic identity, which must have been cultivated through years of effort, was challenged, as it may play a pivotal role in PTG.
