Actual Incidents Threatening Sports Integrity Among Top Athletes and Coaches: Focusing on Personal Attributes and Types of Occurrence Experiences

Abstract

　The purpose of this study is to grasp the actual situation of troubles that threaten the integrity of sports in Japan by investigating the frequency of these troubles and their predictive experiences among athletes and coaches, and by analyzing the differences in position and gender. The results will be used to identify problems that should be addressed on a priority basis. Based on these findings, we will clarify the priority issues and their targets and discuss how to address them from a coaching perspective to maintain sports integrity.

　A questionnaire survey was conducted using an application targeting athletes and their coaches who are designated as Olympic-level or above. The survey included questions about the frequency of occurrences within the past two years and the frequency of two types of predictive experiences. The distribution of responses from athletes and coaches was analyzed by cross-tabulation.

　The results showed that 14 (13.7%) of the athletes had experienced “power harassment (damage)” and 15 (14.7%) had been troubled by it, which was significantly high. Similarly, 22 (15.4%) of the coaches had experienced power harassment (victimization) and 22 (15.4%) had been troubled by it, indicating that the number of respondents who had experienced power harassment (victimization) was significantly high.

　Next, the analysis of positional and gender differences in power harassment (damage) revealed that 10 (33.3%) of the female coaches had experienced power harassment and 10 (33.3%) had been troubled by it, significantly more than the male and female athletes and male coaches.

　Previous surveys on power harassment have only focused on direct experiences to understand the actual situation. However, considering the high frequency of predictive experiences prior to the occurrence of problems, power harassment may be a more serious issue than previously known. Based on the results of the comparison of occurrence frequencies among different problems, it can be said that power harassment (damage) should be given priority when dealing with top athletes in Japan. Additionally, by including coaches as subjects, it was revealed that even coaches experience power harassment, indicating a different reality from what has been pointed out in the past.