Thoughts and Behaviors of Elite Athletes Suffering from Pain or Dysfunction: A Misconception in Sports Sciences

Dear Colleagues,

The understanding of health in elite sports regarding coping strategies for injury or dysfunction is a well-known phenomenon, as it significantly differs when compared to the normal population. Pain can be considered being a cardinal indicator for injury and dysfunction, but also addresses other dimensions of sports behavior. Athletes require a high level of pain tolerance in order to succeed in high performance competition. Their meanings and values are influenced by e.g. ambivalent psychosocial structures, enormous competition pressure, or high-levels of psychophysical performance. Consequently, their awareness of health and behavioral response are mostly not oriented towards a reduced symptom severity or an improved well-being. This may present an essential cause of an increase in symptom severity, risk of injury, or even sports invalidity.

Several international consensus statements on pain management, as well as the implementation of medical care and psychological coaching in sports, highlighted this relevant health issue with the intention of improving athletes’ health awareness and health-related behaviors.

None of them were able to remarkably resolve these misconceptions between thoughts and behaviors of elite athletes. Thus, we are in need of approaches sharpening athletes’ awareness of personal health, and showing them where to find easily accessible care-givers and therapeutic advice. There is a need for remedies that help athletes to incorporate the meaning of perceived symptoms or dysfunction into their self-concept of health.

This Special Issue focuses on the current state of knowledge in this field and aims to explore scientific findings about thoughts and behaviors in elite athletes. To confine this research subject, we encourage you to share your observations and solutions in athletes faced by pain or dysfunction. Understanding the bio-psycho-social dimensions of athletes’ health will be a primary chance to develop sustainable preventive and rehabilitative strategies. We expect you to share practice-oriented skills and approaches improving coping strategies and behavior modifications in this regard.

This Special Issue shall set a benchmark for further development of holistic health care standards in elite sports with a special focus on pain-related behavior.

Consequently this Special Issue is thought to start a discussion about best practices and the need of suitable solutions to maintain the athletes’ health in the long run.

Dr. Johannes Fleckenstein
Ms. Anke Bumann
Guest Editors

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• Biopsychosocial health care
• Pain and injury
• Elite sports
• Prevention
• Quality of life
• Holistic care