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Review

The Psychology of Sports Injuries in Children and Adolescents: Psychosocial, Developmental, and Recovery Aspects to Injury

1
Department of Psychology, Western Michigan University, Kalamazoo, MI 49008, USA
2
Department of Pediatric and Adolescent Medicine, Western Michigan University, Homer Stryker M.D. School of Medicine, Kalamazoo, MI 49008, USA
*
Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2025, 22(10), 1509; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph22101509
Submission received: 22 August 2025 / Revised: 29 September 2025 / Accepted: 30 September 2025 / Published: 30 September 2025
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sports-Related Injuries in Children and Adolescents)

Abstract

Participation in sports and the presence of sports injuries have a lasting impact on youth athletes’ physical, cognitive, and emotional development and sense of self-identity. There is an ongoing growth in participation in sports for youth, as well as growing literature on the epidemiology and outcomes of sports-related injuries. However, there is a paucity of published research regarding the psychological aspects of sports injury, including psychosocial factors, stressors, and responses, from the perspective of young athletes. Key risk factors include the youth’s sex, the types of sports activity, and any previous injuries. Psychosocial models, such as the stress-injury model, help explore such risk factors and their relationship to outcomes of stress. Implications for sports injury outcomes vary within the pediatric population, and the recovery and rehabilitation process requires integrated healthcare to optimize health and mental health outcomes. This review aims to describe the psychosocial factors related to sports injuries in children and adolescents, provide an understanding of sports injury models for youth athletes, and point to recovery and prevention through integrated behavioral health interventions. Based on a literature search, we identified 40 articles most relevant to our aims to explore psychosocial factors and stressors, predisposing and risk factors, and developmental aspects of sports injuries in children and adolescents.
Keywords: sports injury; psychosocial factors and stressors; psychosocial responses; children and adolescents; youth; developmental aspects; rehabilitation; behavioral health interventions sports injury; psychosocial factors and stressors; psychosocial responses; children and adolescents; youth; developmental aspects; rehabilitation; behavioral health interventions

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MDPI and ACS Style

Hoang, L.-N.; Joshi, P.; Patel, D.R.; Apple, R.W. The Psychology of Sports Injuries in Children and Adolescents: Psychosocial, Developmental, and Recovery Aspects to Injury. Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2025, 22, 1509. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph22101509

AMA Style

Hoang L-N, Joshi P, Patel DR, Apple RW. The Psychology of Sports Injuries in Children and Adolescents: Psychosocial, Developmental, and Recovery Aspects to Injury. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. 2025; 22(10):1509. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph22101509

Chicago/Turabian Style

Hoang, Linh-Nhu, Pradnya Joshi, Dilip R. Patel, and Roger W. Apple. 2025. "The Psychology of Sports Injuries in Children and Adolescents: Psychosocial, Developmental, and Recovery Aspects to Injury" International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health 22, no. 10: 1509. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph22101509

APA Style

Hoang, L.-N., Joshi, P., Patel, D. R., & Apple, R. W. (2025). The Psychology of Sports Injuries in Children and Adolescents: Psychosocial, Developmental, and Recovery Aspects to Injury. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 22(10), 1509. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph22101509

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