Previous research has explored the benefits of structured teambuilding interventions in the team sport environment (Voight & Callaghan, 2001). Structured teambuilding has a positive effect on cohesion, and the link between cohesiveness and successful athletic performance has been well documented (Carron, Colman, Wheeler, & Stevens, 2002), but little research has been carried out in terms of student-athlete enjoyment of their athletic experience based on the incorporation of structured teambuilding as part of the training environment. This study was designed to examine the effect of structured teambuilding on athlete satisfaction in NCAA Division III men's and women's soccer. One hundred and eleven student-athletes from six NCAA Division III soccer teams participated. Sixty-five student-athletes played for teams that used structured teambuilding (STB). Forty-six student-athletes played for teams that did not use structured teambuilding (NSTB). Students indicated average playing time per game and completed the Athlete Satisfaction Questionnaire (ASQ) (Riemer & Chelladurai, 1998) at the conclusion of his or her regular season, but prior to any post-season competition. A 2 (use of team building) x 3 (playing status) ANOVA revealed significant main effects for use of team building, F(1, 105) = 9.34,p < .003, and playing status, F(2, 105) = 9.10, p = < .001. Post-hoc analysis revealed significant differences in 8 of the 15 subscales of the ASQ: individual performance, ability utilization, personal treatment, training and instruction, team social contribution, and personal dedication. STB studentathletes recorded significantly higher satisfaction when compared with their NSTB counterparts. Implications for the use of structured teambuilding as a tool for team development, drawing particular attention to the satisfaction of players, are discussed. / School of Physical Education

Several studies conducted on home advantage in sport have focused on game location and performance outcome. The purpose of this study was to examine three components of home advantage, such as the effect that game location has on self-efficacy, a critical psychological state, and assertive play, a critical behavioral state. Participants (N = 21) from one mid-sized, midwest, Division I soccer program completed the Modified State Sport-Confidence Inventory (MSSCI) prior to six home conference games and six away conference games. In addition, all 12-conference games were observed and coded according to four assertive behaviors of soccer players. Data were analyzed using a permutation test and Spearman's Rho with a level of significance set at .05. Results indicated there was no significant difference in self-efficacy between home and away games and no significant difference in assertive play between home and away games. No significance relationship was found for self-efficacy and assertive play. Possible limitations along with recommendations for the future are discussed. / School of Physical Education

The purpose of the study was to determine if there is a difference in nutrition knowledge and eating behaviors among collegiate male and female athletes and non-athletes. Although a vast majority of research has looked at female athletes, to date there has been limited research comparing athletes and non-athletes, specifically investigations involving males.A sample of male and female collegiate athletes and non-athletes completed an online questionnaire. The questions were formulated based the 2005 Food Guide Pyramid as well as factual nutrition knowledge questions. Once the survey was completed, the data was analyzed using the Pearson Correlation and ANOVA.A total of 1,252 participants completed the survey with a little over 78% being female. Only 7.2% (n=90) of the participants reported they were members of a collegiate sports team. The overall mean score for nutrition knowledge was 11.42 ±2.30 for all participants, representing a correct score of only 57%. Athletes had a mean score of 11.15 +2.55 and non-athletes with a mean score of 11.44 +2.28 showing no statistical difference. When comparing gender, females had a mean nutrition knowledge score of11.56 ±2.31 and males had a mean score of 10.90 ±2.22. Although females had a higher average knowledge score than males, this was not found to be statistically different.Eating behaviors were assessed using the 2005 Food Guide Pyramid. Males ate significantly more meals/day and servings of vegetables, grains, dairy and meats, nuts and beans than their female counter part. When looking at eating behaviors of athletes and non-athletes, very few statistical differences occurred. Athletes ate significantly more meals per day (3.29 ±.69) than non-athletes (2.65 ±.70). Similarly, athletes consumed significantly more (3.00 ±.74) cups of fruit per day than non-athletes (2.68 ±.59). No statistical differences were found between athletes and non-athletes for the amount of vegetables, grains, dairy, meats, nuts, and beans and fast food consumed. / Department of Family and Consumer Sciences

The purpose of this study was to determine the nutrition knowledge and dietary intake before and after the implementation of a nutrition education program among university female cross country runners. The nutrition education program consisted of three, onehour sessions comprised of the following topics: general diet recommendations including carbohydrate, fat, protein, and the five food groups, iron status, fluids and hydration, amenorrhea, calcium intake and its effect on bone mass, and pathogenic weight control. Female cross country runners from Ball State University, Muncie, Indiana, and Indiana State University, Terre Haute, Indiana served as the experimental groups, and Anderson University, Anderson, Indiana served as the control group. Teaching materials including outlines, handouts, and discussion questions were developed, presented, and distributed at each session. Evaluation of nutrition knowledge was completed through a pre-test, and post-test which consisted of 22 multiple choice / true/false questions. The nutrition education program significantly increased the nutrition knowledge for the experimental group (n = 9) from a mean pre-test score of 11.22 +/- 4.74 to a mean post-test score of 15.44 +/- 3.88. The quiz was developed with questions from two other quizzes used in previous research including Worme, et al., (1990) and Barr (1986) as well as a few additional questions developed by the primary investigator. Dietary intake was evaluated using three-day diet records prior to the nutrition education program and immediately following. In addition, three experimental subjects and three control subjects completed follow-up diet records one month following the nutrition education program but was not included in the data analysis. There were no significant changes in any of the 21 nutrients assessed; however, there were a few which approached statistical significance including thiamin (p<0.0528), dietary fiber (p<0.0865) and saturated fat (p<0.0737). Participants in the study seemed very receptive to the chosen topics but was especially interested in the topic of amenorrhea. Although not asked, four subjects did report that amenorrhea had been a problem- in the past including one subject who still had the problem. The primary investigator feels the educational program had a positive affect on the subjects. It is important to educate athletes about nutrition and the effects on health, especially young females involved with sports in which body weight has an influence on performance. This study could be repeated in the future to further study dietary intake and how nutrition education affects eating behaviors over a long period of time in this population. / Department of Home Economics

For the past twenty years, burnout has been extensively a topic of researched (Coakley, 1992; Creswell & Eklund, 2006; Lemyre, Treasure, & Roberts, 2006; Maslach & Jackson, 1984; Raedeke, 1997, Silva, 1990; Smith, 1986). Burnout can negatively affect athletes and student-athletes for various reasons including intense training loads, decreased performance, psychological distress, and emotional exhaustion (Raedeke, 1997; Smith, 1986). It is imperative to determine causes of burnout across multiple populations. Numerous research on burnout have suggested several contributing factors including: increased stress, exhaustion, intense workload, injury, pressure, entrapment, and staleness (Cresswell & Eklund, 2006; Lai & Wiggins, 2003; Lemyre et al., 2006; Price & Weiss, 2000; Raedeke, Lunney, & Venables, 2006). However, research has been limited to professional and NCAA Division I student-athletes. Thus, further research is warranted because most Division II & Division III institutions have fundamental philosophical differences such as stressing academics (NCAA, 2005). Because of potential differences among competition levels, it is possible that the causes of burnoutamong Division I and Division II student-athletes may vary. The purpose of this study was to assess the causes of burnout among student-athletes in Division II institutions. The Athlete Burnout Questionnaire (ABQ) was the primary instrument for the present study. The ABQ consists of three subscales: Reduced sense of accomplishment, emotional/physical exhaustion, and sport devaluation. Participants were members of 38 Division II institutions. Participants consisted of both male and female student-athletes within the sports of basketball and track and field teams.A 2 x 2 x 2 (Gender x Type of Scholarship x School Status) was employed to determine if there were significant causes of burnout among Division II athletes. Males that did not have any type of scholarship reported the lowest levels of burnout among the three types (None/Academic/Athletic), whereas females that did not have any type of scholarship reported the highest levels of burnout.On the subscale of Emotional/Physical Exhaustion, junior males had the highest levels emotional and physical exhaustion, while junior females had significantly lower levels of emotional and physical exhaustion. In addition to the Gender x Year interaction, a Gender x Type of Scholarship interaction was also reported in Emotional/Physical Exhaustion. Males that did not have any type of scholarship reported the lowest levels of emotional and physical exhaustion, while females that did not have any scholarship reported the highest levels of physical and emotional exhaustion.Student-athletes with no scholarship reported higher levels of reduced athletic accomplishment, compared to student-athletes that with full scholarships. Also, athletes with no scholarships had higher levels of reduced athletic accomplishment than athletes on athletic scholarships. / School of Physical Education, Sport, and Exercise Science

Many athletes and spectators believe that experiencing and controlling psychological momentum is a critical component to achieving success in sport (Perreault, Vallerand, Montgomery, & Provencher, 1998; Stanimirovic & Hanrahan, 2004). Despite this, little is known regarding why some individuals perceive momentum differently than others. This study was designed to determine if optimistic thinking has a relationship with psychological momentum perceptions. Female Division I NCAA volleyball players (N = 68) completed the Life Orientation Test – Revised (Scheier, Carver, & Bridges, 1994), the Sport Attributional Style Scale - Short (Hanrahan & Grove, 1990b), and a psychological momentum survey. The results indicated that attributional style constructs intentionality and globality were significant predictors of psychological momentum perceptions. Also, participants had greater disagreement regarding the momentum value of early and late points in a set than those in between. Neither dispositional optimism nor sport-specific optimistic attributional style were correlated with psychological momentum perceptions. Future attempts to measure psychological momentum perceptions should consider a mixed methods approach along with more ecologically valid assessment protocols. / Department of Psychological Science

Access to abstract permanently restricted to Ball State community only. / Access to thesis permanently restricted to Ball State community only. / School of Physical Education, Sport, and Exercise Science

This study examined the relationship between former collegiate athletes and former college students who did not participate in intercollegiate athletics to determine if there is any correlation between athletic participation and future health. Two groups of Ball State University faculty (42 former athletes and 32 non-athletes) were selected for this research, and the variables of quality of life and well-being were investigated through the Quality of Life Index and TestWell wellness inventory. Former athletes were found to have a higher level of wellness. Similarly, as a group, athletes were found to have a higher quality of life than former non-athletes. These findings do not support the quality of life findings by Morgan and Montoye (1984). / Fisher Institute for Wellness

There is no abstract available for this thesis. / School of Physical Education

This study addressed the efficacy of a multimodal substance abuse prevention program with elite-level athletes. By utilizing components of substance abuse information and education, coping skills training, and self-esteem strategies, the study examined the effect of these variables on the subsequent alcohol and drug use behaviors and attitudes of the participants.In addition, measures of self-esteem and stress were examined to determine the effect of prevention on these variables. Gender differences were examined regarding substance use behaviors and attitudes, and change score measures were utilized to observe for behavioral changes from pretest to follow-up testing.Results indicated no differences on any of the dependent measures. Utilizing a repeated measures multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA), no significant differences in substance use behaviors and attitudes between athletes in the treatment and control conditions were found. There were also no gender differences reported on the dependent measures. In addition, chisquare (X2) analyses demonstrated no behavioral or attitudinal differences. A significant finding indicated that control group subjects had more substance abuse changes (both positive and negative) than the treatment condition. The hypotheses of the study were unconfirmed as a result of the statistical analyses.Limitations of the present study include the small sample size (although representative of the population), the small amount of actual reported use behaviors, and the length of the program (not sufficient time). It is recommended that future research in this area maintain the multimodal approach, while lengthening the time of implementation. Future dependent measures must be able to accurately detect small fluctuations in reported substance abuse behavioral changes.The survey data suggest that athletes at the elite level do demonstrate alcohol and drug use behaviors that may be detrimental to their personal and professional potential. Substance abuse education programs are necessary components of holistic prevention for athletes at all levels of training and competition. Future programs must consider the present study in the development of more successful and practical substance abuse education for athletes. / Department of Counseling Psychology and Guidance Services