Objectives. The purpose of this study was too determine whether there were significant kinematic differences between recreational and elite hockey players and between contra-lateral lower limbs during forward hockey skating. / Methods. While skating on a hockey treadmill subjects were filmed with four synchronized digital video cameras while wearing reflective marker triads on the thighs, shanks and skates. Subjects skated within a calibrated volume at a self selected speed that they could maintain comfortably for one minute. Each subject completed three trials separated by 5 minutes of rest. Data was reduced and analyzed using programs written in MATLAB. Two-way ANOVA and Tukey Post Hoc tests were used to determine statistic significance. / Results. Elite and recreational subjects were significantly different (p≤0.05) during knee abduction and knee rotation at push off, as well as during knee abduction and knee flexion at blade contact. Contra lateral lower limbs were significantly different (p≤0.05) during ankle abduction and hip rotation at blade contact as well as during knee abduction at push off. / Conclusion. Some aspects of the skating stride are similar in elite and recreational hockey skaters but there were several kinematic differences between skill levels and contra-lateral legs. The skating kinematics of elite hockey players may serve as a model for young hockey players and recreational hockey players, helping them develop a more efficient and effective stride.

Syfte och frågeställningar: Det övergripande syftet handlar om hur spelare och ledare i ett pojkungdomslag i ishockey konstruerar och iscensätter maskuliniteter. Studien tar avstamp i att det skett en förändring i samhället rörande normer kring normalitet och maskulinitet och annorlunda uttryckt är studiens avsikt att undersöka hur detta påverkar konstruktionen av maskulinitet. De frågeställningar som har guidat undersökningen har varit: Hur förhåller sig spelare och ledare till ortodoxa och inkluderande maskulinitetsideal? Vilka normer kring sexualitet blir tydliga inom laget? Vilka normer kring etnicitet blir tydliga inom laget? Metodologi: Metoden utgjordes av deltagande observationer av ett elitlag i pojkungdomshockeyn samt kvalitativa intervjuer med fyra av spelarna. Laget bestod av spelare mellan 15 och 17 år där en del hade utländsk bakgrund. Observationerna och intervjuerna analyserades dels via ett deduktivt förhållningssätt utifrån queerteori, hegemonisk maskulinitetsteori och inkluderande maskulinitetsteori, dels via en tematisk innehållsanalys. Resultat: Sammanfattningsvis verkar det som om mycket av juniorverksamheten handlar om att producera spelare som kan ta steget upp till nästa nivå. Det verkar även som om spelarna är beredda att utsätta sina kroppar för stora påfrestningar som ibland leder till skador. En del spelare berättar om den press som gör att de spelar med skador för att inte missa ett tillfälle att visa upp sig. Det förekommer även utsagor om slagsmål där spelare berättar att dessa uppstår dels på grund av att det kan vara ett roligt inslag, dels på grund av det prat som försiggår mellan spelarna och motståndarna på isen. Det framgår också att en heterosexuell läggning framhävs bland spelare och ledare. Två av de intervjuade spelarna menar däremot att de inte skulle ha några problem ifall någon i laget kom ut som homosexuell. Det verkar också som att en svensk etnicitet inom laget framställs som den oproblematiska medan spelare från andra länder ibland får utstå kommentarer som enbart är baserade på deras etnicitet. / Aim: The aim of the study on a more general level was to illuminate how players and leaders in an adolescent male ice hockey team constructs and stage masculinities. Due to recent shifts in the society regarding the norms of normality and masculinity the aim of the study was to examine how this affects the construction of masculinity. The following questions guided the investigation: How does players and leaders relate to orthodox and inclusive ideals of masculinity? What norms regarding sexuality become clear in the team? What norms regarding ethnicity become clear in the team? Methodology: The methods used in the study were participant observations of an adolescent male elite hockey team and qualitative interviews with four of the players in the team. The team consisted of players between 15-17 years old and some of the players had another ethnicity than Swedish. The observations and the interviews were analyzed by a deductive approached from the theories of queer theory, hegemonic masculinity theory and inclusive masculinity theory, and also with a thematic content analysis. Result: The results indicate that much of the activities in the adolescent male hockey team were about producing players to take the next step of their careers. It also seems like the players were prepared to expose their bodies to a lot of pressure that sometimes lead to injuries. Some of the players talked about the pressure that makes them play with injuries were the chance to show off their abilities was one particular reason for doing this. Some statements are also said about the  fighting in the sport were players told that these fights occur due to the fun of it and also because of the trash talk that is occurring on the ice. There is also some examples of how heterosexuality is normative in the team and is emphasized by the players and the leaders. However two of the interviewed players imply that they would not mind if some of the players in the team came out as gay. To some degree a Swedish ethnicity is the unproblematic origin and players from other countries sometimes gets commentaries because of their ethnicity.

Purpose: The purposes of the current study were to investigate whether there were any differences in the perceptual ability between professional and non-professional ice-hockey players and whether professional players are better at distinguishing, paying attention to and concentrating on what is important during intense physical activity. Method: Twenty male ice-hockey players (10 from both the Swedish first and third divisions) participated in the study. Wingate test were used for physiological measurements while three psychological tests were presented in front of the participants. Stroop, Flanker and Fast counting tests were used to measure perceptual and coping abilities during intense physical activity and the differences between the two groups. Results: Fast counting and Flanker word 2 tests showed a significant difference between the two groups, whereby the professional groups was faster and more accurate than the non-professional group in answering. On the Flanker test the non-professionals had more unsuccessful attempts than the professionals. Conclusion: The current study indicates that perceptual ability can be important for performance at a higher level. If a player has superior perceptual ability, they may have a better chance to succeed at a superior level.

This study evaluated the mechanical durability of ice hockey helmets for multiple impacts at defined energy levels. A monorail drop testing apparatus was used to conduct controlled impact tests according to the CSA standard (CAN/CSA-Z262.1-M90). Five ice hockey helmet models were tested, for a total sample of 45 helmets. All helmets were impacted up to 50 times at each of in four different locations (i.e. front, right side, back, and crown), at one of 40, 50 or 60 J of kinetic energies. In general, by increasing the impact energy, the impact acceleration attenuation properties of the helmets was decreased significantly (from 4% to 80%). Although all the helmets meet the CSA standards, attenuation properties were found to be substantially reduced beyond three repeated impacts and above 40 J impact energy. In particular, all helmets showed effective multiple impact attenuation properties at the crown, front, and rear sites; however, poor multiple impact attenuation durability was evident at the side.

In the wake of 21 year old Don Sanderson’s death (January 1st, 2009), the direct result of head injuries sustained during an on-ice hockey fight, the social and political appetite for eliminating violence in amateur hockey appears to be at an all time high. Unfortunately, due to a variety of methodological and conceptual limitations previous research is currently unable to provide a unified and valid explanation for sport-specific aggression (Kirker, Tenenbaum, & Mattson, 2000). One of the primary impediments facing our understanding of sport-specific aggression is the descriptive and fragmented nature of the current body of literature. Over the years a number of independent lines of research have been undertaken, through which several psychological and social factors have been identified as potential determinants. However, in many cases these constructs have yet to be tested against athletes’ actual aggressive behaviour in sport and thus their predictive contribution to our understanding is still unknown. Consequently, the purpose of the current investigation was to assess the predictive influence of several commonly cited psychosocial constructs on amateur hockey players actual within-competition use of aggressive behaviour over a competitive season. A trait aggressive personality disposition emerged as the strongest and most stable predictor of athletes’ aggressive behaviour, accounting for 10 – 40% of the statistical variance depending upon the age and competitive level of the athletes under investigation. Differences in the overt expression of the this trait aggressive disposition between age cohorts (bantam / midget) and competitive levels (house league / rep) suggests that environmental and contextual factors also play a significant role in facilitating or repressing athletes’ aggressive behaviour. As such, the results of the current study support an interactive explanation for hockey-related aggression, whereby situational (e.g., team norms, perceived reinforcement) and personal factors (e.g., trait aggressive disposition, ego orientation) interact to either increase or decrease an athlete’s likelihood for committing aggressive penalty infractions over a competitive season. The current results are plotted and discussed within the parameters of Anderson and Bushman’s (2002) General Aggression Model (GAM), which is a frequently cited interactionist framework used in the broader study of human aggression.

Zugl.: Heidelberg, Universiẗat, Diss., 2007.

Thesis (D. Phil.(Biokinetics, Sport and Leisure Sciences))--University of Pretoria, 2007. / Summary in English and Afrikaans. Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (M.Ed.)--Bowling Green State University, 2008. / Document formatted into pages; contains vi, 61 p. Includes bibliographical references.

Thèse (M.Ps.)--Université Laval, 2002. / Bibliogr.: f. 43-47. Publié aussi en version électronique.

Thesis (M.A.)--Central Michigan University, 2005. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 62-64). Also available online (PDF file) by a subscription to the set or by purchasing the individual file.