Research tackles attitudes to concussion
massey-university
Thu Jul 26 2012 12:00:00 GMT+1200 (New Zealand Standard Time)
Research tackles attitudes to concussion
Thursday, 26 July 2012, 3:25 pm
Press Release: Massey University
July 26, 2012
Research tackles attitudes to concussion
Rugby players and the sports media continue to underestimate the seriousness of concussion a School of Psychology study has concluded.
The study, conducted during last year’s Rugby World Cup, found that nearly half of all rugby players at the tournament deemed to have suffered concussion - a disturbance of the brain after a blow, or violent shaking of the head - returned to the field of play, or to another match, before the expiry of the mandatory three week stand-down period. This is a criteria established in guidelines drawn up by the ACC and the International Rugby Board.
Former psychology student Natasha Bauer, who carried out the research as part of her honours clinical psychology dissertation, says her observations of all 48 matches played at the tournament showed many players and officials appeared oblivious to the seriousness of such injuries.
While 30 per cent complied with the return to play guidelines, 46 per cent did not.
Media coverage of these incidents also tended to downplay the possible impacts of head knocks on players.
“There seemed to be no awareness that a concussion occurred and when it was noticed it was not treated as a big deal,” she says.
Ms Bauer watched full match coverage of every game broadcast by Maori TV, noting any incident involving potential brain injury. A second researcher, clinical psychologist Ian de Terte, then checked her incident report, and all initial incidents were then reviewed by neuropsychologist Professor Janet Leathem who determined if there was enough evidence to say if there was a ‘probable’ concussion.
Advertisement - scroll to continue reading
“There were fewer concussions reported than I what I thought were concussions,” Professor Leathem says, noting there were 95 incidents in the 48 games, resulting in 13 probable concussions, or one such injury for every 3.7 games.
Seven of the probably concussed players continued playing on – even after receiving on field medical help. Six, or 86 per cent, of players, had to be substituted later in the game, it was presumed due to worsening symptoms. Professor Leathem devised the study after seeing the results of one conducted with rugby league players in Australia.
“The message to administrators and the media is that we want players to not take concussion lightly. If you get a bang on the head, get it seen to and follow the guidelines now listed clearly in a short video on the RFU [Rugby Football Union] website.”
The researchers also felt that the way sports commentators described such incidents through jokes and colloquial expressions contributed to a casual feeling within the code about the effects of concussion.
The tournament saw the frequent use of references to a player wobbling “like a drunken rhino,” being “knocked for six” or, in allusion to the symptoms following an on-field clash, “ wonder how many sets of goal posts he’s looking at now?”
At other times commentators dismissed the seriousness of the incident by underlining the commitment and toughness of players with remarks such as “he will take the knocks but he will keep getting up” and “brave fella.” Another way of playing down an injury was to suggest, “ he was milking that,” or joke “think he’s just thirsty” and “bit of ice, won’t feel a thing” while a ‘she’ll be right attitude’ prevailed amid suggestions to alleviate the pain of a knock to the head with “smelling salts; that ought to do the trick.”
Ms Bauer says “it was totally understandable” why media outlets, marketing top-level sport as mass entertainment where money and prestige were on the line, portrayed such incidents the way they did.
Professor Leathem says medical statistics that showed a player who suffered a concussion was more likely to have another, carried a far more sombre message.
“If you have a second injury too close to the first one, it can be fatal.”
ENDS
Advertisement - scroll to continue reading
a.supporter:hover {background:#EC4438!important;} @media screen and (max-width: 480px) { #byline-block div.byline-block {padding-right:16px;}}
Using Scoop for work?
Scoop is free for personal use, but you’ll need a licence for work use. This is part of our Ethical Paywall and how we fund Scoop. Join today with plans starting from less than $3 per week, plus gain access to exclusive Pro features.
Join Pro Individual Find out more
Find more from Massey University on InfoPages.