Emergence of Contact Injuries in Invasion Team Sports: An Ecological Dynamics Rationale

Abstract

The incidence of contact injuries in team sports is considerableconsiderable, and to adopt preventive measures, injury mechanisms need to be comprehensively understood.understood to facilitate the adoption of preventive measures. In Association Football, evidence shows that the highest prevalence of contact injuries emerges in 1 vs. 1one-on-one interactions. However, previous studies have tended to operationally report injury mechanisms in isolation, failing to provide a theoretical rationale to explain how injuries might emerge from interactions between opposing players. In this position paperpaper, we propose an ecological dynamics framework to enhance current understanding of behavioural processes leading to contact injuries in team sports. Based on previous research highlighting the dynamics of performer-environmentperformer-environment interactions, contact injuries are proposed to emerge from symmetry-breaking processes during on-field interpersonal interactions among competing players and the ball. Central to this approach is consideration of candidate control parameters that may provide insights on the information sources used by players to reduce risk of contact injuries during performance. Clinically, an ecological dynamics analysis could allow sport practitioners to design training sessions,sessions based on selected parameter threshold values as primarilyprimary and/or secondary preventing measures,measures during training and rehabilitation sessions. Key points:• Key Points An ecological dynamics approach proposes how information constrains coordination tendencies between competing/cooperating players and the ball leading to changes in contact injury risks.Future research needs to consider which information sources a performer needs to become perceptually attuned to as affordances (possibilities for action) to decrease injury risks.Based on identified control parameter threshold values, training and rehabilitation sessions can be designed to encapsulate specific affordances which players may learn to become attuned to in order to prevent entering high-risk injury situations.

Training or Synergizing? Complex Systems Principles Change the Understanding of Sport Processes

“… The correlatedness and nestedness of constraints serve to improve training efficiency and enhance the recovery [ 28 ]. The improvement of decision-making and the development of performer-environment couplings prevent contact injuries [ 86 ]. …”

“…The improvement of decision-making and the development of performer-environment couplings prevent contact injuries [ 86 ].…”

Permanent knee sensorimotor system changes following ACL injury and surgery

“…In addition to restoring peak lower extremity strength–power [40, 121, 162], and improving thigh and calf girth (fast twitch muscle fibre integrity) [107, 162], verification of more normal sensorimotor brain communication [36, 37, 159] and sensory–visual aspects of motor function and motor learning adaptations [39, 94, 140, 163, 164] during therapeutic exercise performance will become essential elements of outcome assessment. Neurosensory and psychobehavioral aspects of recovery [18, 22, 100, 165] including improved dynamic knee joint constraint and more natural motor control variability [43, 136–138] must be restored. Long‐term, longitudinal measurements of these important recovery factors will better elucidate the most effective path to complete functional recovery and validate the true efficacy of ACL injury care.…”

Effect of visual stimuli on the jumping ability of amateur soccer players

“…These findings are not only relevant for enhancing performance but also for injury prevention. The need for the player to attend to the different stimuli while executing high-intensity actions could be a key factor in the occurrence of an injury (Leventer et al, 2015).…”