Transplant Recipients' Experience of Participation at the World Transplant Games in Gothenburg 2011: A Study of Psychological Well-being

Abstract

Abstract:The World Transplant Games (WTG) is a biennial worldwide sporting event. Most published research relating to WTG has focused on medical issues. However, few studies have examined factors such as psychological wellbeing in sport for this group. The purpose of this study is to provide a description of the English-speaking participants at the WTG and analyze five research questions linked to how (1) health, (2), satisfaction with sports participation (3), perceived competence, (4) health as a benefit of sport participation (5), and impaired health as a cost of sports participation, are related to psychological factors in sports. There were a total of 253 participants with a mean age of 43.6 years, originating from seven English-speaking nations. Four validated psychological questionnaires were used, as well as a screening of background data of the group. The main characteristics of the English-speaking population were university educated middle age men with kidney transplants, who had participated in athletics at a rather high competitive level before the transplant. The main statistical findings particularly showed that satisfaction with sport participation, perceived health and health as a benefit were the dependent variables that explained most of the variance in the analysis. In conclusion, perceived competence, enjoyment and health seem to be critical psychological factors that essentially act as prime motivating factors behind participation in games such as WTG, and ultimately lead to a sense of psychological well-being among the participants. Finally, there is a discussion of future research, as well as the practical value of the results.

Transplant recipients’ motivational orientation towards sport participation and physical activity enjoyment at the 2019 World Transplant Games in Newcastle-Gateshead UK

“…Task motivation is represented by seven statements for example, "I feel the most successful in sport when I learn something new by working hard" and ego motivation by six statements for example, "I feel the most successful in sport when I am the best". The TEOSQ has revealed high internal consistency among a previous sample of transplant athletes with a Cronbach's alpha value of .81 for task motivation and .80 for ego motivation (Johnson et al, 2013).…”

“…Research informing expert guidance on specific sport populations such as transplant athletes is still desperately sought (van Adrichem et al, 2016). Sports and exercise play a vital role in the physiological and psychological rehabilitation of OTR (Slapak, 2005) of which enjoyment of physical activity significantly and positively associates with a sense of psychological well-being and health (Johnson et al, 2013). Based on this notion, it is believed that broader research on transplant athletes' motivational behaviour towards sport participation and its links to enjoyment is not only needed to address gaps in literature, but also pivotal to inform key role players in transplant recipients' social environments.…”

“…Behaviours towards the adoption or continuation of exercise and sporting activities among organ transplant recipients (OTR) have been sparsely reported by prior literature, but indicates that common motives cited for engagement range from perceived competence to health and well-being benefits (Neale et al, 2017). Previous research conducted during an earlier WTG event revealed that enjoyment, perceived competence and health function serve as prime motivating factors for transplant recipients to participate in sport (Johnson, Hinic, Billström, & Gäbel, 2013). Another study that explored the leisure-motivations among transplant athletes revealed that social impact (i.e.…”

Organ Transplant Recipients’ Experiences of Physical Activity: Health, Self-Care, and Transliminality

“…Sánchez et al’s (2007) survey helped inform van Adrichem et al’s (2016) qualitative study, which revealed several commonly reported barriers (e.g., physical limitations, insufficient energy level, fear, and comorbidities) and facilitators, for example, coping, consequences of (in)activity, routine/habit, goals/goal priority, and responsibility for the transplanted organ, to PA. In addition, Johnson et al (2013) analyzed questionnaire data from participants at one World Transplant Games event, and concluded that perceived competence, enjoyment, and health were critical psychological factors in the experience of PA that ultimately led to a sense of psychological well-being for participants.…”

“…Despite the recognition that PA can yield health and well-being benefits, observational studies have reported that the majority of transplant recipients do not meet the general recommended PA guidelines (Clark et al, 2012;Dontje et al, 2014), suggesting that there is a need to better understand organ transplant recipients' experiences of engaging with PA. Sánchez et al's (2007) survey helped inform van Adrichem et al's (2016) qualitative study, which revealed several commonly reported barriers (e.g., physical limitations, insufficient energy level, fear, and comorbidities) and facilitators, for example, coping, consequences of (in)activity, routine/habit, goals/goal priority, and responsibility for the transplanted organ, to PA. In addition, Johnson et al (2013) analyzed questionnaire data from participants at one World Transplant Games event, and concluded that perceived competence, enjoyment, and health were critical psychological factors in the experience of PA that ultimately led to a sense of psychological well-being for participants.…”