Overview of Psychophysiological Stress and the Implications for Junior Athletes

Eon Campbell^1, , Rachael Irving¹, Janel Bailey¹, Lowell Dilworth² and Wendel Abel³

¹Department of Basic Medical Sciences, Biochemistry Section, University of the West Indies, Mona, Jamaica

²Department of Pathology, University of the West Indies, Mona, Jamaica

³Department of Community Health & Psychiatry, University of the West Indies, Mona, Jamaica

Cite this paper

Eon Campbell, Rachael Irving, Janel Bailey, Lowell Dilworth and Wendel Abel. Overview of Psychophysiological Stress and the Implications for Junior Athletes. American Journal of Sports Science and Medicine. 2018; 6(3):72-78. doi: 10.12691/AJSSM-6-3-2

Abstract

Psychophysiological stress appears to be a significant parameter in youth competitive sport participation. Primarily because adolescent athletes are faced with the extreme pressurized scenarios, youth competitive sport offers. Numerous youth sport performers have not learned adaptive coping skills to ameliorate the effects of an inherently stressful environment. This oftentimes results in the elicitation of stress responses, which when prolonged cause an overproduction of hormones which can have severe negative psychological and physiological implications. The implications include a disruption of metabolism and cognitive functioning, as well as cell production in the immune system which may influence the course of chronic diseases and disorders. A detailed understanding of the molecular and genetic events underlying the association of stressors with the psychophysiological pathways is crucial for the design of psychological interventions tailored specifically for athletes so as to improve well-being and performance.

Keywords

psychophysiological stress, youth competitive sports, athletes, stress responses, hormones

Copyright

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. To view a copy of this license, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

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