Psychological violence victimization with moral injury in sports exacerbates PTSD symptoms

Abstract. Introduction: In recent years, evidence has been accumulating that interpersonal violence (IV) in sports coaching situations has detrimental psychopathological effects. IV victimization not only produces traditional adverse symptoms, but also impairs psychological functioning related to self-evaluation and interpersonal relationships in personality development. We designed this study to explore the psychopathological damage caused by IV experiences in Japanese sports coaching situations from the perspective of PTSD and moral injury (MI). Methods: We conducted a Web-based aggregate survey using convenience sampling. Japanese university undergraduates ( N=196, age range 18-23 years) participated in the study. We used hierarchical multiple regression and simple slope analyses to examine quantitative data after controlling for covariates. Results: There was a significant main effect of experiencing psychological violence and MI on several PTSD symptoms, including intrusion, avoidance, and hyperarousal. In addition, a high frequency of experiencing psychological violence enhanced intrusion and hyperarousal symptoms only when causes MI. Conclusion: These results are consistent with previous studies that identified IV-related mental health harms. The result also indicate that the damage caused by IV in sports contexts is complex and aggravated by the deep intrinsic and moral emotional wounds. The primary findings of this study are crucial for protecting athlete’ human rights, further enhancing sports leadership education, and for proactive consideration of preventive intervention strategies.