Athletic Trainers Impact On Athletes: A Case Study of United States

Abstract

With upcoming of the competency-based education and the increasing ailments directly or indirectly connected with climatic change and weather patterns globally, physical exercise has become increasingly necessary, which directly or indirectly calls for increased uptake of physical education in schools, colleges and the greater public. This view necessitated this study which focuses one component of physical education. The study was carried in the United States with its focus being the athletic training industry to critically examine the impact of athletic trainers to the athletes, both physically and mentally. The main focus of the study was to examine Athletic trainer’s role in the athlete’s mental wellbeing. It also looked into the athlete’s trust to his or her athletic trainer not only in their expertise in the field and their knowledge, but also how the trainer is focused on what is best for the athlete’s long-term health and well-being. The study was motived by a belief that athletic trainers are usually held with high standard both off the field and in the field especially where everyone can directly see their performance. However, it is not common knowledge in the public domain what the athletic trainers do to help the athletes in terms of injury prevention as well as treating already incurred injuries. Data was obtained from primary and secondary sources. For primary sources, data questionnaires were administered online to purposively chosen participants while secondary data was sourced from written works and documented reports. Descriptive data analysis was used and the results used to draw conclusion and recommendations. The study findings indicated that the relationship between a student-athlete and athletic trainer is pivotal during the grind of a season and even the off season. The athletic trainer must work with the student-athlete and build trust with them along with the coaching staff and administration which is not easy to do. The findings and conclusion from the study recommends a need for a clearer answer on the impact that athletic trainers have on student- athletes, with a better way to show the actual relationship between the two.