Aggression in sport has always been a major issue. Whether it be insults thrown around a school yard playground during a game of football. To hateful attacks on other players, be it physical or verbal, in the premier division of any sport. It can be a problem for the individual who is acting aggressive, such as a disciplinary action or the recipient of the aggression, for example they could suffer injury as result. This can have a larger effect. Sporting teams can lose key players due to injury, because of an aggressive action or to disciplinary action, such as an athlete being sidelined for a number of weeks because of their aggressive behaviour. This can also cause problems for the sport’s governing body as a whole, and for these reasons, action must be taken to reduce athlete aggression in sport. Even the International Society of Sport Psychology recently recognized that sport aggression has become a social problem both on and off the playing field and has recommended ways to curtail this behaviour (Tenenbaum, Stewart, Singer, & Duda, 1997) In this information sheet I will describe the different forms of aggression and how it can be dealt with.
Definitions Of aggression:
A forceful behaviour, action, or attitude that is expressed physically, verbally, or symbolically. It may arise from innate drives or occur as a defence mechanism, often resulting from a threatened ego. It is manifested by either constructive or destructive acts directed toward oneself or against others. (Mosby's Medical Dictionary, 8th edition. © 2009, Elsevier)
‘Aggression is any behaviour that is intended to harm another individual by physical or verbal
Means.’ (Bull, 1990)
‘Aggression is any form of behaviour directed toward the goal of harming or injuring another living being who is motivated to avoid such treatment.’ (Baron, 1994)
‘Aggression is an intentional physically or psychologically harmful behaviour that is directed at another living organism.’