Shame in sport: tracing the past and looking to the future

AI Summary

Rapid two-decade expansion of shame in sport research, with unclear process mechanisms and limitations in existing measurement scales.
Influencing factors are categorised by behavioural subjects and environmental contexts, requiring integrated analysis across levels.
Shame has a double-edged impact on athletes, moderated by contingency factors; calls for deeper theory, better evidence and practice to boost participation and wellbeing.

AI Summary

Over the past two decades, this research topic has boomed rapidly in the field of social psychology of sport, with scholars conducting systematic explorations on its measurement tools, antecedent variables and action mechanisms.

First, this paper combs the research evolution of shame in sport, clarifies its evolutionary trends, and summarizes the limitations of existing measurement scales.

On this basis, the paper finally discusses the key problems and challenges faced by this research field, and focuses on the future research directions, aiming to theoretically deepen and expand the research content of shame in sport, and provide evidence-based references for improving sports participation and mental health in practice.

Basic summary

Front Public Health. 2026 Jun 9;14:1816837. doi: 10.3389/fpubh.2026.1816837. eCollection 2026.

ABSTRACT

Shame serves as a crucial perspective for investigating individual sports withdrawal. Over the past two decades, this research topic has boomed rapidly in the field of social psychology of sport, with scholars conducting systematic explorations on its measurement tools, antecedent variables and action mechanisms. However, existing studies lack a systematic sorting and comprehensive understanding of its process mechanisms. First, this paper combs the research evolution of shame in sport, clarifies its evolutionary trends, and summarizes the limitations of existing measurement scales. Second, it generalizes the influencing factors of shame in sport from the perspectives of behavioral subjects and behavioral environments. Third, it clarifies the double-edged sword effect of shame on individuals in the field of sport and its contingency moderating factors. On this basis, the paper finally discusses the key problems and challenges faced by this research field, and focuses on the future research directions, aiming to theoretically deepen and expand the research content of shame in sport, and provide evidence-based references for improving sports participation and mental health in practice.

PMID:42344259 | PMC:PMC13286756 | DOI:10.3389/fpubh.2026.1816837

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