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Editorial
‘First, do no harm’: conducting research on interpersonal violence in sport
  1. Tine Vertommen1,2,
  2. Mary Woessner3,
  3. Emma Kavanagh4,
  4. Sylvie Parent5,
  5. Aurélie Pankowiak6,
  6. Leen Haerens7,
  7. Cleo Schyvinck7,
  8. Bram Constandt7,
  9. Ramón Spaaij6,8,
  10. Vidar Stevens8,
  11. Annick Willem7,
  12. Margo Mountjoy9
  1. 1 University of Antwerp, Antwerpen, Belgium
  2. 2 Thomas More University of Applied Sciences, Antwerpen, Belgium
  3. 3 Victoria University Institute for Health and Sport, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
  4. 4 Bournemouth University, Poole, UK
  5. 5 Physical Education, Université Laval, Quebec City, Quebec, Canada
  6. 6 Victoria University, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
  7. 7 Department of Movement and Sports Sciences, Ghent University, Gent, Belgium
  8. 8 Utrecht School of Governance, Utrecht University, Utrecht, The Netherlands
  9. 9 Family Medicine, McMaster University Michael G DeGroote School of Medicine, Waterloo, Ontario, Canada
  1. Correspondence to Tine Vertommen; Tine.Vertommen{at}thomasmore.be

https://doi.org/10.1136/bjsports-2024-108767

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    ‘First, do no harm’

    It was Hippocrates who stated ‘First, do no harm’, and we believe the sentiment of this medical principle is one that every researcher should embody when conducting research on interpersonal violence (IV) in sport. Conducting such research presents unique considerations for researchers, particularly in relation to supporting participant and researcher well-being. Similarly, approaching this sensitive topic with clear definitions of IV in sport and an understanding of trauma- and violence-informed care (TVIC) is paramount to the protection and care of everyone involved in the research.

    Defining interpersonal violence in sport

    The landscape for researching IV in sport that has rapidly emerged to investigate its determinants from various lenses including ethical, sociological, psychological, criminological and organisational.1 2 The siloed nature of research on IV in sport also has led to inconsistency in terminology, hindering effective communication and collaboration within and outside the field. The terms used to describe and study IV in sport have a profound impact on how the problem is communicated and understood. The use of diverging definitions creates challenges for determining what is within or outside the scope of research, limits our ability to meaningfully compare prevalences and experiences reported across projects, and impacts methodological considerations such as the effective recruitment of participants. Currently, terms such as maltreatment, non-accidental violence, harm, harassment, abuse and IV are used interchangeably, and clarification on the use of terminologies is essential. This paper aligns with the latest International Olympic Committee (IOC) Consensus Statement1 and the WHO’s typology of violence3 and focuses on ‘interpersonal violence’, which differs from self-directed and collective violence (box 1).

    Box 1

    Glossary with operationalised definitions of interpersonal violence in sport

    • Interpersonal violence: violence is defined as ‘the intentional use of physical force or power, threatened or actual, against oneself, another person or against a group or community, that either results in or has a high likelihood of resulting …

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    Footnotes

    • X @TineVertommen, @marywoessner, @margo.mountjoy

    • Contributors Conceptualisation: TV, MW and EK. Methodology: all authors. Writing—original draft: TV, MW, EK, SP, AP, LH, CS and MM. Writing—review and editing: all authors. Funding acquisition: TV is guarantor.

    • Funding Travel and accommodation costs for the meeting and writing retreat dedicated to drafting this manuscript were provided by the Scientific Research Network funding of the Research Foundation—Flanders (WOG W002020N). Dr Aurélie Pankowiak receives an Early Career Fellowship from VicHealth.

    • Competing interests MM is a deputy editor of the BJSM and a member of the BJSM IPHP Editorial Board.

    • Provenance and peer review Not commissioned; externally peer reviewed.