An Investigation into Helmet Use, Perceptions of Sports-Related Concussion, and Seeking Medical Care for Head Injury amongst Competitive Cyclists

Jack Hardwicke, Brett Anthony Baxter, Tim Gamble and Howard Thomas Hurst
Additional contact information
Jack Hardwicke: Centre for Physical Activity and Life Sciences, University of Northampton, Northampton NN1 5PH, UK
Brett Anthony Baxter: Centre for Physical Activity and Life Sciences, University of Northampton, Northampton NN1 5PH, UK
Tim Gamble: The Department of Psychological Sciences, School of Psychology, Elizabeth Fry Building, University of Surrey, Guildford GU2 7XH, UK
Howard Thomas Hurst: Centre for Applied Sport Physical Activity and Performance, University of Central Lancashire, Preston PR1 2HE, UK

IJERPH, 2022, vol. 19, issue 5, 1-11

Abstract: The purpose of this study was to investigate competitive cyclists’ helmet use, perceptions of sports-related concussion (SRC), and medical-care-seeking behaviors. A mixed-method approach was used with qualitative and quantitative data presented. The study comprised of a cross-sectional analysis of 405 competitive cyclists who completed an online survey. Results indicated that most participants believed a bicycle helmet protects against SRC (79.5%) and considerable numbers of participants would not seek medical care for potential head injury in scenarios where this would be recommended. It was also discovered that marketing of concussion reduction technology influences cyclists’ helmet-purchasing behaviors. With the data presented, it is recommended that governing bodies in cycling need to develop educational resources to address gaps in knowledge regarding SRC amongst cyclists. We also suggest that more independent research on concussion reduction technologies in bicycle helmets is needed, with advertising supported by clear scientific evidence to avoid negatively influencing head injury management and reporting behaviors amongst cyclists.

Keywords: sports-related concussion; helmets; competitive cycling; medical care seeking behaviors (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/19/5/2861/pdf (application/pdf)
https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/19/5/2861/ (text/html)

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:19:y:2022:i:5:p:2861-:d:761843

Access Statistics for this article

IJERPH is currently edited by Ms. Jenna Liu

More articles in IJERPH from MDPI
Bibliographic data for series maintained by MDPI Indexing Manager ().