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28Value-motivational aspects of anti-doping education
UDC 796.01
Dr. Hab., Professor A.G. Gretsov1, 2
PhD, Associate Professor, director FSBI SPbNIIFK S.A. Vorobev1 A.A. Antselovich3
1St. Petersburg Scientific-Research Institute for Physical Culture, St. Petersburg, Russia
2Herzen State Pedagogical University of Russia, St. Petersburg, Russia 3Federal Scientific Center for Physical Culture and Sports, Moscow
Corresponding author: [email protected]
Abstract
Objective of the study was to marshal information on which value-motivational messages should be broadcast when considering the main content-related divisions of the anti-doping education program, as well as the main objections on the part of listeners and the ways educators react to them.
Methods and structure of the study. The study was based on the author's experience in the development and implementation of anti-doping education programs. In particular, we participated in the development of the programs for various target audiences at the request of the Ministry of Sports of the Russian Federation and conducted antidoping education in a number Children and Youth Sports Schools, as well as among students and trainees of vocational retraining courses of the Institute of Adaptive Physical Education under Lesgaft National State University.
Results and conclusions. Anti-doping education implies not only the broadcast of factual information but also the formation of an attitude to the given problem at the value-motivational level. Due to the constant "doping scandals", athletes and students of sports universities develop a critical attitude towards anti-doping education and anti-doping policy in general. This is manifested in objections and attempts to devalue anti-doping education. Based on the personal pedagogical experience, the article presents the systematization of the value-motivational messages, which should be broadcast when mastering the main content-related divisions of the anti-doping education program, as well as when dealing with the most common objections on the part of the participants.
Keywords: doping, anti-doping education, sports values and motivations, physical education and sports, Prohibited List.
Background. Presently many anti-doping education programs under implementation involve not only athletes and physical education and sports university students, but also much broader population groups including students of non-sport universities and colleges, schoolchildren and even preschoolers [3]. Despite the different target population groups, actual coverage, methods and tools of such anti-doping education programs are standard enough, as they overview the doping-related problems, consequences, conflicts with the key values and priorities of the global sporting culture, anti-doping movement mission and methods, doping in the context of many social problems, etc. It is emphasized that the anti-doping education mis-
sion is not only to disseminate facts and knowledge, but also contribute to formation of the genuine sports values and cultures intolerant to doping. Such antidoping education programs make a special emphasis on the cultural aspects with the fair play ideology and its moral dimensions including the value of honest victory [2]. Lectors and teachers normally face no difficulties as far as the contents of the anti-doping education programs are concerned due to no shortage of comprehensive education materials in multiple manuals, textbooks [1] and reference sources including the official RUSADA website www.rusada.ru. It is much more difficult for them to decide how their messages and priorities should be structured in every education
subject in terms of values and motivations - i.e. why the anti-doping knowledge and competences are so important, what priorities the students need to accept, and what personal conclusions they are expected to come to? The usual commonplace anti-doping education on the unhealthy and unsporting aspects of doping and fair sports are often ineffective in the anti-doping education programs, and this is the reason why they need to be addressed in more personalitysensitive and social formats.
Objective of the study was to systematize practial experience of the anti-doping education service programs with a special priority to their core values and motivations need to be advanced, with the usual implicit and explicit disagreements in the audience and the teacher's responses to them.
Methods and structure of the study. The study was based on our own practical anti-doping education programming and servicing experience including anti-doping education programs for different target audiences on commissions from the Ministry of Sports of the Russian Federation [3]; anti-doping education programs for a few Children and Youth Sport Schools (CYSS), professional retraining courses at the Institute of Adaptive Physical Culture of PF. Les-gaft NSU etc.
Results and discussion. Given in Table 1 hereunder are the key messages on priority values and motivations we recommend to emphasize in every component of the anti-doping education .service, with the components referred to as the semantic modules rather than formal topics for classes, with such modules critical in one or another form in most of such programs.
Given in Table 3 hereunder is a digest of our own practical anti-doping education experience with the list of the usual arguments and skeptical questions from the audience with the teacher's counter-argument logics and options.
Conclusion. Doping issues in sports are still rather contradictory, with the solutions in many cases determined by moral and ethical dilemmas with their choice points when an unambiguous solution cannot be found and every possible solution is costly in some aspects.
The anti-doping education teacher's attempts to pretend knowing the "ultimate truth" with undeniable messages may be successful only in case of non-judgmental factual knowledge - e.g. on the rules of the doping probing procedure. Modern anti-doping education, however, may not be limited by pure information only, as the personality sensitivities, values, motivations and priorities should be addressed on
Table 1. Key messages on the priority values and motivations in the anti-doping education modules
Anti-doping education module Module-specific values and motivations
Doping history Doping is interpreted as the specific violation of sports rules - not necessarily synonymic to artificial performance enhancement. The rules are revised with time, and the performance stimulation methods have always been usual, but most of them are far from «doping» in its modern definition. Modern terms, definitions and rating criteria are not always applicable to the past reality (and vice versa).
Doping issues in modern sports Modern sports mission is to fairly match the individual/ team athletic skills and accomplishments within the framework of the valid rules. Doping creates the situation when there is no way to fairly match the skills and accomplishments, and instead it is the biotechnologies that compete rather than athletes at violation of the rules.
Prohibited agents and methods Such prohibitions may not always be explained objectively, but this is not required: anti-doping rules (like the sports-specific rules) are rather conventional - that means that their contents are secondary to the uniformity of requirements and intolerance to double standards.
Consequences of doping Consequences are not limited to personal/ team failures due to disqualifications, health problems, etc.; and detriments to the image of sports discipline and mistrust in the national sports on the whole, with the relevant political repercussions. In the personality domain, doping-facilitated victories can never make the athlete happier.
Doping controls in sports Modern doping control procedures give a special priority to the athletes' comfort and safety, with minor inconveniences fully compensated by the more fair competitive conditions.
Doping and additive behaviors Many prohibited substances give rise to addictions i.e. drug dependences, with the doping and addiction issues largely similar in the values and motivational domain. Doping-associat-ed sports fail to prevent addictive behaviors as they rather encourage the latter - not only in the athletic communities but also in the close (supporter and shareholder) ones.
Doping and sports social functions Doping-associated sports are perceived as legalized deception - that comes in conflict with the basic idea that a win should be secured by one's own skills, qualities and efforts. Such corrupt sports with their negative messages and values fail to perform their natural cultural and educational functions and turn into a socially harmful phenomenon.
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Table 2. Typical arguments and skeptical questions from the audience in anti-doping education courses with the teacher's response logics and options
Arguments Counter argument logics
Doping campaign against the Russian sports is fuelled by vested political interests Doping is primarily an internal sports problem. The political conflicts can unlikely be associated with the doping claims against the Russian athletes due to apparently no causal relationship. Other countries have also been involved in doping scandals, but we just know less about them.
Virtually every elite athlete has to make resort to doping, otherwise he/she has nothing to do in modern sports Actual objective statistical reports give no more than 2.5% of doping-positive cases in the doping tests; even if some violations remain undetected, the true figure is clearly very far from 100%. Note that many sports-specific qualities and skills are little if ever affected by doping in fact.
Doping is defined as 'violation of one or few anti-doping rules' by the World Anti-Doping Code, but this definition is illogical in referring to itself The definition is later on spelled out in the text. If you read the paragraph to the end, you will see no more contradictions. Actually the definition is rather specific and suitable for practical use. Alternative definitions (for example, with references to the 'unnatural' substances and methods of effect on the performance) may be even more questionable.
The Prohibited List is formed based on vague and subjective (like «contradiction to the sporting spirit») criteria The Prohibited List, first of all, may be questioned only by competent experts including pharmacologists and biochemists; and second, much more important in the context of sporting values is the consistency and common applicability of the requirements rather than their specific contents.
Athletes' rights are violated when they are held accountable for the things beyond their control - for example, when they take such agents unknowingly It's an inevitable cost we have to pay in the efforts to protect the rights of clean athletes otherwise the anti-doping policies may be dramatically ineffective. The unknown use may serve as an excuse in the vast majority of doping cases - with even more serious damage to the rights of clean athletes.
Some privileged athletes use doping legally for TUE It is not always possible to prevent abuses, although note that one of the TUE provisions is that the agent «is extremely unlikely to improve the athletic performance» (International Standard for Therapeutic Use Exemption, & 4.1)
Athletes are in fact isolated from modern medical services when they face health problems Most of the diseases in need of the prohibited substances and methods are anyway incompatible with elite sports. In exceptional cases, athletes may get permits for therapeutic use.
It is unfair that athletes are kept away from modern medical performance enhancers unlike people of other professions Sports are different from 'other professions' in their mission that is to achieve and demonstrate successes via the personal abilities, qualities and efforts - whilst the other professionals create an external alienable product with certain consumer qualities
Anti-doping education makes no sense since it cannot stop the doping addicted athletes whilst the others don't need it Many anti-doping rule violations are due to ignorance, particularly among newcomers to sports, with their «accidental» intakes of untested drugs, etc. Sports professionals cannot but discuss these issues in different audiences.
Since the doping control efforts are unsuccessful anyway, doping shall be permitted to solve these issues at once Even if the doping control efforts are not always successful due to new technologies and unclear borderlines between the prohibited and permitted substances etc. - the anti-doping efforts still act as deterrents. If doping is permitted, the actual consequences will be devastating for many reasons - including sharp growths in the health risks, lost public trust in sports with damage to their image etc.
a priority basis as well. Such anti-doping education service shall give room to dialogues in addition to the anti-doping messages and arguments, with the antidoping education teacher demonstrating openness and willingness to consider arguments of those who believe that doping is natural for the modern sports, and to counter their arguments with logically structured facts and reasoning.
References
1. Dorofeykov V.V., Nevzorova T.G., Zhivova T.M. Fundamentals of Anti-Doping Support. Study guide. St. Petersburg: Lesgaft NSU publ., 2017. 80 p.
2. Koval T.E., Lukina S.M., Yarchikovskaya L.V. Antidoping training. Principles of St. Petersburg State University program design. Sport, people, health. Proc. IX International Congress April 25-27, 2019, St. Petersburg, Russia: Materials of the Congress. St. Petersburg, 2019. pp. 394-395.
3. Educational anti-doping programs designed for various types of educational organizations and sports training organizations. Official website of the Ministry of Sports of the Russian Federation. https://www.minsport.gov. ru/2017/doc/0brazovatelnie-antidopingovie-programmbl.pdf (date of access: 14.01.2020).
