A combined intervention of emotional freedom techniques and psychological nursing for reducing anticipatory grief in breast cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy: a retrospective cohort study.

Sports are widely celebrated for building character, instilling discipline, and fostering resilience. Central to athletic development are two core values: enduring hardship (often contextualized culturally as “eating bitterness”) and strict obedience to coaching authority. While these traits are essential for athletic success, a critical inflection point emerges when they transcend pedagogical ethics and fossilize into rigid organizational dogma. At this juncture, rather than serving as developmental scaffolding, these cultural values are frequently weaponized to suppress dissent, rationalize harm, and protect hierarchical power structures (, ; ; , ; ; ; ; ; , ). The prevalence of abuse in athletic environments is well-documented. The International Olympic Committee (IOC) estimates that 30%–70% of athletes experience some form of harassment or abuse during their careers, establishing sports bullying as a critical global crisis (). Previous research has effectively documented the spatial dynamics, demographic vulnerabilities, and long-term psychological trauma associated with bullying, emotional abuse, and toxic coaching practices (; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ). Extant literature confirms that immense competitive pressures and strict institutional hierarchies create environments highly susceptible to interpersonal transgressions. However, current literature predominantly focuses on identifying risk factors and detailing subsequent trauma, leaving a crucial micro-level question under-explored: Why are these abusive behaviors systematically perceived by both perpetrators and victims as acceptable, necessary, or even legitimate? This theoretical gap is significant. Without understanding the legitimation mechanisms of harm, systemic abuses are frequently dismissed as mere interpersonal conflicts, communication breakdowns, or “tough coaching.” When the cultural architecture of sports inherently shields abuse under the guise of “building character” or “inevitable collective sacrifice,” traditional punitive measures against individual coaches fail to dismantle the root causes of the violence. Consequently, the prolonged persistence of sports bullying is sustained not merely by its clandestine nature, but by its continuous discursive reconstruction as an integral component of athletic training.