Learning to Play Through Pain and Injury: An Examination of Social Learning Theory Among Iranian Athletes

Abstract

Objective This study investigates the social factors affecting playing through pain and injury of professional athletes, using Akers's social learning theory (SLT). Methods Propositions of SLT were examined using a sample of 784 athletes from Rasht and Bandar Anzali in Iran. Results Findings from structural equation modeling indicated that the social learning components (i.e., differential association, differential reinforcement, imitations, and definitions) predicted 33 percent of the variance in athletes' playing through pain and injury. Conclusion This study demonstrates that athletes' playing through pain and injury is determined by the social setting in which the athlete plays, through his or her interactions with other sports culture members, the internalization of desirable definitions, imitation of others, and the assessment of personal and social benefits.