ATHLETIC TRAINERS’ EXPERIENCES WITH AND PERCEPTIONS OF IMPLEMENTING CONCUSSION RISK REDUCTION STRATEGIES

ABSTRACT Neely Christopher McGinty: Athletic Trainers’ Experiences with and Perceptions of Implementing Concussion Risk Reduction Strategies (Under the direction of Johna K. Register-Mihalik) There is limited research on collegiate and secondary school athletic trainers’ perceptions of and experiences with concussion risk reduction strategy implementation. Objective: Evaluate differences between college and secondary school Athletic Trainers’ perceptions of and experiences with concussion risk reduction strategies to inform and scale implementation of such strategies in the secondary school and collegiate settings. Participants: 124 valid responses were included in the current study (n= 44 collegiate athletic trainers, n= 80 secondary school athletic trainers). Methods: This cross-sectional and non-experimental study examined the experiences and perceptions among secondary school and collegiate athletic trainers in implementation of concussion risk reduction strategies. Results: This study observed significant differences in college and secondary school athletic trainers experience with (p = 0.024) and behavioral intention to engage with (p= 0.032) concussion risk reduction strategies where secondary school athletic trainers scores were higher for both constructs. No other differences were observed. Conclusion: The results from the study demonstrate secondary school athletic trainers report more experience with and higher behavioral intention to engage with concussion risk reduction strategies.