SARrugby.com

Hi Guys,

Below is an explanation of a study I am conducting for my dissertation in my final year of university. It is looking into what protective equipment is worn by rugby union players, and how they think it protects them.

If you could complete my survey at the link, if you play or have played rugby and you're over 16, that would be amazing.

www.surveymonkey.com/s/rugbyunion

Thank you in advance if you do partake.


Thank you,
Kirstie



Research Title: A study to investigate the perception of protective equipment amongst rugby union players

You are being invited to partake in a research study, which will only take a few minutes of your time to complete. Before you decide whether or not to take part it is important you understand why the research is being done and what it involves. Please take your time to read the following information carefully.
This study is looking into the perceptions of what rugby union players believe protective equipment protects. The aim of this questionnaire is to analyse how many players wear protective equipment, what types of protective equipment are worn by all players, and what they believe it protects. The attached questionnaire is available electronically and in paper form until March 2013.
This questionnaire is aimed at past and present rugby union players, over the age of 16. There is no set limit of participation in this questionnaire, to help attain as much information as possible.
It is your choice whether you complete this questionnaire or not. If you decide to take part this information sheet is yours to keep and the consent form overleaf will need to be signed. If you decide to take part you are still free to withdraw at any time and without any reason.

Answers retrieved will be anonymous, strictly confidential, and will not be passed on to third parties. The completed questionnaires will be analysed by myself (Kirstie Farbon), with the results being used in my dissertation. It is in connection with my Sports Therapy degree, and may be electronically published after marking by the University of Gloucestershire.

I am conducting this research study as a third year student at the University of Gloucestershire, from the department of Sports and Exercise. This research has been approved by the University Research Ethics Committee, University of Gloucestershire.

If you have any further questions regarding this study, please do not hesitate to contact me directly, or via email: S0905572@connect.glos.ac.uk.

Thank you very much for taking the time to read this information sheet.

Hope that helps. You might want to look into the use of helmets in gridiron, which is a hot topic these days. Players have had all sorts of issues, leading to suicide in some cases. This is an instance where protection has encouraged more violent contact through head butting....and probably caused injury.

 Survey done, but change 'reginal' to 'regional'

 Done. Good luck with your research.

Will be interesting to see what rugby does about concussions - there is absolutely no way to prevent these apart from good technique. No amount of protection helps - the high rate of concussion incidence in the NFL clearly demonstrates that.

The new Saracens field at Allianz park may be a game changer if it is as good as advertised. Players so far have been impressed with how soft it is - maybe that will help reduce injuries?