Jan Åge Kristensen

• Gjesdal, Siv; Kristensen, Jan Åge; Saarinen, Milla Saara Anneli & Bjørndal, Christian Thue (2026). A conditional process analysis of general self-esteem in student-athletes in lower secondary sport schools. Frontiers in Psychology. 17, p. 1–10. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2026.1771557. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  Objective: Specialised sport schools at the lower secondary level aim to support the holistic development of young athletes. Consequently, understanding how to influence student-athletes’ self-perceptions both inside and outside of the sporting context is of interest. Grounded in Achievement goal theory, this study examined whether achievement goal orientations were related to self-esteem, both directly and indirectly through perceived sport performance. Additionally, we investigated whether athletic identity moderated the indirect relationship between achievement goal orientations and self-esteem. Methods: The sample comprised 579 student-athletes aged 12 to 16 years (Mage = 13.93; SD = 0.85), recruited from seven Norwegian lower secondary sport schools. All participants responded to items concerning their general self-esteem, goal orientations, perceived performance and athletic identity. Results: Regression analyses revealed that athletes’ achievement goal orientations were directly and indirectly (via perceived performance) related to their self-esteem. However, athletic identity did not moderate the indirect relationship. Conclusion: Overall, the findings suggest that student-athletes who view success as doing their very best tend to be more satisfied with their own sport performance and experience higher self-esteem. Conversely, athletes who view success as being the best are generally less satisfied with their performance and report lower self-esteem. Notably, these relationships do not appear to be stronger in athletes with a stronger identification with their athlete role.

• Kristensen, Jan Åge; Kavussanu, Maria & Ommundsen, Yngvar (2025). Perceived motivational climate, doping attitudes, and doping temptation among elite adolescent athletes: The moderating role of perfectionism. European Journal of Sport Science (EJSS). ISSN 1746-1391. 25(3). doi: 10.1002/ejsc.12244. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  A sports culture that emphasizes normative success, as evident in a performance motivational climate, may encourage athletes to use prohibited performance-enhancing substances. Athletes with perfectionistic tendencies are believed to be particularly tempted to doping when finding themselves in such sporting environments. In this study, we examined whether perceived motivational climate was related to doping temptation directly and indirectly via doping attitudes and whether perfectionism moderated this indirect relationship. The sample comprised 420 adolescent athletes aged 16–18 years (mean age = 16.94 and standard deviation = 0.81) recruited from five Norwegian sport academy high schools. Regression analysis revealed that athletes' perceptions of a performance climate were positively related to their temptation to dope both directly and indirectly via doping attitudes, and that this indirect relationship was stronger among athletes who were moderate or high in their perfectionistic concerns. No direct or indirect relationships were found between mastery climate and doping temptation, nor did perfectionistic strivings moderate the indirect relationship between mastery climate and doping temptation via doping attitudes. Taken together, our findings suggest that athletes who perceive their sport environment as performance-oriented and believe that the benefits of using prohibited substances outweigh the drawbacks are more tempted to dope. Moreover, this tendency is particularly notable among athletes who are moderately or strongly concerned about making mistakes (i.e., have perfectionistic concerns).

• Kristensen, Jan Åge; Haugen, Tommy & Ommundsen, Yngvar (2024). Supplement usage and doping attitudes in elite youth sports: The mediating role of dietary supplement acceptance. PLOS ONE. 19(2). doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0297078. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  This study investigated whether dietary supplement acceptance mediated the relationship between supplement use and doping attitudes in youth sports. To this end, we employed a two-wave half-longitudinal design during a sports season (time point one [T1] to time point two [T2]). The sample consisted of 217 elite youth athletes (47% male; mean age = 16.98 years, standard deviation = 0.88) who competed in team sports (43%; N = 93; basketball, floorball, handball, and ice hockey) and individual sports (57%; N = 124; alpine skiing, biathlon, cross-country skiing, swimming, and tennis). The participants were recruited from eight Norwegian sports academy high schools that provide extracurricular, higher-level training and specialization for youth athletes. Results from structural equation modeling analysis indicated that dietary supplement acceptance (T2) mediated the positive relationship between supplement use (T1) and doping attitudes (T2) when accounting for prior levels of the mediator and the outcome variable. These findings suggest that when young athletes used dietary supplements at the start of the season to improve their performance, they were more likely to view the use of supplements as acceptable and to report more favorable attitudes toward doping at the end of the season six months later. For those seeking to prevent doping in youth sports, targeting athletes’ views on the acceptable use of dietary supplements may be important.

• Kristensen, Jan Åge; Haugen, Tommy & Ommundsen, Yngvar (2023). Perceived social pressure and intention to play through injuries in junior ice hockey: The sporting environment matters. Journal of Sports Sciences. ISSN 0264-0414. 41(14). doi: 10.1080/02640414.2023.2273084. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  Playing when injured is a risky yet common business among ice hockey players. Conceptualized within the framework of the theory of planned behaviour, the current cross-sectional study aimed to test a multiple-mediator model linking players’ perceived social pressure to their intention to play when injured. We tested whether social pressure is directly and indirectly (via attitudes, subjective norms, perceived behavioural control avoidance, and situational temptation) related to intention to play when injured. We recruited 186 junior players aged 16–20 years (mean age = 17.85; standard deviation = 1.35) from two Norwegian ice hockey leagues (under 18 and under 20 years of age). The data were analysed using a linear regression procedure and a bias-corrected bootstrapping technique to measure indirect effects. The results revealed a positive direct and indirect (via attitudes, subjective norms, and situational temptation) rela-tionship between players’ perceived social pressure and their intention to play when injured. In conclusion, players that perceived pressure to play despite being injured, who perceived positive consequences of doing so, who believed that people close or important to them approved of them doing so, and who perceived game-specific temptations, were more likely to report a stronger intent to play the game when injured.

• Kristensen, Jan Åge; Skilbred, Anette; Abrahamsen, Frank Eirik; Ommundsen, Yngvar & Loland, Sigmund (2022). Performance-enhancing and health-compromising behaviors in youth sports: A systematic mixed-studies review. Performance Enhancement & Health. 10(4). doi: 10.1016/j.peh.2022.100237. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  Success in sports entails striving toward greater achievement and outstanding performance. In their pursuit of these goals, adolescent athletes use various means and resort to behaviors that may cause adverse consequences for their health. As they are still in the developmental stage, they are particularly vulnerable to unwanted health consequences. This study aimed to systematically review previous studies on the contextual and personal factors associated with adolescent athletes’ performance-enhancing and health-compromising behaviors. The review was conducted and reported in accordance with the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses 2020 guidelines. Several databases were searched, including SPORTDiscus, Pubmed, PsycINFO, and Web of Science. The literature search and additional manual searches of sources yielded a total of 2,808 articles. These were screened against the inclusion criteria, and the remaining 15 were assessed for eligibility using Mixed Methods Appraisal Tool 2018. Convergent meta-integration with thematic analysis was performed by converting quantitative and qualitative data from young athletes aged 14–20 years into relevant codes and themes. Within these themes, the study's findings are presented through narratives that are perceived to influence young athletes’ use of doping and other behaviors that may lead to doping, such as the use of nutritional supplementation and non-prescription painkillers and playing despite being injured and having pain. Our findings indicate that athletes’ entourages (e.g., their coaches, peers, and parents) matter in a variety of ways in athletes’ socialization toward refraining from risking their health in pursuit of greater achievement and outstanding performance.

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• Kristensen, Jan Åge (2026). Who is at risk of doping? Psychosocial and behavioral profiles of doping intentions in adolescent athletes. doi: https:/congress2026.fepsac.com/program-at-glance/. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  At the FEPSAC Congress 2026 (European Federation of Sport Psychology) in Timișoara, Romania, I presented findings from a quantitative study examining psychosocial and behavioral risk factors associated with doping intentions among adolescent athletes. In the study, we made use of a person-centered approach using latent profile analysis to identify distinct psychological and behavioral profiles based on constructs from the Theory of Planned Behavior, together with dietary supplement acceptance and use. Drawing on data from 598 Norwegian adolescent athletes (aged 15–19 years) attending sport academy high schools, I demonstrated that young athletes are not equally at risk for doping but cluster into distinct profiles characterized by different combinations of attitudes, subjective norms, perceived behavioral control, and supplement-related behaviors. The findings further highlighted demographic differences, with older athletes and males showing greater likelihood of belonging to higher-risk profiles. As a take-home message, I ended my presentation discussing the theoretical contribution of adopting a person-centered perspective in anti-doping research and outlined practical implications for the development of targeted, evidence-based anti-doping education. Particular emphasis was placed on addressing both individual psychological factors and the broader social sporting environment in order to create more effective prevention strategies for young athletes.

• Kristensen, Jan Åge (2026). Norges VM-bronse ble ikke vunnet på isen alene. Fædrelandsvennen. ISSN 0805-3790. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  Den historiske VM-bronsen viser hvordan kollektiv mestringstro, samhold og tilhørighet kan bli et konkurransefortrinn når små nasjoner utfordrer stormaktene.

• Kristensen, Jan Åge (2024). Usunne helsevalg blant unge idrettsutøvere. Full text in Research Archive
• Kristensen, Jan Åge (2023). Unraveling young competitive ice hockey players’ intention to play through injuries: The sporting environment matters. Full text in Research Archive
• Kristensen, Jan Åge (2023). Usunne helsevalg blant ambisiøse idrettsutøvere: Smerte, skade og bruk av prestasjonsfremmende midler. Full text in Research Archive
• Kristensen, Jan Åge (2023). Jakten på prestasjon: Idrettsungdom og usunne helsevalg. Full text in Research Archive
• Kristensen, Jan Åge (2020). Usunne helsevalg i ungdomsidretten: Medaljens bakside. Full text in Research Archive
• Kristensen, Jan Åge (2024). The darker side of youth sport: Unraveling psychosocial factors driving health - compromising behaviors among adolescent athletes. Norges idrettshøgskole. ISSN 9788250206205. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  Background: The overall aim of this research project was to increase understanding of the psychosocial factors that influence health-compromising behaviors among young athletes. To achieve this, an integrative social cognitive approach was adopted by deepening and broadening the theory of planned behavior (Ajzen, 1991). Health-compromising behaviors encompassed painkiller use, participation in sports despite injuries, use of dietary supplements, and doping. A range of theoretically informed personal and contextual factors were hypothesized to either offer protection against or trigger these behaviors. By providing a better understanding of these factors, this thesis contributes to the development of strategies for reducing health-compromising behaviors in youth sports. Objectives: To achieve the overall aim of this doctoral thesis, four studies were conducted, each of which targeted a specific objective. These four objectives were: (Paper I) identify the personal and contextual factors influencing athletes’ health-compromising behaviors through a systematic review; (Paper II) examine the relationship between perceived social pressure and intention to play through injuries; (Paper III) explore the interplay between perceptions of a performance climate and doping temptation antecedents, while also examining the moderating role of perfectionistic concerns; and (Paper IV) investigate the mediating role of the acceptance of dietary supplements in the relationship between supplement use and doping attitudes during a competitive season. Methods: The four individual studies encompassed both qualitative (Paper I) and quantitative research designs (Papers II, III, and IV). In Paper I, a systematic mixed-studies review was conducted, synthesizing and analyzing qualitative, quantitative, and mixedmethods studies. Exploratory data analysis combined convergent qualitative meta-integration and thematic analysis to interpret emerging themes and patterns. Paper II employed parallel multiple mediation analysis with cross-sectional data to examine whether social pressure was directly and indirectly (via attitudes, subjective norms, perceived behavioral control avoidance, and situational temptation) related to the intention to play when injured (N = 186 junior ice hockey players). Paper III utilized conditional process analysis with cross-sectional data to explore whether the performance climate was directly and indirectly (via pro-doping attitudes) related to doping temptation, while also considering the moderating role of perfectionistic concerns (N = 420 adolescent athletes). Paper IV employed structural equation modeling analysis with a half-longitudinal data collection approach in a two-wave design to test the mediating role of dietary supplement acceptance in the relationship between supplement use and doping attitudes during a competitive season (N = 217 adolescent athletes). Results and discussion: The findings indicate that there is a dynamic interplay between the personal factors of the athletes and the contextual factors summarized from athletes’ selfdescribed perceptions of the sporting environment, which shapes their health-compromising behaviors (Paper I). A wide range of theoretically informed personal and contextual factors, functioning either as protective or eliciting factors, were identified. Ice hockey players perceived social pressure from the sporting environment to play despite being injured (Paper II). This perception appeared to increase players’ intention to play through injuries. Additionally, the players’ perception of social pressure seemed to influence their attitudes, subjective norms, and situational temptations, thereby strengthening their intention to play the game when injured. Furthermore, athletes who perceived their sports environment as performance-oriented, characterized by an increased pressure to win and outperform others, were more likely to be tempted to use prohibited substances. Perceptions of a performanceoriented climate also appeared to shape athletes’ beliefs that using prohibited substances would yield more positive consequences than negative ones, making them more prone to doping. This tendency was particularly notable among athletes who had moderate or high levels of perfectionistic concerns (Paper III). Finally, dietary supplements were widely used among young athletes. However, the frequent use of supplements might be a potential ris factor for developing pro-doping attitudes. The findings suggest that when athletes used dietary supplements at the start of the season to improve their performance, they were more likely to view the use of supplements as acceptable and to report more favorable attitudes toward doping six months later at the end of the season (Paper IV). Conclusion: In summary, the overall findings highlight important psychosocial factors underlying young athletes’ health-compromising behaviors. Thus, the findings also underline the role of the sporting environment in helping athletes refrain from dysfunctional behavioral patterns. Coaches, sports practitioners, and others are encouraged to create environmental conditions that reduce social pressure and downgrade the importance of winning.

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