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Unde s anding Ac ion and Ad en u e Spo s Pa icipa ion : An Ecological Dynamics
Pe spec i e
Immonen, Tuomas; B yme , E ic; O h, Dominic; Da ids, Kei h; Fele i, F ancesco;
Liukkonen, Ja mo; Jaakkola, Timo
Immonen, T., B yme , E., O h, D., Da ids, K., Fele i, F., Liukkonen, J., & Jaakkola, T.
(2017). Unde s anding Ac ion and Ad en u e Spo s Pa icipa ion : An Ecological
Dynamics Pe spec i e. Spo s Medicine - Open, 3(1), A icle 18.
h ps://doi.o g/10.1186/s40798-017-0084-1
2017
CURRENT OPINION Open Access
Unde s anding Ac ion and Ad en u e
Spo s Pa icipa ion—An Ecological
Dynamics Pe spec i e
Tuomas Immonen
1*
, E ic B yme
2
, Dominic O h
3
, Kei h Da ids
4
, F ancesco Fele i
5,6
, Ja mo Liukkonen
7
and Timo Jaakkola
7
Abs ac
P e ious esea ch has conside ed ac ion and ad en u e spo s using a a ie y o associa ed e ms and de ini ions
which has led o con using discou se and con adic o y esea ch indings. T adi ional na a i es ha e ypically
conside ed pa icipa ion exclusi ely as he pas ime o young people wi h abno mal cha ac e is ics o pe sonali ies
ha ing unheal hy and pa hological endencies o ake isks because o he need o h ill, exci emen o an ad enaline
‘ ush’. Con e sely, ecen esea ch has linked e en he mos ex eme o ms o ac ion and ad en u e spo s o posi i e
physical and psychological heal h and well-being ou comes. He e, we a gue ha adi ional amewo ks ha e led o
de ini ions, which, as cu en ly used by esea che s, igno e key elemen s cons i u ing he essen ial me i o hese spo s.
In his pape , we sugges ha his lack o concep ual cla i y in unde s anding cogni ions, pe cep ion and ac ion in
ac ion and ad en u e spo s equi es a comp ehensi e explana o y amewo k, ecological dynamics which conside s
pe son-en i onmen in e ac ions om a mul idisciplina y pe spec i e. Ac ion and ad en u e spo s can be undamen ally
concep ualized as ac i i ies which lou ish h ough c ea i e explo a ion o no el mo emen expe iences, con inuously
expanding and e ol ing beyond p ede e mined en i onmen al, physical, psychological o sociocul u al bounda ies. The
ou come is he eme gence o a ich a ie y o pa icipa ion s yles and philosophical di e ences wi hin and ac oss
ac i i ies. The pu pose o his pape is wo old: (a) o poin ou some limi a ions o exis ing esea ch on ac ion and
ad en u e spo s; (b) based on key ideas om eme ging esea ch and an ecological dynamics app oach, o p opose a
holis ic mul idisciplina y model o de ining and unde s anding ac ion and ad en u e spo s ha may be e guide u u e
esea ch and p ac ical implica ions.
Key Poin s
Cu en amewo ks and de ini ions in he s udy
o ac ion and ad en u e spo s ha e led o unclea
discou se and con adic o y esea ch indings.
Ecological dynamics p o ides a holis ic,
mul idisciplina y pla o m o comp ehensi e and
nuanced unde s anding o ac ion and ad en u e
spo s pa icipa ion.
Mo e esea ch should be di ec ed owa ds
unde s anding he ela ionship o sociocul u al
a o dances and c ea i e and inno a i e ac ions
o indi iduals and g oups, exp essed wi h a ious
eme ging pa icipa ion s yles and philosophies.
Backg ound
Pa icipan a es in ac ion and ad en u e spo s (AAS)
a e on he ise, su passing many adi ional spo s in
popula i y [1, 2]. In his opinion piece, he e m AAS
e e s o a a ie y o spo s such as snowboa ding,
su ing, pa kou , climbing and BASE jumping.
I could be a gued ha pas esea ch has ended o
o e emphasize a isk- aking pe spec i e when discussing
pa icipa ion in AAS. This has imposed a supe icial lens
on pa icipa ion, iewed as undamen ally in luenced by
p ocesses unde pinned by isk- aking, p omo ing a
biased pe spec i e whe e AAS a e pe cei ed as a con ex
o aking socially unaccep able, pa hological and
* Co espondence: [email p o ec ed]
1
Facul y o Spo and Heal h Sciences, Uni e si y o Jy äskylä, Jy äskylä,
Finland
Full lis o au ho in o ma ion is a ailable a he end o he a icle
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Immonen e al. Spo s Medicine - Open (2017) 3:18
DOI 10.1186/s40798-017-0084-1
unnecessa y isks [3–10]. To exempli y, classic heo e -
ical app oaches p oposed o explain beha io in AAS
include sensa ion seeking [11, 12], edgewo k [13, 14],
ype ‘T’pe sonali y [4] and psychoanalysis [15]. The
main na a i e o hese app oaches is ha pe sonali y
ai s and socializa ion p ocesses p edispose indi iduals
o pa icipa e in isky o li e- h ea ening ac i i ies [16].
The o e emphasized ocus on isk has mean ha o he
impo an aspec s o pa icipa ion ha e been widely
o e looked [17–19]. The mos signi ican limi a ion wi h
‘ isk-cen ic’app oaches is ha undamen ally, he ac i i y
may be de ined as pa hological and unheal hy. Mos
heo e ical explana ions assume ha pa icipa ion e lec s
a desi e o h ills, exci emen o ad enaline-seeking.
Howe e , eme ging esea ch indica es ha hese explana-
ions a e an o e simpli ica ion [18, 20, 21] and do no
e lec he li ed expe ience o pa icipan s who e u e he
h ills and ad enaline no ion and ins ead desc ibe AAS
pa icipa ion as meaning ul and li e-enhancing [16, 18, 19].
In ecen yea s, a g owing body o li e a u e suppo s he
idea ha pa icipa ion can p omo e psychological and
physical well-being and heal h [18, 21–24] in a a ie y o
ways. Resea ch has ecen ly linked e en he mos ex eme
o ms o AAS o a ied physical and psychological heal h
and well-being ou comes. In summa y, ac i i ies gene ally
p o ide bene i s, such as (1) oppo uni ies o ul ill basic
psychological needs o au onomy, compe ence and e-
la edness [16], (2) oppo uni ies o o e come challenge
[25], (3) oppo uni ies o expe ience in ense emo ions
[26], (4) inc eased posi i e psychological ou comes such
as esilience, sel -e icacy and posi i e a ec [21, 22, 27],
(5) inc eased physical ac i i y le els [16, 28] and (6) eel-
ings o connec ion o na u e [17, 29, 30]. These bene i s
a e o en o e looked as mode n socie ies a e inc easingly
ocused on p o iding ‘sa e’beha iou al en i onmen s
which educe physical isks o membe s [16, 31].
One possible explana ion o he disc epancies in popu-
la imagina ion and heo e ical explana ions in esea ch
on AAS pa icipa ion is ha concep ual de ini ions o
hese ac i i ies emain unclea . Common e ms include
ac ion spo s [32, 33], ad en u e spo s [25, 34, 35],
ex eme spo s [36, 37], li es yle spo s [38–40], al e na i e
spo s [41, 42] and (high) isk spo s [43–46]. This is a key
conce n because he lack o widely sha ed de ini ions o
classi ica ions among esea che s has led o con using
discou se and con adic o y esea ch indings.
He e, we summa ize he lack o cla i y o he pas
esea ch in o i e main issues: (1) ac i i ies equi ing
high le el o sel -knowledge, pe sonal skills, aining,
commi men , en i onmen al knowledge and ask know-
ledge, such as BASE jumping o big-moun ain skiing,
a e assumed o be in he same ca ego y as ac i i ies ha
equi e no p e ious expe ience o knowledge o he
ac i i y o en i onmen , such as comme cial whi e-wa e
a ing o bungee jumping [39]. Findings om s udies
on mo i a ions, o ins ance, in ac i i ies such as com-
me cial a ing, may no gene alize o unde s anding
pa icipa ion in ac i i ies such as BASE jumping. (2)
Resea ch has iden i ied a ious mo i es o pa icipa ion,
such as connec ion wi h na u e [17, 47], elie ing bo e-
dom [25], pushing pe sonal bounda ies and o e coming
ea [18, 20], social ela ionships [25], pleasu able
kines he ic bodily sensa ions [47], con ol, mas e y and
skill [20] and goal achie emen [19]. These indings
indica e ha he spec um o mo i es is wide and
dependen on he o m o ac i i y. (3) Spo s di e in
e ms o ac i i y du a ion and in ensi y leading o di e -
en in e ac ion e ec s on beha iou . Fo example, a
moun ainee ing ip migh ake weeks, exposing he
indi idual o p olonged pe iods o en i onmen al unce -
ain y, whe eas o he spo s, such as BASE jumping,
migh only ake seconds. (4) Ano he inding, ques ion-
ing he idea ha AAS a e synonymous wi h you h spo s
o sub-cul u es, is ha pa icipan s ep esen a
b oad demog aphic, including males and emales o
a ious age anges and educa ion and income le els
[48]. (5) Also, each spo has i s own unique his o y
and de elopmen pa e ns [39]. Many a e s ill e ol -
ing and agmen ing. Fo example, snowboa ding can
ake place in u ban en i onmen s, o me ly he
home o ska eboa ding. A he same ime, bounda -
ies be ween spo s a e becoming mo e dynamic, o
example wi h snowboa ding also being unde aken a
high al i ude whe e con en ional snowboa ding skills
a e combined wi h moun ainee ing echniques. One
po en ial pi all in ca ego izing a speci ic spo , o a g oup
o spo s as a single en i y (i.e. as ‘ex eme’), could be ha
dis inguishing cha ac e is ics o di e en pa icipa ion
s yles and he ole o he in e ac ions be ween indi idual
cha ac e is ics o pa icipan s and a ying pe o mance
en i onmen s a e o e looked.
The e m ‘spo ’is o en iewed as synonymous wi h
s uc u ed compe i ion. Howe e , om an e ymological
pe spec i e, he English wo d ‘spo ’, de i ed om old
F ench wo d ‘despo ’, o iginally e e s o a ‘pas ime’
[49]. Also, o example he Finnish equi alen ‘u heilu’is
de i ed om ‘u hea’, e e ing o he adjec i es ‘b a e’o
‘ alian ’and can be de ined as an ac i i y o main ain
physical i ness, ec ea ion o as a compe i ion acco ding
o speci ic ules [50]. He e, we adop he b oad
de ini ion including he dimensions o sel -de elopmen
and ec ea ion. Speci ically, spo s a e conside ed o be
mul i- ace ed, bounda y-c ossing ac i i ies [51], which
do no necessa ily in ol e s uc u ed compe i i e ac i i y,
egula ed pe o mance en i onmen s, ules o ins i u ions.
Unde s anding hese nuances in de ini ion is c ucial o
ecognizing how a a ie y o sociocul u al alues ha e
cons ained eme ging pa icipa ion s yles. Consequen ly, i
Immonen e al. Spo s Medicine - Open (2017) 3:18 Page 2 o 7
is impe a i e ha we de elop a clea unde s anding o
wha exac ly cons i u es an AAS. The con usion in cu en
discou se indica es an e iden need o a mo e nuanced,
holis ic and mul idisciplina y app oach o he s udy o
AAS [34]. Thus, AAS should be unde s ood h ough
emphasizing a di e en le el o analysis o adi ional
pe spec i es.
In his pape , we a gue ha a mo e comp ehensi e
unde s anding o AAS pa icipa ion can be achie ed
h ough he ecological dynamics (ED) amewo k. This
amewo k p omo es an unde s anding, o e ele an
imescales (such as pe o mance and lea ning), o how
i egula and unp edic able cons ain s in AAS in luence
he eme gen dynamics o con inuous, dynamical
ela ionships e ol ing be ween an indi idual and he /his
en i onmen [34, 52]. The co ne s ones o ED a e ha
(a) mo emen beha io s a e examined and unde s ood
a he pe o me -en i onmen scale o analysis; (b) pe -
cep ion o in o ma ion p o ides oppo uni ies o ac ion
(i.e., a o dances) and is he basis o how beha iou s a e
egula ed a an indi idual le el; and (3) pe o mance be-
ha iou s a e sel -o ganized o e ime unde in e ac ing
cons ain s [34, 52, 53]. We discuss how hese pe o m-
ance cha ac e is ics compose a wide a ie y o pa icipa-
ion s yles, shaped by key cons ain s which e ec i ely
suppo he inno a i e ac ions o pa icipan s and a e
linked o indi iduals’cogni ions, ac ions and pe cep ions
o di e se physical and sociocul u al pe o mance en i-
onmen s [34, 52].
Discussion
How he Ecological Dynamics F amewo k can Add ess
Eme gen Cha ac e is ics o Pa icipa ion in AAS
A a undamen al le el, a common ea u e in AAS is ha
hey a e highly dependen on demands ha eme ge as
he pa icipan engages wi h he en i onmen , when
ac o s ex e nal o a pe o me play a majo ole on
eme gen beha iou s [17, 29, 32]. In addi ion, he e is a
endency o AAS o be con inuously adap ed ac oss
di e en ac i i y bounda ies. An ad an age o adop ing
an eme gen pe spec i e (ED) in de ining spo s is ha i
easily cap u es he cons an e olu ion o new echniques,
a ia ions in pa icipa ion s yles and philosophies and he
con inuous s i ing o dynamic c ea i i y and inno a ion.
Fo example, ins i u ionaliza ion and p o essionaliza ion
o AAS has led o a shi in emphasis in how hese spo s
a e occasionally pe cei ed, ansi ioning om ‘you h sub-
cul u e’ o ‘compe i i e achie emen ’spo s now included
in adi ional o ganized e en s such as he Olympic
Games [30, 53]. Also, ac i i ies cha ac e ized as sel -
di ec ed and conduc ed in na u e a e inc easingly being
epackaged as mo e s uc u ed, o malized, indoo leisu e
expe iences [30]. The desi ed, independen expe ience
and ela i ely unp edic able ou come is pa adoxically
being sold as a p edic able, managed commodi y [54]. To
cla i y, we p opose AAS o be clea ly unde s ood as spo s
which do no necessa ily in ol e a s ic ly de ined
compe i i e s uc u e, egula ed by ins i u ions. They a e,
howe e , di e en ia ed om commodi ies in ha pa ici-
pa ion equi es speci ic skills, which a e dynamic in o m
and con inuously subjec o cons ain s o inno a ion,
e inemen and c ea i i y by pa icipan s. Thus, hei e y
essence is p edica ed on con inuous e olu ion and de el-
opmen in p e iously unseen ways and en i onmen s,
when ‘es ablished’mo emen pa e ns a e cons an ly
complemen ed wi h eme ging, no el echniques and
c ea i e s yles o ac ion [34, 52]. This s i ing clea ly
equi es he con inuous and in e wined ela ionship
be ween cogni ion, pe cep ion and ac ion [55, 56].
Cons ain s on AAS Pa icipa ion
Key cons ain s [54] (Fig. 1) ha shape indi iduals’
cogni ions, ac ions and decision-making p ocesses ha e
been well examined in adi ional spo s such as socce ,
baske ball and c icke [55–57].
Indi idual cons ain s include s uc u al (e.g. heigh ,
weigh , body shape, echnical abili ies, connec i i y o synap-
ses in he b ain) and psychological (e.g. mo i a ions, emo-
ions, cogni ions) cha ac e is ics o an a hle e [34, 53, 57].
Recen s udies on AAS ha e indica ed ha psycho-
logical ac o s such as ea , anxie y, belie s and mo i -
a ion ha e signi ican oles du ing pa icipa ion and
conside able e ec on how he en i onmen is
pe cei ed by indi iduals [21, 58, 59]. Fo example,
expe iencing a ying in ensi ies o ea can igge panic
and impai pe o mance, bu i can also be seen as a
c ucial componen o e ec i e pe o mance and posi-
i e and po en ially li e-changing expe iences [60].
Task cons ain s in adi ional spo s include speci ic
ules, ask goals and ins uc ional cons ain s [34]. AAS
a e no p ima ily con olled in he same way as main-
s eam spo s by o ganiza ional amewo ks, egula ed
compe i i e s uc u es o s ic ly go e ned ules [34, 61].
They, he e o e, di e om many spo s in ha hey a e
no usually cha ac e ized by he adi ional concep o
ule-based ask cons ain s.
En i onmen al cons ain s a e physical (e.g. wea he ,
g a i y, ambien ligh ) o sociocul u al (e.g. alues,
amily suppo , cul u al no ms) [34]. Jux aposed o
pu ely compe i i e spo s, AAS o e a possibili y o
mas e y and pe ec ion in ela ion o challenging
en i onmen s [25, 34, 35]. Unp edic able cons ain s
a y in ela ion o pe o mances aking place on land, on
ai , on wa e , ei he a loa o subme ged, and can be
na u al (e.g. alpine e ains), pa ially a i icial (e.g. sho eled
‘backcoun y kicke s’in snowboa ding) o en i ely a i icial
(e.g. ska eboa d pa ks). In addi ion o g a i y-d i en (e.g.
BASE jumping) and human-p opelled (e.g. pa kou ,
Immonen e al. Spo s Medicine - Open (2017) 3:18 Page 3 o 7
climbing) o ms o mo emen , he dominan sou ce o en-
e gy o ac ion can be exploi ed in na u al phenomena
such as an ocean swell in su ing o a he mal upd a in
BASE jumping (Fig. 1).
AAS as a ‘Fo m o Li e’
A o dances e e o aspec s o he en i onmen
pe cei ed on he basis o wha hey o e , in i e o
demand in e ms o ac ion [62]. Di e en su aces,
subs ances, objec s o o he indi iduals in he en i on-
men can a o d di e en ac ions om di e en people
in ela ion o indi idual cons ain s [53, 62]. E ec i i ies
a e complemen a y capabili ies o an indi idual ha
can ealize a o dances in cohe en o ms o beha iou
[63, 64]. Fo example, ska eboa de s migh seek
hand ails in u ban en i onmen s as an a o dance o
c ea i ely pe o m, no mally pe cei ed o suppo loco-
mo ion by o he indi iduals, and a skilled ska eboa de
migh app oach he same hand ail wi h di e en se o
‘ icks’compa ed o no ice.
Wi gens ein’s [65, 66] concep o he ‘ o m o li e’
implies how sociocul u al p ac ices o humans can
cons ain he eme gence o speci ic beha io al pa e ns
[63, 67], emphasizing ha e ec i i ies a e no me ely
ela i e o pa icula indi iduals ac ually pe cei ing o
de ec ing a o dances bu also ha e an exis ence ela i e
o he skills a ailable in p ac ice, o o he abili ies a ail-
able in a o m o li e as a whole [67]. Fo example, he
same beach and wa e condi ions can a o d many su -
ing s yles: ‘classic’walking maneu e s on a longboa d o
mo e adical di ec ion changes on a high-pe o mance
sho boa d. The e o e, wha is common o pa icipan s
in pa icula ac i i ies, e.g. o su e s, migh no only be
he ocean as a ma e ial en i onmen o he a ie y o
wa es as a o dances bu also he being o indi iduals
embedded in human sociocul u al p ac ices, i.e. sha ing
s able ways o doing hings and in e p e ing ac ions and
li ing wi h o he s [67]. In he case o humans (o su e s
in pa icula ), hese egula pa e ns, being mani es ed in
sociocul u al p ac ices, can be exempli ied by he
Fig. 1 In e ac ing cons ain s on ac ion and ad en u e spo s pa icipa ion. Figu e 1 was de i ed om ideas o Newell [54] and Da ids, Bu on
and Benne [53]. Eme ging, adap i e pe o me -en i onmen ela ionships a e scaled by si ua ional and con ex -dependen key cons ain s ha ,
in combina ion, de ine an AAS o m o li e/pa icipa ion s yle. Due o he in ini e combina ions and complexi y o in e ac ions, i egula and
unp edic able cons ain s a e illus a ed on con inua, a ending o signi ican si ua ional and con ex ual luc ua ions in each pa icipan ’s expe ience.
Included in he igu e a e exempla y cons ain s, as epo ed in exis ing li e a u e [16, 18, 21, 22, 25, 26, 29, 30, 34, 36, 45, 47, 63, 72–78],
and a ying cha ac e is ics and pe o mance en i onmen s o AAS in hei cu en s a es o de elopmen . Fo be e unde s anding o AAS pa icipa ion,
new eme ging cons ain s should be a pos e io i included in he model acco ding o complemen a y esea ch indings and cons an e olu ion o AAS
Immonen e al. Spo s Medicine - Open (2017) 3:18 Page 4 o 7

eme gence o mul i ude o pa icipa ion s yles and
philosophies in AAS, i.e. a ying s yles o su ing and
ela ed li es yles o di e en ‘ o ms o li e’in in e ac ing
wi h speci ic en i onmen al condi ions o he ocean,
cons ained by winds, su , cu en s and p oximi y o
o he su e s.
Thus, a niche is a se o a o dances which o e s an
indi idual a speci ic way o li e [62]. An impo an
no ion when conside ing how dis inguishable niches o
disciplines a e being e ol ed is ha s able ways o doing
hings migh su pass he bounda ies o ool- ela ed
cons ain s. Fo example, he ‘ecological niche o ee
ide s’(big-moun ain skie s and snowboa de s) migh
ha e mo e in common in e ms o e ec i i ies ha
shape pa icipa ion and expe iences han e ec i i ies
common o big-moun ain and ees yle snowboa de s
( wo g oups o snowboa de s ep esen ing di e en
o ms o li e). The e o e, igno ing sociocul u al
cons ain s when de ining spo s ails o cap u e he
dep h and nuances h ough which pa icipa ion o
indi iduals o g oups in spo s can be desc ibed.
When a ying sociocul u al p ac ices e ol e in simi-
la en i onmen s, pa icipan s can acqui e abili ies
ha lou ish in di e en p ac ices om one’sown
[67]. New possibili ies o ac ion can eme ge o indi-
iduals in a ma e ial en i onmen , simul aneously
anscending he ‘spo ’i sel . This idea exempli ies
one po en ial cons ain : in e ac ing indi idual and
social ac o s which can lead o he eme gence o
no el o ms o mo emen such as ski-moun ainee ing
o ow-in su ing, examples o humans making new
combina ions by explo ing di e en ields in he ich
landscape o a o dances ha he en i onmen al eady
o e s. The impo an poin he e is ha hese inno a-
ions a e an inhe en aspec o AAS which has been
comple ely igno ed in p e ious esea ch. They a e
p edica ed on he pe cep ion and exploi a ion o
a o dances which depend on e ec i i ies, indi idually
pe cei ed by inno a ing a hle es. Fu he , he de elopmen
o new in en ions, such as equipmen (e.g. wingsui s) o
buil en i onmen s (e.g. cable wakeboa ding pa ks,
pa kou acili ies), ex ends he oppo uni ies o exploi ing
ich possibili ies o ac ion a ailable in a o m o li e,
un eiling c ea i e beha iou s and o ming p e iously
unseen niches.
Skill Acquisi ion and C ea i i y in AAS
Al hough some a emp s ha e been made, skilled
pe o mance in AAS should no be e alua ed comp e-
hensi ely by adi ional quan i a i e measu emen s
(e.g.measu ing ime,dis anceo sco e)o incom-
pa ison o o he pa icipan s as in many adi ional
spo s. In AAS pa icula ly, aes he ic aspec s such as
pe sonali y o ‘s yle’(i.e. how i looks and mee s ask
goals) and c ea i i y (i.e. inno a ion, no el y, o iginal-
i y) play a majo ole in how pe o mances a e judged
[61, 68, 69] and u he p omo ed [70] in an AAS
o m o li e [61, 68, 69]. He e, we a gue ha his is-
ual judgmen , dependen on he pe spec i e o o he
pa icipan s, ep esen s a unique social cons ain ,
in e ac ing wi h each indi idual’s physical and psycho-
social expe iences (i.e. how i eels) [17, 47, 70]. In
AAS, he unc ionali y o skill (i.e. how e ec i ely ask
goals a e achie ed) pa ially depends on sub le in e -
ac ions o ask and pe sonal cons ain s such as
o iginali y, collec i e ag eemen and in e p e a ion.
Thus, an impo an ask cons ain o add ess is he
alue placed on c ea i i y and inno a ion o ac ions
exp essed du ing pe o mance o in e ms o he
con ex s wi hin which pe o mance akes place. These
no ions u he emphasize he need o a mul idiscip-
lina y app oach and ca e ul e alua ion o esea ch
me hods o unde s and hese eme ging cha ac e is ics
shaping pa icipa ion in AAS.
Cen al o any AAS is he inno a i e and c ea i e
beha iou s o indi iduals o g oups ha compose a o m
o li e. Sociocul u al endencies wi hin o ms o li e, o
‘ he ield o p omo ed ac ions’[70], can signi ican ly
cons ain he beha iou s o indi iduals, o ein o ce
es ablished ones. Howe e , pa icula social ag eemen
among pa icipan s migh , o example, in i e hem o
ac unc ionally, by challenging ules and no ms. The e-
o e, de elopmen o expe ise equi es ha a pa icipan
is no only well awa e o unde pinning sociocul u al
cons ain s o unc ionali y o p ac ice (i.e. use ulness,
e ec i eness, app op ia eness o adequacy) bu also
knows how o di e ge om hem wi h no el y (i.e. o igin-
ali y). Func ional skill (engaging wi h a o dances o
achie e goal-di ec ed ou comes) migh consequen ly
consis o unde s anding and balancing ac ions ela i e o
sociocul u al in luences ha can be in con lic wi h
pe sonal s yle and endencies. Pe o mance is no p ed-
ica ed only on pa icipa ion pu ely as subo dina e o
social no ms bu also on endencies o imagine,
inno a e and explo e ac ion possibili ies ou side o
(a o dances a ailable o) a pa icula niche. The cul u e
o inno a ion in many AAS o ms o li e would sugges
ha beha iou s suppo ing he capaci y o explo e new
en i onmen s (e.g. u ban skiing) and c ea i e mo e-
men solu ions (e.g. ‘ icks’in ska eboa ding) a e
pa icula ly unc ional o pa icipan s. Thus, in he case
o AAS, c ea i i y can be de ined as ‘ he p ocess o pe -
cei ing, exploi ing, and ‘gene a ing’no el a o dances
du ing socially and ma e ially si ua ed ac i i ies’[71].
One p ac ical implica ion o his idea is ha (wi h solid
unde s anding o sociocul u al a o dances) cons ain s
in lea ning con ex s should be designed o suppo
con inuous unc ional explo a ion o pe o me s [52].
Immonen e al. Spo s Medicine - Open (2017) 3:18 Page 5 o 7
Conclusions
The ecological dynamics amewo k p o ides a ich
mul idisciplina y pla o m o comp ehensi e and
nuanced unde s anding o pa icipa ion and c ea i e
ac ions o AAS pa icipan s, which eme ge in all kinds
o imaginable and e e -changing en i onmen s. Ins ead
o ying o de e mine he ‘ adi ional e hos’o each
spo o ca ego izing (sub)disciplines, we ha e a gued
ha deepe unde s anding can be gained by conside ing
pa icipa ion as eme gen and acknowledging ha
pe o me -en i onmen ela ionships a e shaped by
dynamic in e ac ing cons ain s ha dis inguish a niche,
o a o m o li e in AAS.
Thus, esea che s and p ac i ione s should e ine a
nuanced unde s anding and conside a sociocul u al ocus
on a o dances o app aise hese cha ac e is ics and con-
s ain s wi hin and ac oss AAS. This is impo an when
choosing esea ch me hods o pedagogical app oaches o
when designing lea ning en i onmen s. A undamen al
conside a ion in he s udy o AAS is ha a he han being
p ede e mined, a o dances eme ge om a dynamic o m
o li e in a sociocul u al con ex . P ac ical examples o he
his o ical de elopmen pa e ns o many AAS sugges ha
i would be mos use ul o u u e esea ch o cla i y he
explo a ion o a o dances ou side o pa icula ecological
niches o ‘discipline- ypical’en i onmen s (physical and
sociocul u al). In e ms o o iginali y, mo e a en ion is
needed o unde s and possibili ies po en ially p o ided by
in e ac ions be ween ac i i y ca ego ies o ‘human’and
‘non-human’in e ac ions, including becoming a uned o
a o dances ia new echnologies and eme ging online
pe o mance demons a ion sub-a enas in social media.
To be e unde s and he link be ween a o dances and
c ea i i y in any AAS, mo e empi ical esea ch needs o
be conduc ed om an ecological, mul idisciplina y
pe spec i e and di ec ed owa ds he use o in ospec i e
and quali a i e me hods.
Funding
No sou ces o unding we e used o assis in he p ocess o w i ing his a icle.
Au ho s’Con ibu ions
TI concei ed and planned he wo k ha led o he manusc ip o
acquisi ion, d a ing and c i ical e ision o he manusc ip o impo an
in ellec ual con en and app o al o he inal submi ed e sion o he
manusc ip . EB, DO, KD, FF, JL and TJ concei ed and planned he wo k ha
led o he manusc ip o acquisi ion, c i ical e ision o he manusc ip o
impo an in ellec ual con en and app o al o he inal submi ed e sion
o he manusc ip . All au ho s ead and app o ed he inal manusc ip .
Compe ing In e es s
Tuomas Immonen, E ic B yme , Dominic O h, Kei h Da ids, F ancesco Fele i,
Ja mo Liukkonen and Timo Jaakkola decla e ha hey ha e no con lic s o
in e es ele an o he con en o his a icle.
Publishe ’sNo e
Sp inge Na u e emains neu al wi h ega d o ju isdic ional claims in
published maps and ins i u ional a ilia ions.
Au ho de ails
1
Facul y o Spo and Heal h Sciences, Uni e si y o Jy äskylä, Jy äskylä,
Finland.
2
Ins i u e o Spo , Physical Ac i i y and Leisu e, Leeds Becke
Uni e si y, Leeds, UK.
3
Facul y o Beha io al and Mo emen Sciences, MOVE
Resea ch Ins i u e, V ije Uni e si ei , Ams e dam, The Ne he lands.
4
Cen e o
Spo s Enginee ing Resea ch, She ield Hallam Uni e si y, She ield, UK.
5
S.Ma ia delle C oci Hospi al Ra enna, Ra enna, I aly.
6
Depa men o
Elec onics In o ma ion and Bioenginee ing, Poli ecnico di Milano Uni e si y
Milan, Milan, I aly.
7
Facul y o Spo and Heal h Sciences, Uni e si y o
Jy äskylä, Jy äskylä, Finland.
Recei ed: 17 Decembe 2016 Accep ed: 12 Ap il 2017
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