Aggression in Sports and Education

Sport and education have changed considerably over time, the advancement in technology being an advancement for athletes' and students’ preparation and performance. The ubiquitous integration of digital technologies into daily life has amplified the complexity of aggressive behaviors, creating novel avenues for perpetration and victimization that transcend geographical and temporal boundaries. The evolving challenges underscore the critical need for interdisciplinary research that bridges insights from psychology, sociology, computer science, and public health to develop comprehensive, empirically-supported interventions. Where does aggression fit into this context? Can we discuss a level of aggression that facilitates athletic or academic performance? Lets’ think at verbal aggression, physical aggression, anger, hostility, go-ahead, foul play, assertiveness, direct aggression and indirect/latency-based measure of aggression.

In sport, aggression can manifest in both functional forms – such as competitiveness, assertiveness, and determination – or in dysfunctional expressions, including hostility, verbal abuse, and physical violence. While controlled, instrumental aggression is often associated with performance optimization, excessive or maladaptive aggression risks fostering negative behaviors that extend beyond the sporting environment.

In educational settings, aggression is often shaped by peer dynamics, teacher–student relationships, and interactions among colleagues, with manifestations ranging from overt bullying to more subtle relational forms. The rapid expansion of digital technologies has further extended aggressive behaviors into virtual spaces, leading to the emergence of cyberbullying, particularly damaging due to its anonymity, permanence of online content, and wide audience reach.
This Research Topic will generate relevant information for sport psychologists, education and sport science specialists to create safer online and offline environments for children, teenagers and adults, enhancing the performance level of individuals in both sport and educational contexts.

Areas of interest include, but are not limited to the following:
• Performance, violence, and aggression in sport and education (explicit aggression and implicit - assessed by Implicit Association Tests, Conditional Reasoning Tests)
• Children, adolescents and adults’ aggression - new data analysis to increase performance levels in sports and education
• Bullying and Cyberbullying as contemporary challenges
• Preventive strategies and educational interventions - the role of schools, universities, and sport organizations.

We especially encourage the submission of original research articles and systematic reviews for consideration in this collection.

Article types and fees

This Research Topic accepts the following article types, unless otherwise specified in the Research Topic description:

• Brief Research Report
• Case Report
• Clinical Trial
• Conceptual Analysis
• Curriculum, Instruction, and Pedagogy
• Data Report
• Editorial
• FAIR² Data
• FAIR² DATA Direct Submission
• ... View all formats

Articles that are accepted for publication by our external editors following rigorous peer review incur a publishing fee charged to Authors, institutions, or funders.

Article types

This Research Topic accepts the following article types, unless otherwise specified in the Research Topic description:

• Brief Research Report
• Case Report
• Clinical Trial
• Conceptual Analysis
• Curriculum, Instruction, and Pedagogy
• Data Report
• Editorial
• FAIR² Data
• FAIR² DATA Direct Submission
• General Commentary
• Hypothesis and Theory
• Methods
• Mini Review
• Opinion
• Original Research
• Perspective
• Policy and Practice Reviews
• Registered Report
• Review
• Study Protocol
• Systematic Review
• Technology and Code

Keywords: aggression, sports, sport psychology, athlete behavior, performance, team dynamics, ethics, coaching, prevention, mental health

Important note: All contributions to this Research Topic must be within the scope of the section and journal to which they are submitted, as defined in their mission statements. Frontiers reserves the right to guide an out-of-scope manuscript to a more suitable section or journal at any stage of peer review.