Measuring the Perceived Effectiveness of Concussion Legislation in Michigan's School

Washington was the first state to pass legislation governing sport-related concussion in 2009. Since then, every other state in the nation has adopted similar legislation. The state of Michigan enacted its legislation in 2013. The purpose of the legislation was to educate the state's residents and provide direction for the leaders of amateur athletes and sport leaders in the state.;The purpose of this study was to measure the perceived effectiveness of the legislation on the reporting behavior of four constituent groups: athletes, coaches, officials, and parents in the state of Michigan. Data were collected from the state's practicing athletic administrators. The perception (the terms perception and belief are used interchangeably) of the athletic administrators was collected through a survey and individual interviews with practicing athletic administrators.;The results showed that the perceived reporting behavior of concussion events for all four constituent groups was positively impacted since the adoption of the state's legislation, although to varying degrees. Results also indicate that barriers to concussion event reporting still exist and that efforts to reintegrate an injured child to athletic competition are not equal to the efforts to reintegrate an injured child to the academic learning environment. The conclusions of this study should be considered in future research and policy development to protect the safety and enhance the learning environment for child athletes.