Nutrition in Combat Sports

5 Ethical and Social Issues in Combat Sports 77
5.3.2 The Influence of Combat Sports on Social Order
The question of the relationship between practicing or watching combat sports and
the incidence of social or street violence is a difficult one to resolve. However, there
is some research that may shed some light on this issue.
The practicing of sports combats . It is true that some of the fighters who participate
in the bloody and violent unlicenced boxing events, which continue to take
place today have records for violent crime, and that spectators at such events may
sometimes be hostile to fighters who lack spirit or defeat their favorite fighters. [20]
This, however, is arguably more a reflection of the underworld at the extreme
margins of society of which unlicenced fighting is a feature, than an inevitable
consequence of permitting any kind of limited rules fighting competition. In fact, it
may be argued that a sport, which is explicitly a simulation of actual combat and
which has clearly defined boundaries is less of a threat to social order than violence
that breaks taboos and violates codes of conduct in an uncontrolled manner and
without the explicit consent of all involved. [21]
There are no experimentally controlled studies showing that those who practice
combat sports may become more violent or aggressive as a result of practicing
combat sports. Actually, the available evidence suggests exactly the opposite. For
example, Cox [22] reviewed the literature on the martial arts, giving an overview of
the personality traits of martial artists. He concluded that the common image of the
martial artist portrayed in the movies does not fit the actual profile. Martial artists
do not start their studies as more aggressive than the average person, and become
less so as they continue their study. They may also become less anxious, more selfconfident,
and have higher self-esteem as a result of their studies.
Whether or not all combat sports have the potential to produce results such as
those observed in martial arts is open to speculation because there are fundamental
differences in the teaching of martial arts in comparison with other combat sports.
For example, students of traditional martial arts are taught moral values in addition
to fighting techniques. Central to these principles is the concept of nonviolence, and
the respect for oneself and others. A properly trained martial arts practitioner will
do everything possible to avoid a physical confrontation, not only because he
knows that such a confrontation is unnecessary, but also because he knows that he
has a better than average chance of successfully defending himself and that a physical
confrontation is philosophically degrading, as it indicates that all other means
of avoidance have failed. Because moral character development is an indivisible
part of the study of martial art, martial art practitioners are expected to use their
technical skills only for the purpose of doing good deeds. Some martial arts training
schools will expel students that misuse their techniques.
It should be noted here that the mechanism whereby traditional martial arts
decrease aggressiveness has not been empirically examined. Perhaps the emphasis
on teaching moral values and ethics in combat sports does play a role in reducing or
eliminating asocial tendencies. Perhaps there are other dimensions of combat sports
that are also contributing to those benefits as well. Examples of other dimensions