Bias and Conflict of Interest in the Underreporting of Sexual Abuse in Competitive Sports: A Literature Review

Working at the cultural, systemic, and individual level, biases and conflicts of interest exacerbate the many barriers to effective reporting of sexual abuse of athletes in competitive sports. The prevalence of sexual abuse in competitive sports is increasing worldwide and requires a united call to action. The underreporting of such abuses gained media attention resulting from recent high-profile cases. In this article, we report the results of a systematic literature review, identifying root causes of underreporting sexual abuse in competitive sports. We identify that biases and conflicts of interest work against effective reporting of abuse by athletes at the individual, organizational, and cultural levels. We offer conflict of interest and bias mitigation approaches from the social science, law, business, research, and diagnostic error literature that may apply. Competitive sports organizations may use this analysis to identify barriers and improve the effective reporting of sexual abuse.