ABSTRACT
This introduction presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in the subsequent chapters of this book. The book examines individual sports like golf, tennis, weightlifting, etc., and team sports like football, baseball and basketball. It begins with a succinct background and history of the development of the sport, common issues/problems and psychiatric disorders/diseases involved in a particular sport, as well as providing context about the psychology of the sport. The book explains what a sports psychiatrist actually does, including understanding and diagnosing a problem, then setting goals, and providing treatment using psychotherapy, pharmacotherapy, and mental skills training or combinations of the three. It covers team "chemistry" issues, relevant neuroscience, the diseases/disorders, as well as substance use disorders for a particular sport. The book discusses performance enhancement. It concludes a short piece on the history and culture of sports, aiming to note challenging issues such as cheating and sportsmanship.
