Living Life Through Sport: The Transition of Elite Spanish Student-Athletes to a University Degree in Physical Activity and Sports Sciences

Frontiers in Psychology

article

Pau Mateu¹  Eduard Inglés¹  Miquel Torregrossa²  Renato Francisco Rodrigues Marques⁴  Natalia Stambulova⁵  Anna Vilanova¹ 

[1] Institut Nacional d’Educació Física de Catalunya (INEFC), Universitat de Barcelona;Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona;Institut de Recerca de l’Esport, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona;School of Physical Education and Sport of Ribeirão Preto, University of São Paulo;Akademin för hälsa och välfärd, Högskolan i Halmstad

关键词: transition;    dual career;    elite sport;    higher education;    sport sciences;   

DOI  :  10.3389/fpsyg.2020.01367

学科分类：社会科学、人文和艺术（综合）

来源: Frontiers

【 摘 要 】

Interest in studying the different transitions faced by elite athletes throughout their careers has grown significantly in recent years. While transition from secondary school to university is an important research area in Europe, there is a void of studies on how student-athletes experience the transition to specific degrees. One of the most sought-after university degrees among elite athletes in Spain is a degree in Physical Activity and Sport Sciences (PASS). The first aim of this study was to investigate the main demands, barriers, and resources perceived by elite student-athletes in various phases of dual career transition to a university degree in PASS. The second aim was to identify the transition pathways pursued depending on the subjective importance they attached to sport and education. Eleven elite student-athletes ( M age = 20.7, SD = 1.6 years) who were in their second and third year of the degree in PASS participated in semi-structured interviews. Deductive-inductive thematic analysis of the interview transcripts revealed three main themes: (a) general university transition issues, (b) PASS-specific transition issues, and (c) transition pathways. Our results show that the close link between sport and the content of the degree was perceived by the elite student-athletes as their main resource. This link, however, was also perceived as a major barrier as the compulsory practical subjects entailed a risk of injury or overtraining that could affect both athletic and academic development. We noticed how the importance they attached to sport or studies varied at different moments of the transition period, a phenomenon we termed “fluid transition pathways.” Dual career promotion for elite athletes is an important part of European sports policy, and our findings provide new knowledge that could help Spanish PASS faculties develop specific assistance programs to support transitioning student-athletes.

【 授权许可】

CC BY