Athletes’ Career Development and Identity Transformations

Summary

In sports psychology career research, athlete career development is portrayed as: (a) multiyear competitive sports involvement embedded into lifespan development, (b) athletes’ moving through career stages and related sports and non-sports environments with transitions within and between, and (c) athletes’ pursuit of career excellence as sustaining healthy, successful, and long-lasting careers in sports and life. Identity transformations are embedded in career development and transition processes and play adaptive roles in transition coping. During the first quarter of the 21st century, athlete career development and athlete identity discourses (i.e., historically constructed and shared bodies of related knowledge) have been established. The athlete career discourse is structured as having foundations (i.e., basic assumptions) informing two interrelated research areas—career development and career transitions—with career assistance as an applied part built upon the foundations and the research, as well as a cultural praxis of athletes’ careers paradigm, integrating all parts of the discourse by promoting theory–research–practice–context links. Athlete identity discourse is structured around several identity conceptualizations embracing self-identity as a cognitive role-based multidimensional structure (including athletic identity), social identities as informed by social groups athletes belong to, and narrative and discursive identities as complex and dynamic cultural constructions with multiple and intersecting dimensions constituted within cultural narratives and discourses available to athletes. Identity researchers rely on career development and transitions as developmental contexts for studying athlete identity development and transformations enriching both identity scholarship and career research and practice. One of the career and identity research intersections is discovery of a double nature of athletic identity foreclosure (i.e., strong and exclusive commitment to the athlete role) that might work as a resource within career transitions and as a barrier in athletic retirement. Further bridging of these two focal discourses is a mutual benefit for increasing understanding of athletes’ development and identity transformations across athletic career initiation, development, mastery, and discontinuation stages. Tracking relevant research revealed that career and identity researchers interact unevenly in studying various athlete career stages, with almost exclusive emphasis on elite/professional athletes and athletic retirement transition. On the future agenda of career and identity researchers is increasing diversity in selecting frameworks, designs, methodologies, participants, and contexts but also integrating career, transition, and identity foci, especially in longitudinal projects. In career assistance, a scientist-practitioner (i.e., evidence-based) perspective paves a way to support athletes in their pursuit of career excellence and adaptive identity transformations.