The psychosocial factors associated with athletic retirement in elite and competitive athletes

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dc.contributor.authorRajaram, Riana
dc.contributor.supervisorRhodes, Ryan E.
dc.date.accessioned2021-09-01T20:02:03Z
dc.date.available2021-09-01T20:02:03Z
dc.date.copyright2021en_US
dc.date.issued2021-09-01
dc.degree.departmentSchool of Exercise Science, Physical and Health Educationen_US
dc.degree.levelMaster of Arts M.A.en_US
dc.description.abstractBackground: Career ending injuries are known to cause negative psychosocial and behavioural outcomes in retired athletes. However, there has been a limited amount of quantitative studies to complement mostly qualitative research. Furthermore, qualitative studies have typically assessed the effects of athletic identity, mental health/mood disturbances, loss, coping mechanisms and social support with minimal research regarding physical body transitions and body-esteem throughout the retirement process. Thus, the purpose of this thesis was to investigate the relationship between affective, behavioural, and cognitive outcomes and athletic retirement (voluntary, involuntary) among elite and competitive athletes. Method: A retrospective mixed method (questionnaire and interview) study was utilized to examine how participants interpreted their experience during the transitional process into retirement. Inclusion criteria consisted of male and female, elite and competitive athletes who have voluntarily or involuntarily (career ending injury) retired, ages 18 and above. Exclusion criteria included non-athletes/recreational athletes, athletes who were able to return to play or retired due to illness, health problems or deselection as well as who were less than 18 years of age. Posters were advertised in sports clubs, fitness centers, sports centers, physiotherapy offices and universities as well as on social media (Facebook and Instagram). The main outcome measures are as follows:1) Athletic Identity Measurement Scale (AIMS); 2) Mood and Feelings Questionnaire (MFQ), 3) Mental Health and 4) COPE Inventory. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with participants from both retirement (voluntary and involuntary) groups. All interviews (telephone, zoom) were recorded, transcribed verbatim and a thematic analysis was implemented to further determine the various themes and subthemes. An independent t-test explored the impacts of body dimensions and coping mechanisms on retirement type. Then a factorial ANOVA was conducted to examine the effects of the dependent variables (mental health, mood disturbances and coping mechanisms) on the main analysis (retirement) and the exploratory (strength of athletic identity) analysis. Results: 50 (26 involuntary and 24 voluntary) questionnaires and eight (four voluntary and four involuntary) interviews were completed by the participants. Results from the quantitative data revealed a borderline main effect of retirement type on both mental health and mood disturbances. An exploratory analysis found retirees who weakly identified with the athletic role were less likely to experience severe mood disturbances and demonstrated higher levels of mental health than retirees who strongly identified with the athletic role. Information from qualitative data suggested participants who involuntarily retired and possessed a strong athletic identity experienced higher levels of mood disturbances (depression, frustrations, loss etc.), lower levels of mental health, identity loss, physical discomfort, negative effects of mind and body dualism as well as utilized maladaptive coping techniques than their counterpart who voluntarily retired or weakly identified with the athletic role. Conclusion: Both retirement types are subjected to various athletic and non-athletic demands and psychosocial effects of athletic retirement however, what sets them apart from experiencing a successful or unsuccessful transition into retirement is the intensity and severity of their emotional reaction to their retirement. Limitations of said study included a decrease in sample size, memory recall bias, the participant’s own bias, limited diversity of the sample population as well as the inability to verify the findings from the interviews. The following study can be implemented to aid researchers, retired or soon to be retired athletes, coaches and athletic personnel to comprehend the diverse areas of athletic retirement. Future research should aim to investigate the impacts of mood disorders, the utilization of psychologist or mental performance consultant during the retirement process as well as the effects of body dimensions in retired athletes. Lastly, a longitudinal study should be employed to examine the athlete’s emotional response and reaction throughout retirement (time of injury, during physiotherapy, post- surgery and recovery).en_US
dc.description.scholarlevelGraduateen_US
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/1828/13362
dc.languageEnglisheng
dc.language.isoenen_US
dc.rightsAvailable to the World Wide Weben_US
dc.subjectCoping Mechanismsen_US
dc.subjectPsychosocialen_US
dc.subjectWeak Athletic Identityen_US
dc.subjectElite Athletesen_US
dc.subjectRetrospective Studyen_US
dc.subjectIdentityen_US
dc.subjectInvoluntary Retirementen_US
dc.subjectPhysical Attributesen_US
dc.subjectPhysiologicalen_US
dc.subjectPublic Identityen_US
dc.subjectAdaptive Coping Mechanismsen_US
dc.subjectAthletic Identityen_US
dc.subjectAthletic Retirementen_US
dc.subjectSocialen_US
dc.subjectSocial Identityen_US
dc.subjectSocial Supporten_US
dc.subjectStrong Athletic Identityen_US
dc.subjectFeelings of Lossen_US
dc.subjectCareer Ending Injuryen_US
dc.subjectCompetitive Athletesen_US
dc.subjectVoluntary Retirementen_US
dc.subjectBody-Esteemen_US
dc.subjectNon-normative Retirementen_US
dc.subjectNormative Retirementen_US
dc.subjectMaladaptive Coping Mechanismsen_US
dc.subjectMental Healthen_US
dc.subjectMind and Body Dualismen_US
dc.subjectMixed Methoden_US
dc.subjectMood Disturbancesen_US
dc.subjectPhysical Activityen_US
dc.subjectBody Dimensionsen_US
dc.subjectFinancial Consequencesen_US
dc.titleThe psychosocial factors associated with athletic retirement in elite and competitive athletesen_US
dc.typeThesisen_US

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