The differentiation of single and dual career athletes falls short: A person-oriented approach to characterize typical objective life situations of elite athletes

Abstract

Research concerning athletic career development in high-performance sport typically uses demographic data, sport characteristics or pursuing a dual career (i.e. having an educational or vocational career simultaneous to the athletic career) to identify developmental processes. In defiance of these attempts, considerable heterogeneity remains within these subgroups of the elite athlete population. In line with the person-oriented approach, the objective of this study was to develop a comprehensive typology of athletes with similar objective life situations by considering both sport-related as well as non-sport related aspects. To this end, data were collected about athletic performance level, weekly amount of working time (i.e. sport-related activities, education, and vocation), and financial information (i.e. gross annual income and income generated from sport). Based on a sample of 733 elite athletes, a cluster analysis was performed to divide the sample into groups of similar patterns on the aforementioned factors. Five different athlete patterns were found: (1) working dual career athletes, (2) high-income professional athletes, (3) medium-income professional athletes, (4) family-supported athletes, and (5) student dual career athletes. These findings support the dual career literature of separating dual career ( Cluster 1 and Cluster 5) from single career athletes, which, in turn, should also not be regarded as a single population, but further divided ( Cluster 2, Cluster 3, and Cluster 4). This typology may aid federations and practitioners within athletic career development in providing individual assistance for elite athletes.

Soccer above all? Analysis of academic and vocational education among female soccer players in the German women's Bundesliga and 2nd women's Bundesliga

“…This distinction was extended by including career identity, athletic identity and self-efficacy in the analysis, whereby athletes who prioritize education or vocation could also be typologized ( 42 ). In addition, the holistic objective life situation of elite athletes is analyzed in further studies by using assessments of the socioeconomic system (athletic, educational, vocational, and financial) for typification ( 45 ).…”

“…Complementary studies address experiences in the context of dual careers and their prioritization (40)(41)(42)(43)(44)(45). In terms of typologies of dual careers, a basic distinction is made between athletes who (a) focus equal attention on their sporting career and educational/vocational career, (b) prioritize their sporting career or (c) focus exclusively on sport (46).…”

“…This distinction was extended by including career identity, athletic identity and self-efficacy in the analysis, whereby athletes who prioritize education or vocation could also be typologized (42). In addition, the holistic objective life situation of elite athletes is analyzed in further studies by using assessments of the socioeconomic system (athletic, educational, vocational, and financial) for typification (45). Reflecting on the state of research, it becomes clear that although many studies are available in the context of dual careers, there is comparatively little focus on soccer, the most prominent sport in many European countries.…”

Subjective well-being of current and former elite athletes in the German armed forces

“…Careers in elite sport are risky, as athletic success is something scarce and thus highly uncertain (1). There are also risks with regard to physical performance and health and the associated duration of athletic careers (2)(3)(4)(5)(6) in the context of enabling dual careers (7)(8)(9)(10)(11) and in relation to financial resources (12,13). Politicians also recognize the risks of elite sports careers, which leads to government institutions becoming involved in the promotion of elite sports.…”