The Experiences of Female Athletic Trainers in the Role of the Head Athletic Trainer

Abstract

Female head athletic trainers did not seek the role, but through persistence and encouragement, they find themselves assuming the role. Leadership skills were discussed as important for success in the role of head athletic trainer. Life balancing and parenting were identified as barriers to women seeking the role of head athletic trainer.

Navigating Motherhood and the Role of the Head Athletic Trainer in the Collegiate Setting

“…15 In fact, motherhood has been documented as a primary barrier to women assuming leadership positions, particularly the head AT role, in collegiate athletics. 16 The challenges of managing the time needed to fulfill both roles seemed to concern the female AT because the leadership position required even more time than was already necessary to succeed as a staff AT. The Division I environment has often been synonymous with an intense work setting that demands time, energy, and resources and limits an individual's ability to pursue outside activities.…”

“…The questions were derived from the previous literature 15 and our intended purpose of the study. We also borrowed questions from Mazerolle et al, 16 who investigated the experiences of female head ATs in the Division I setting (Appendix). We conducted a peer review of our instrument with a female AT who had published extensively in the area of qualitative methods and professional topics such as retention and work-life balance.…”

“…We specifically focused on the challenges mothers face regarding work-life balance and the strategies they use to balance the demands on them as working mothers. We believe this is important because Mazerolle et al 16 suggested that motherhood appears to be a major barrier to assuming a head AT role within the Division I setting; according to Acosta and Carpenter,19 only 17.5% of all Division I head ATs were women. The total percentage of female head ATs was 30.7%, but a majority of these women were in the Division II or III setting.…”

“…Many women seem to shy away from leadership roles in the National Collegiate Athletic Association Division I setting, but more assume these roles in non-Division I settings, 19 and motherhood has been suggested as a major reason. 16 Although the Division I setting has been described as demanding and grueling, the atmosphere of the nonDivision I setting (ie, Divisions II and III and the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics) has been depicted as more balanced and less stressful because of more reasonable expectations related to performance, revenue, and academic standards. 20 This reason, among others, may attract more female ATs to seek and remain in leadership roles despite becoming mothers.…”

“…16 Although work-life enrichment is increasingly recognized as a benefit of working while simultaneously engaging in a parental role, 17,18 athletic training leaders do not seem to be helped by this benefit. 16 Over the last few decades, Acosta and Carpenter 19 have demonstrated a marked difference in the number of women in leadership roles, particularly in athletic training (eg, head AT role). Many women seem to shy away from leadership roles in the National Collegiate Athletic Association Division I setting, but more assume these roles in non-Division I settings, 19 and motherhood has been suggested as a major reason.…”