Abstract

The purpose of this phenomenological study was to examine which cultural attitudes, behaviors and traits had an impact on eight athletes Mexican-American football athletes that participated in this study. Unstructured in-depth phenomenological interviews with the student-athletes were conducted. The interview questions were directed at the participant’s experiences, feelings, beliefs, and convictions about the themes in question. In the process of developing the research design, phenomenology was determined to be the appropriate design for understanding cultural characteristics of Mexican-American collegiate football players from their own point of view. The research approach of Moustakas, including his emphasis on the personal connection to family values, educational opportunities, athletics, and cultural characteristics were used. The findings of this study provided rich descriptive data about their lived experiences as a Mexican-American collegiate football player. Overall, the participants in this study had both positive and negative perceptions toward their lived experiences.