Tenth International Conference on Sport & Society

Abstract

Athletic identity (AI) is comprised of three main constructs, exclusivity, social identity, and negative affectivity. While AI of professional and Division I athletes is well studied, little is known about athletes at the Division II level. Given the lack of inquiry into AI of Division II student-athletes, this research posed the following three objectives: Identify factors that contribute to the strength of AI among Division II team sport athletes, determine factors that contribute to identity foreclosure among Division II team sport athletes, and explore the role of identity constructs in the development of AI among Division II team sport athletes. All participants were team sport athletes at the Division II level (N = 76). The study examined men’s and women’s basketball, men’s and women’s soccer, women’s volleyball, and baseball. A demographic questionnaire assessed each athlete’s position, scholarship status, and sport background, in addition to basic demographic data. The Athletic Identity Measurement Scale (AIMS) was utilized to assess individual constructs of AI as well as overall strength of identification with the athletic role. Results of ANOVA indicate gender is significantly correlated with strength of the athletic role. A significant relationship between ethnicity and role exclusivity was also discovered. Negative affectivity in relation to sport performance was a further predominant finding, with number of years played in college, specific sport, and athletes currently in-season at time of data collection being more emotionally influenced by their sport performance. Implications for student-athletes, coaching staff, and sport psychologists will be discussed.