Olympic athletes’ job market entry strategies. A typology
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.3989/ris.2017.75.2.15.98Keywords:
Cluster analysis, Elite athletes, Second career, Social reproduction, Support programsAbstract
The aim of this study was to establish a typology of job market entry strategies among Olympic athletes. Guided by rational choice theory and social reproduction theory, we conducted a telephone survey among 94 athletes (68 men and 26 women). Hierarchical cluster analysis was used to identify four distinct groups, which we called parallel life strategists, freelance strategists, lifetime athletes, and non-strategists: it’s a job. The results show that athletes from families with greater economic and cultural capital implement career transition strategies further in advance and achieve greater career success and satisfaction. These findings can be used to develop support programs tailored to the needs of athletes according to their profile.
Downloads
References
Alfermann, D. and N. Stambulova. 2007. "Career transitions and career termination." Pp. 712-736 in Handbook of sport psychology, edited by G. Tenenbaum and R. C. Eklund. New York: Wiley. https://doi.org/10.1002/9781118270011.ch32
Alfermann, D., N. Stambulova, and A. Zemaityte. 2004. "Reactions to sport career termination: a cross-national comparison of German, Lithuanian, and Russian athletes." Psychology of Sport and Exercise 5:61-75. https://doi.org/10.1016/S1469-0292(02)00050-X
Anderson, D. and T. Morris. 2000. "Athlete lifestyle programs." Pp. 59-80 in Career transitions in sport: international perspectives, edited by D. Lavallee and P. Wylleman. Morgantown: Fitness Information Technology.
Aquilina, D. 2013. "A Study of the Relationship Between Elite Athletes' Educational Development and Sporting Performance." The International Journal of the History of Sport 30(4):374–392. https://doi.org/10.1080/09523367.2013.765723
Breen, R. and J. H. Goldthorpe. 1997. "Explaining educational differentials. Towards a formal rational action theory." Rationality and Society 9(3): 275–305. https://doi.org/10.1177/104346397009003002
Blinde, E. and T. Stratta. 1992. "The sport career death of college athletes: Involuntary and unanticipated sports exits." Journal of Sport Behavior 15:3-20.
Boudon, R. and P. Lazarsfeld. 1977. Metodología de las Ciencias Sociales. Barcelona: Editorial Laia.
Bourdieu, P. 1980. Le sens pratique. Paris: Minuit.
Brunet, I. and M. A. Morell. 1998. Clases, Educación y Trabajo. Madrid: Trotta.
Coffee, P. and Lavallee, D. 2014. Winning Students Are Employable Students. Stirling: University of Stirling.
Conzelmann, A. and S. Nagel. 2003. "Professional Careers of the German Olympic Athletes." International Review for the Sociology of Sport 38:259-280. https://doi.org/10.1177/10126902030383001
Cristiano, J. 2006. "Racionalidad de la acción y racionalidad de la teoría." Revista Espa-ola de Investigaciones Sociológicas 113:135-153. https://doi.org/10.2307/40184728
Díaz Méndez, C. 2011. "Perfiles de mujeres jóvenes rurales de baja cualificación. Un estudio de caso para la comprensión de sus estrategias de inserción sociolaboral en Asturias (Espa-a)." Revista Internacional de Sociología, 69:725-744. https://doi.org/10.3989/ris.2009.07.16
Durkheim, E. 1895/1984. Las reglas del método sociológico. Madrid: Morata.
Elias, N. 1987. Involvement and Detachment. Oxford: Basil Blackwell.
Erikson, R. 1984. "Social class of men, women and families." Sociology 18:500-514. https://doi.org/10.1177/0038038584018004003
EU Expert Group. 2012. EU guidelines on dual careers of athletes: Recommended policy actions in support of dual careers in high-performance sport. Brussels, Belgium: Euroepan Union. Retrieved from http://ec.europa.eu/sport/ library/documents/dual-career-guidelines-final_en.pdf
Gallmeier, C.P. 1987. "Putting on the game face: The staging of emotions in professional hockey." Sociology of Sport Journal 4:347-362. https://doi.org/10.1123/ssj.4.4.347
García Espejo, I. and M. Ibá-ez Pascual. 2013. "La educación no formal. Desigualdades en el acceso a la formación de los trabajadores en Espa-a." Revista Internacional de Sociología 71:593-616. https://doi.org/10.3989/ris.2012.03.12
Glaesser, J. and B. Cooper. 2014. "Using Rational Action Theory and Bourdieu's Habitus Theory Together to Account for Educational Decision-Making in England and Germany." Sociology 48(3):463–481. https://doi.org/10.1177/0038038513490352
Goldthorpe, J. H. 2007. On Sociology, 2nd ed. Vol. Two: Illustration and Retrospect. Stanford, CA: Stanford University Press.
Guiot, P. and F. Ohl. 2007. "La Reconversion Des Sportifs: Une épreuve de La Petitesse?" Loisir et Société/Society and Leisure 30(2):385-416. https://doi.org/10.1080/07053436.2007.10707758
Hackfort, D. and A. Schlattmann. 1991. "Functions of emotion presentation in sport." Pp. 95-110 in Research on emotions in sport, edited by D. Hackfort. Cologne: Bundesinstitut für Sportwissenschaft.
Heinemann, K. 1998. Introducción a la Economía del deporte. Barcelona: Paidotribo.
Heinemann, K. 1999. Sociología del asociacionismo voluntario. El ejemplo del club deportivo. Valencia: Tirant lo Blanch - Asociación Espa-ola de Investigación Social aplicada al Deporte.
Javerlhiac, S., R. Pardo, D. Bodin and I. Fernández Cuevas. 2010. "Una Experiencia Singular: El Proceso de Reconversión de Los Deportistas de Alto Rendimiento en Francia en esgrima y tenis de mesa." Cultura, Ciencia y Deporte 5(14):69-76.
Krugman, P. and R. Wells. 2008. Microeconomics. New York: Worth Publishers. PMCid:PMC2253583
Lavallee, D. and P. Wylleman. 2000. Career transitions in sport: International perspectives. Morgantown, WV: Fitness Information Technology.
López de Subijana, C., M. Barriopedro and E. Conde. 2015. "Supporting dual career in Spain: Elite athletes' barriers to study". Psychology of Sport and Exercise 21:57-64. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.psychsport.2015.04.012
Marks, G. N. 2008. "Are Father's or Mother's Socioeconomic Characteristics More Important Influences on Student Performance? Recent International Evidence." Social Indicators Research 85:293–309. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11205-007-9132-4
Mintzberg, H., J. B. Quinn and J. Voyer. 1997. El Proceso Estratégico. Conceptos, Contextos y Casos. México: Hall Hispanoamericana.
Mintzberg, H., J. Lampel and B. Ahlstrand. 1999. Safari a la estrategia: una visita guiada por la jungla del management estratégico. Buenos Aires: Ediciones Garnica. PMid:10621269
Pallarés, S. et al. 2011. "Modelos de trayectoria deportiva en waterpolo y su implicación en la transición hacia una carrera profesional alternativa." Cultura Ciencia y Deporte 6:93–103.
Puig, N. and A. Vilanova. 2006. "Deportistas olímpicos y estrategias de inserción laboral. Propuesta teórica, método y avance de resultados." Revista Internacional de Sociología 64:63-83.
Puig, N. and A. Vilanova. 2013. "Positive functions of emotions in achievement sports." Research Quarterly for Exercise and Sport 82:334-344. https://doi.org/10.1080/02701367.2011.10599761 PMid:21699113
Rosenberg, E. 1980. "Social Disorganizational Aspects of Professional Sports Careers." Journal of Sport & Social Issues 4:14-25. https://doi.org/10.1177/019372358000400202
Ryan, C. 2015. "Factors Impacting Carded Athlete's Readiness for Dual Careers." Psychology of Sport and Exercise 21:91–97. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.psychsport.2015.04.008
Shachar, B., B. W. Brewer, A. E. Cornelius and A. J. Petitpas. 2004. "Career Decision-Making, Athletic Identity, and Adjustment Difficulties among retired athletes: a comparison between coaches and noncoaches." Kinesiologia Slovenica 10:71-85.
Sinclair, D. A. and T. Orlick. 1993. "Positive transitions from high-performance sport." The Sport Psychologist 7:138-150. https://doi.org/10.1123/tsp.7.2.138
Snyder, E. D. 1990. "Emotion and Sport: A Case Study of Collegiale Women Gymnasts." Sociology of Sport Journal 7:254-270. https://doi.org/10.1123/ssj.7.3.254
Stambulova, N. et al. 2009. "ISSP position stand: Career development and transitions of athletes ISSP position stand." International Journal of Sport & Exercise Psychology 7:395-412. https://doi.org/10.1080/1612197X.2009.9671916
Stambulova, N., C. Engström, A. Franck, L. Linnér and K. Lindahl. 2015. "Searching for an Optimal Balance: Dual Career Experiences of Swedish Adolescent Athletes." Psychology of Sport and Exercise. 21:4-14. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.psychsport.2014.08.009
Taylor, J. and B. G. Ogilvie. 1994. "A conceptual model of adaptation to retirement among athletes." Journal of applied sport psychology 6:1-20. https://doi.org/10.1080/10413209408406462
Torregrosa, M. et al. 2004. "Elite athletes' image of retirement: the way to relocation in sport." Psychology of Sport and Exercise 5:35-43. https://doi.org/10.1016/S1469-0292(02)00052-3
Vilanova, A. 2009. La inserció laboral d'esportistes olímpics a Catalunya. PhD Thesis, Institut Nacional d'Educació Física de Catalunya, Universitat de Barcelona. Available at: http://www.tdx.cat/TDX-0312110-114013 (accessed 22 April 2014).
Vilanova, A. and N. Puig. 2013. "Compaginar la carrera deportiva con la carrera académica para la futura inserción laboral: ¿Una cuestión de estrategia?" Revista de psicología del deporte 22:61-68.
Vilanova, A. and N. Puig. 2014. "Personal Strategies for Managing a Second Career: The Experiences of Spanish Olympians." International Review for the Sociology of Sport 51(5):529-546. https://doi.org/10.1177/1012690214536168
Weber, M. 1922/1990. Ensayos sobre metodología sociológica. Buenos Aires: Amorrortu.
Werthener, P. and T. Orlick. 1986. "Retirement experiences of sucessful olympic athletes." International Journal of Sport Psycology 17:337-363.
Wylleman, P. and D. Lavallee. 2004. "A developmental perspective on transitions faced by atletes". Pp. 503.524 in Developmental sport and exercise psychology: A lifespan perspective, edited by M. R. Weiss. Morgantown, WV: Fitness Information Technology.
Wylleman, P., D. Alfermann, and D. Lavallee. 2004. "Career transitions in sport: European perspectives." Psychology of Sport and Exercise 5:7-20. https://doi.org/10.1016/S1469-0292(02)00049-3
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2017 Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC)

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
© CSIC. Manuscripts published in both the print and online versions of this journal are the property of the Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas, and quoting this source is a requirement for any partial or full reproduction.
All contents of this electronic edition, except where otherwise noted, are distributed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0) licence. You may read the basic information and the legal text of the licence. The indication of the CC BY 4.0 licence must be expressly stated in this way when necessary.
Self-archiving in repositories, personal webpages or similar, of any version other than the final version of the work produced by the publisher, is not allowed.