The Relationship Between Psychosocial Factors and Student Success in Athletic Training Students

Abstract

Context Many athletic training programs are not meeting accreditation standards involving measures of student success, causing programs to be noncompliant with these standards and showing current and prospective students that their program may not prepare them for a successful career. Studies have shown that psychosocial factors, including psychological needs and measures of student motivation, may be related to student success. Objective To examine the relationships between psychological needs (autonomy, competence, and relatedness), measures of student motivation (controlled and autonomous motivation, self-efficacy, and academic and athletic trainer identity), and measures of student success (persistence, intention to leave, perceived academic performance, and grade point average [GPA]) in athletic training students. Design Cross-sectional. Setting Entry-level master’s athletic training programs. Patients or Other Participants Ninety-seven current entry-level master’s athletic training students who held a noncertified student National Athletic Trainers’ Association membership in 2020. Data Collection and Analysis Responses to surveys were estimated using a path model, in which 4 measures of student success were specified to be predicted by psychological needs directly and indirectly through measures of student motivation. Results Persistence was positively predicted by autonomy and autonomous motivation. Intention to leave was positively predicted by controlled motivation. Perceived academic performance was positively predicted by competence and autonomous motivation. Finally, GPA was predicted positively by academic identity and negatively by athletic trainer identity. Findings also showed an indirect relationship between competence and GPA through academic identity. Overall, findings showed that autonomy, competence, autonomous motivation, and academic identity were important predictors of student success. Conclusion(s) Athletic training students should be provided opportunities to practice athletic training skills and knowledge and to make choices regarding patient care in real-life situations and regarding their learning environment. These opportunities for independence may result in greater autonomy, competence, autonomous motivation, and academic identity, and, in turn, greater student success.