Risks and Opportunities: Adolescents in Top-Level Sport ñ Growing Up with the Pressures of School and Training

Abstract

Though the involvement of adolescents in top-level sport has been a common theme in the literature for many years, studies with an elaborate theoretical framework and empirically verified data are limited.The aim of the present study was (1) to consider the relationship between involvement in youth elite sport and some elements of adolescent development, and (2) to find out how the young competitors cope with the stress resulting from the demands of school and training. About 700 male and female top athletes from elite sport schools, aged between 12 and 17, were asked to complete Marsh’s self-description questionnaire (SDQ II). This group was compared to a control group from regular schools. Additionally 40 qualitative interviews were conducted focusing on the role of academic achievement. Results revealed significant group main effects. Top-level athletes reported significantly higher general self, peer and parent relations and academic achievement scores. Results of the qualitative interviews showed the important role of a positive feedback on academic achievement in developing a positive self-concept even for adolescents with outstanding sporting success.The findings suggest that involvement in elite sport may influence the development of young people’s self-perceptions in a positive way and that a positive academic self-concept may serve as a personal resource in the process of coping with stress.