Psychoeducation through digital video for Olympic and Paralympic athletic career transition

Abstract

Objective: Prior research has noted Olympic and Paralympic athletes are often unaware and unprepared for upcoming career transitions, resulting in experiences of psychological distress. The purpose of this study was to explore the use of digital video as a delivery method for psychoeducation about an upcoming career transition. Design: Post-survey design. Method: Video development was guided by entertainment-education theory. Participants were shown the video at a centralised training location and asked to fill in questionnaires following viewing and again within 72 hours of viewing. Specifically, subjective and objective recall of the intended learning points was assessed. In addition, participants’ appreciation of the content and design was measured. Analysis was descriptive in nature. Results: Participants included 168 Olympic/Paralympic athletes ( N = 116), coaches ( N = 10) and athlete support providers ( N = 42). Immediately following viewing, participants could accurately recall between one and three learning points, but at 72 hours post-viewing, this range had fallen to one to two learning points. Participants indicated they enjoyed the video, identified with the narrators and found it informative and personally relevant. Conclusion: The results of this study suggest a digital video 2 minutes 35 seconds in length is a useful psychoeducation tool for up to three learning points. The results support the development of video psychoeducation resources using education-entertainment theory and the social validity of video as a psychoeducation tool in Olympic and Paralympic sport.