Intercollegiate athletics are undergoing a transformative phase. Over the last few decades, student-athletes have valiantly fought for and successfully secured more rights, benefits, and freedoms, including the right to compensation for their name, image, and likeness (NIL). This progress, however, is just the beginning. Many student-athletes and…

The purpose of this qualitative phenomenological study was to investigate the lived experiences of professional counselors embedded in NCAA Division I athletic departments. Specifically, what are the pre-professional, educational, and professional experiences of licensed or license-eligible professional counselors who are/have been employed by or…

Each year in New York state, tens of thousands of student-athletes participate in interscholastic athletics on over 15,000 public school teams. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on interscholastic athletic participation rates in New York state public schools and their relationship to school districts'…

Through this dissertation, I seek to examine the sports retirement of Division II Black male student-athletes and how they negotiate their identity as they transition into sports retirement. Consistent with similar research on Black male student-athletes, this dissertation makes the argument that the racialization of many college campuses…

The purpose of the study is to investigate the impact of sports participation on students between the ages of 12 and 17 years old in their academic performances, attitudes, and study habits. Furthermore, the study focuses on sports involvement's positive and negative outcomes. Following high school, students have difficulty determining if they…

College athletes experience college in a way that is different than their non-athlete peers. Practices, travel time, study hall, and other athletic obligations place strenuous demands on the lives and time of college athletes. As a result, college athletes have less flexible time and are often unable to engage in educationally purposeful…

This mixed methods study was an exploratory investigation of the world of athletics. The journey towards greatness, excellence, or personal success is often accompanied by countless triumphs and tribulations. Athletes, driven by their relentless pursuit of success, often become fixated on the ultimate goal, involuntarily overlooking the crucial…

Over the course of the past thirty years, single sport specialization for younger athletes has been rising. The purpose of this action research study was to determine the negative impact of travel/club sport participation on high school athletic participation. Utilizing a state and national participation reports, a survey to coaches, interviews…

The purpose of this qualitative descriptive study was to explore how community college student-athletes who reside in the central California area describe how mindfulness training has influenced their psychological well-being. The conceptual framework comprised mindfulness-acceptance and commitment (MAC) to provide the theoretical foundation. MAC…

Notwithstanding significant privilege and benefits, research suggests that collegiate student-athletes experience higher rates of mental exhaustion, depression, anxiety, and risk-taking behaviors compared to non-athletic peers. Student-athletes have been found to compartmentalize and manage academic and athletic responsibilities by engaging in a…

This qualitative phenomenological study explored the perceptions of National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) coaches on name, image, and likeness (NIL) to examine the effect NIL has on the NCAA dual mission of amateurism and education. The research questions were: (1) What were the perceptions of coaches regarding NIL in NCAA schools? (2)…

Two samples of female student-athletes were surveyed to explore dimensions of athletic and academic identities in Division I female student-athletes. Quantitative methods used a refined version of the 2010 NCAA Growth, Opportunities, Aspirations, Learning of Students in college (GOALS) survey to explore constructs underlying female…

Acute athletic performance differences may ultimately decide what teams or individuals are successful in competition. The purpose of this study was to assess the impact of a novel acupressure modality in comparison to a dynamic warm-up and contrast training on acute athletic performance in National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA)…

Re-injury anxiety is common among college student-athletes at the varsity (Podlog et al., 2011; Putukian, 2016) and club (Watanabe et al., 2023) level. Coping with sport injury has been studied in previous reviews (Putukian, 2016; Sims & Mulcahey, 2018) and literature (Kontos et al., 2013; Schlierf & Vosloo, 2020), but the relationship…

Female student-athletes encounter unique challenges in navigating their social and mental well-being, often intensified by various stereotypes and pressures within athletic culture. This study explores the experiences of female student-athletes in community creation as well as how the various communities contribute to their growth and development.…