Athletic Identity and Well-Being among Young Talented Athletes who Live at a Dutch Elite Sport Center

Abstract

Differences in athletic identity and well-being were examined between athletes living in a Dutch elite sport center (CTO) and athletes not living in such a center (age range: 16–30). Measures included the Athletic Identity Measurement Scale (AIMS; Brewer & Cornelius, 2001 Brewer, B. W. and Cornelius, A. E. 2001. Norms and factorial invariance of the Athletic Identity Measurement Scale. Academic Athletic Journal, 15: 103–113. [Google Scholar]), the World Health Organization Quality of Life instrument (WHOQOL-BREF), and the Athlete Burnout Questionnaire (ABQ; Raedeke & Smith, 2001 Raedeke, T. D. 1997. Is athlete burnout more than just stress? A sport commitment perspective. Journal of Sport & Exercise Psychology, 14: 391–409. [Google Scholar]). CTO athletes reported lower psychosocial well-being and a higher reduced sense of accomplishment, but showed no difference in athletic identity. Nor was strength of athletic identity associated with well-being as was hypothesized.