No Sport, No School, No Support: Lived Experiences of High School Student-Athletes Following the COVID-19 Pandemic

Background and Purpose: With approximately seven million students participating in high school athletic programs each year, school-based sports (SBS) are an important context for extending learning, increasing school and community engagement, and bridging gaps in access to sport. The cancellation of SBS in recent years was profound for adolescents’ physical and mental health. When COVID-19 restrictions lifted student-athletes abruptly returned to school and SBS and had to perform at high levels in multiple contexts. Anecdotal evidence from a state collaborative of coaches and athletic directors, along with emergent national coaching research, pointed toward a potential post-pandemic mental health crisis in sport (see Anderson-Butcher & Bates, 2022). However, only a few studies examined the experiences of high school student-athletes, their stressors, and risk factors within the context of SBS. The purpose of this study was to elevate the student-athlete perspective by examining: (a) What did high school student-athletes experience in the post-COVID landscape? and (b) How did these experiences affect them?

Methods: A team of researchers conducted seven semi-structured focus groups with 50 high school student-athletes across seven school districts (46% Urban; 38% Suburban; 16% Rural) in one large, Midwestern state. The sample was 50% male and 50% female, and 70% of participants played more than one sport. Researchers partnered with athletic directors and school leaders to recruit student-athletes. Focus groups elicited participants’ perspectives about their experiences with specific probes regarding what they faced and how these experiences impacted them. Focus groups were transcribed and coded using Dedoose software and analyzed using inductive procedures to identify emergent themes.

Findings: Across all focus groups, student-athletes mentioned struggling to balance their time across school, work, sport, and social commitments. Additionally, student-athletes reported: (a) feeling limited in their roles (i.e., unable to engage in work or extracurriculars), (b) lacking sleep or rest, (c) struggling to prepare for postsecondary education alongside sport, (d) feeling like their identity centered upon their sport, (e) feeling pressure to perform athletically, and (f) experiencing equity issues in sport (i.e., bias, etc.). Of note, some student-athletes mentioned positive experiences in sport like learning good habits and meeting new people. However, when asked how these experiences impacted them, student-athletes reported several physical and psychological impacts including losing self-esteem, struggling to keep up with academics, and experiencing conflict in social relationships. Overall, student-athletes shared that many of them reverted to basic needs and lacked intrinsic motivation due to the amount of pressure and stress they experienced.

Conclusions and Implications: Elevating the student-athlete voice helped corroborate evidence of increased mental health concerns among adolescents participating in SBS. Given the importance of SBS, these data are informing policy in the state regarding training for coaches and SBS leaders concerning student-athlete health and well-being. Our presentation will synthesize these findings and present a conceptual model of risk factors influencing student-athletes participating in high school sports. Our model is designed to help school social workers, educators, and school leaders reflect on ways they can support student-athletes, coaches, and other sport stakeholders to buffer risks for burnout.