The Impact of Injury on the Identity Formation of Princeton Student-Athletes

Abstract

Experiencing a season-ending injury as a college athlete can be devastating. Many have spent years of their childhoods and young adult lives consumed by their sports, making it the one path they had planned to pursue throughout their college careers. Without the entity they have poured both their talents and passion into for so long, it can create a major source of stress in their lives, especially while navigating the multitude of complexities of the life as a college student. The aim of this study was to analyze the effects of the Princeton student-athlete’s injury on their sense of identity throughout the course of their college careers. What has been previously studied through a psychological lens highlighting the emotional distress that the athlete undergoes, this research project takes a more encompassing approach to injury and analyzes the social implications, such as the isolation injury creates, the ways in which their roles as teammates have changed, and the broader effect this has on their own senses of self along the way. Using the career theory of sociology as the framework of analysis, a five-stage model of injury adjustment and identity formation was established through the findings. Understanding this process more clearly serves several implications for improving the lives of the struggling student-athlete and fostering a more well-rounded college experience for them.