Investigating the effects of Athletic identity on athlete burnout

BACKGROUND: Athletic identity is defined as the importance attributed to athletic role preserved by the individual as well as being strength and a privilege. Athlete burnout is a concept associated with many negative consequences, such as reduced motivation, decreasing performance, and quitting sport. In this context, the aim of this study was to examine whether athletes' perceived athletic identity has a significant effect on the level of athlete burnout. METHODS: The Athletic Identity Scale and the Athlete Burnout Scale were used as data collection tools in the research. The two scales were applied to 412 athletes engaged in sports at the amateur and professional level and research data was obtained. In the analysis of the data, confirmatory factor analysis and path analysis methods under structural equation modeling were used as a statistical method. It was tested with three different path analysis models whether sub-dimensions of athlete identity have an effect on the sub-dimensions of athlete burnout. RESULTS: As a result of analyzes, it was determined that all sub-dimensions of athletes' identity did not have a significant effect on the emotional/physical exhaustion and depersonalization levels of the athletes. However, it was found that athletes' perception of social identity and negative affectivity level had a negative and positive effect on their reduced sense of accomplishment, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: The findings of the study reveal that reduced sense of accomplishment, which is a sub-dimension of athlete burnout, is affected by athletes' social identity and level of negative affectivity. Emotional/physical exhaustion and depersonalization dimensions of athlete burnout are not affected by athletes' perceived athletic identity. With these findings, it is thought that the research will provide valuable information in the field of sports psychology.