Multi-national perceptions on challenges, opportunities, and support structures for Dual Career migrations in European student-athletes

Philip X Fuchs; Mojca Doupona; Kinga Varga; Marta Bon; Cristina Cortis; Andrea Fusco; Loriana Castellani; Niko Niemisalo; Heikki Hannola; Patrice Giron; Jörg Förster; Laura Capranica; Herbert Wagner

doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0253333

Multi-national perceptions on challenges, opportunities, and support structures for Dual Career migrations in European student-athletes

PLoS One. 2021 Jun 25;16(6):e0253333. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0253333. eCollection 2021.

Authors

Philip X Fuchs^{1

2}, Mojca Doupona³, Kinga Varga³, Marta Bon³, Cristina Cortis⁴, Andrea Fusco⁴, Loriana Castellani⁴, Niko Niemisalo⁵, Heikki Hannola⁵, Patrice Giron⁶, Jörg Förster⁶, Laura Capranica^{7

8}, Herbert Wagner¹

Affiliations

¹ Department of Sports and Exercise Science, University of Salzburg, Salzburg, Austria.
² Department of Athletic Performance, National Taiwan Normal University, Taipei, Taiwan.
³ Faculty of Sport, University of Ljubljana, Ljubljana, Slovenia.
⁴ Department of Human Sciences, Society and Health, University of Cassino and Lazio Meridionale, Cassino, Italy.
⁵ Department of Responsibility in Business and Services, Lapland University of Applied Sciences, Rovaniemi, Finland.
⁶ University Sport Service Hamburg, University of Hamburg, Hamburg, Germany.
⁷ Department of Movement, Human and Health Sciences, University of Rome Foro Italico, Rome, Italy.
⁸ European Athlete as Student, Malta.

Abstract

Despite Dual Careers (sports and education) and mobility of students being priorities in the funding policies of the European Commission, migrating student-athletes report severe challenges and decreased performance or dropouts at sport and academic levels. The objective of this study was to depict and assess the perceptions on challenges, support services, and their effectiveness in consideration of specific characteristics of participants and migrations. Based on a meta-synthesis and previous findings, a 50-items questionnaire was developed and completed by 245 student-athletes in 5 European countries. Participants with Dual Careers migration experience (n = 140) were considered for analyses of qualitative and quantitative (ordinal 5pt-Likert-scaled and metric) data on the Dual Career status, migration characteristics, received services, and outcomes. Chi-square-tests were conducted for differences between countries and genders at a significance level of p < .05. Country-related differences were found for experiences and intentions to migrate (X2(12) = 50.52, p<0.001), duration of the migration (X2(16) = 38.20, p = 0.001), financial support (X2(8) = 29.87, p<0.001), and decreased performances in academics (X2(16) = 56.12, p<0.001) and sports (X2(16) = 31.79, p = 0.01). Gender-related difference emerged in financial support (X2(4) = 10.68, p = 0.03), duration of the migration (X2(4) = 14.56, p = 0.01), and decreased academic performance (X2(4) = 10.57, p = 0.03). Tutoring and counselling support was ranked as the most effective support, especially when received from the academic field (4.0±1.0 pt) and others (4.1±0.8 pt), followed by online services from sport and academic sectors (both: 3.9±0.9 pt). Considering the pervasive globalization of sport and education, Dual Career migration can contribute to the development of a European sport culture. The high ratio of migrating student-athletes underlines the relevance of migrations in the field of Dual Careers. This study contributes to the literature by adding insights on practices, challenges, supports, and outcomes perceived by student-athletes migrating in Europe. Moreover, country- and gender-related differences support the consideration of specific characteristics and reveal critical factors in specific target groups. The findings contribute to identifying requirements and effective support measures in Dual Career migrations and can be used to improve support services.

Publication types

Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

Adult
Athletes*
Emigration and Immigration*
Europe
Female
Humans
Male
Perception
Sports*
Students*
Surveys and Questionnaires*

Grants and funding

This study was conducted in the framework of a project that was supported by the Erasmus+ program of the European Union. This project has been funded with support from the European Commission. This publication reflects the views only of the authors, and the Commission cannot be held responsible for any use that may be made of the information contained therein. Grant agreement number: 2017-2112/001-001, Project number: 590400-EPP-1-2017-1-AT-SPO-SCP, Beneficiary of the grant: University of Salzburg, No commercial companies involved. URL of the co-funder: https://eacea.ec.europa.eu/about-eacea_en The co-funder had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.