Stressors that adolescent males face when making the transition from Academy cricket to Professional cricket

Abstract

The purpose of investigation was to explore the stress process of five elite cricketers that made the transition from academy cricket to professional cricket, informed by Lazarus and Folkmans transactional model of stress and coping (1984). The experiences that the individual athletes faced were recalled using a semi-structured interview guide. Following content analysis, the findings showed that all five elite cricketers experienced competitive (opponents and playing with high profile names) and organizational stressors (educational worries). In response to these stressors positive (challenges) and negative appraisals (worries and threats) were reported as the main appraisals towards the stressors throughout the transition. Results illustrated that the most frequent cited appraisal was negative, as participants often evaluated the situation as being harmful. Raw data analysis suggested athletes experienced a greater amount of negative emotions with the most frequent emotion exemplified as being worried. The coping strategies utilised by the participants were categorised as problem-focused, emotion-focused and avoidance. Numerous amounts of coping strategies were recalled by participants; however the largest strategies noted were social support, self-talk and finally avoidance. The outcomes suggested that practical implications for academy players flourishing through a transition into elite cricket would include developing awareness of the selection of stressors that can influence their life transition, specifically including coping strategies such as self-talk and social support.