The starting point of this contribution is the potential risk to health and performance from the combination of elite sporting careers with the pursuit of education. In European sport science and politics, structural measures to promote dual careers in elite sports have been discussed increasingly of late. In addition to organisational measures, there are calls for educational‐psychological intervention programmes supporting the successful management of dual careers at the individual level. This paper presents an appropriate intervention programme and its evaluation: stress‐resistance training for elite athletes (SRT‐EA). It comprises 10 units, each lasting 90 minutes. It is intended for athletes and aims to improve their resistance to chronic stress. The evaluation was carried out in a quasi‐experimental design, with three points of measurement (baseline, immediately after, and three months after) and two non‐randomised groups: an intervention group (n = 128) and an untreated control group (n = 117). Participants were between 13 and 20 years of age (53.5% male) and represented various Olympic sports. Outcome variables were assessed with questionnaires. Significant short‐ and mid‐term intervention effects were explored. The intervention increased stress‐related knowledge, general self‐efficacy, and stress sensitivity. Chronic stress level, stress symptoms, and stress reactivity were reduced. In line with the intention of the intervention, the results showed short‐ and mid‐term, small to medium‐sized effects. Accordingly, separate measurements at the end of the intervention and three months later showed mostly positive subjective experiences. Thus, the results reinforce the hope that educational‐psychological stress‐management interventions can support dual careers.

Background: The relationship between engagement in physical activity and the development of motor competence (MC) is considered to be reciprocal and dynamic throughout childhood and adolescence. The 10-month follow-up study aimed to explore this reciprocal relationship and investigated whether the relationship is mediated by the corresponding self-perception of MC (PMC). Methods: A total of 51 children aged between 10 and 11 years (M = 10.27 [0.45]) participated in the study (52.9% boys, 47.1% girls). As an indicator for physical activity, the average vigorous physical activity (VPA) per day was measured by ActiGraph accelerometers. Two aspects of MC and PMC were recorded: self-movement and object movement. Saturated pathway models in a cross-lagged panel design with 2 measurement points were analyzed. Results: Reciprocal and direct relationships between VPA and MC object movement respectively MC self-movement were not found in longitudinal analyses with PMC as a mediator. Indirect effects of MC at t1 on VPA at t2 via PMC were identified (self-movement: β = 0.13, 95% confidence interval, 0.04 to 0.26; object movement: β = 0.14, 95% confidence interval, 0.01 to 0.49). Conclusion: The results highlight the importance of MC and PMC in promoting children’s VPA. However, VPA does not drive the development of MC.

With the 2012 EU guidelines on dual careers (DC), DC research gained increasing awareness in Europe focussing particularly on student-athletes’ motivation. The Student Athletes’ Motivation toward Sports and Academics Questionnaire (SAMSAQ), arguably the most prominent instrument in this research area, has been used in various cross-cultural studies assessing DC motivation. The present investigation contributes to the cross-cultural discourse aiming to (1) adapt the SAMSAQ for the German context and adolescent secondary school student-athletes, and (2) evaluate the German pre-version. A sample of 208 student-athletes (52.4% females, mean age = 17.4 years, 49.5% at squad level) at three German Elite Sport Schools participated in the study. The investigation was split into two parts. First, the SAMSAQ was adapted to the German context and tested. In the second part, the first pre-version was revised. A series of exploratory factor analyses were applied to verify the factor structure of both German SAMSAQ pre-versions. Eight different factor models based on item removal were compared. Neither model demonstrated good results for the replication of previous findings or a meaningful solution in terms of content. Reasons for the deviations between the original and target SAMSAQ factor structures can be found in the different target groups and the culturally different approaches to career assistant programmes as well as in the theoretical background of the instrument. Since neither model was identified as acceptable, the findings indicate that a new instrument needs to be developed for assessing student-athletes’ DC motivation along their pathways in different cross-cultural contexts.

Introduction: Previous studies have highlighted the effects of motivation and identity on dual careers (DC) separately.Methods: The present study investigated the mutual relationship among 495 student-athletes (mean age = 17.0, males = 56.6%) in upper secondary school. The Student Identity Measurement Scale (SIMS), Academic Identity Measurement Scale (AIMS), and Student-Athletes’ Academic and Athletic Motivation Scale (SAAMS) were used in a cross-sectional design.Results: Findings revealed that student-athletes expressed higher identity than motivation within each domain. Athletic identification and motivation were stronger than those for academics. Correlation models revealed strong relations between identity and motivation within a domain, but not across domains. Gender differences emerged, with female student-athletes reporting higher academic identity and motivation compared to males.Discussion: The study supports the notion that balancing both academia and sports is vital to prevent identity foreclosure and enhance a successful DC. Additionally, the need for individualised support and talent identification strategies for student-athletes is emphasised.

Basic motor competencies (BMC) belong to the key learning goals of Physical Education (PE) in primary school curricula in Europe. These competencies are necessary to participate in sports inside and outside of school. Children should therefore achieve age-adequate BMC in PE and any need for educational motor support should be identified at an early stage. Studies in German-speaking countries showed that various endogenous and exogenous factors are related to children’s BMC, but international studies are missing. In the present cross-sectional study, the two BMC areas object movement (OM) and self-movement (SM) as well as the associations with endogenous (age, sex, body mass index) and exogenous (participation in extracurricular sports) factors were investigated in 1721 8‑ to 10-year-old primary school children from nine European countries. Over 25% of the children showed need for educational motor support in OM and over 20% in SM. BMC levels differed significantly between the country-specific subsamples. In all subsamples, boys showed better performances in OM, while girls scored better in SM. Older children performed better in OM and SM than younger children. Higher body mass index predicted lower BMC scores in both competence areas. Participation in ball sports was positively associated with OM and SM, and individual sports participation was a significant predictor of SM. As exogenous and endogenous variables consistently predicted BMC in all subsamples, there must be other reasons for variation in BMC levels. Future studies should address country- and school-specific characteristics like content and amount of PE.

The demands of a career in competitive sports can lead to chronic stress perception among athletes if there is a non-conformity of requirements and available coping resources. The Trier Inventory for Chronic Stress (TICS) (Schulz et al., 2004) is said to be thoroughly validated. Nevertheless, it has not yet been subjected to a confirmatory factor analysis. The present study aims (1) to evaluate the factorial validity of the TICS within the context of competitive sports and (2) to adapt a short version (TICS-36). The total sample consisted of 564 athletes (age in years: M = 19.1, SD = 3.70). The factor structure of the original TICS did not adequately fit the present data, whereas the short version presented a satisfactory fit. The results indicate that the TICS-36 is an economical instrument for gathering interpretable information about chronic stress. For assessment in competitive sports with TICS-36, we generated overall and gender-specific norm values.