Running head: FACTORS THAT CAUSE ATHLETE BURNOUT 1

Factors that Cause Athlete Burnout

Maggie Franke
Wheaton College
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Abstract

Modernly becoming one of the most prevalent problems in modern sport, athlete burnout

has puzzled psychologists and scientists alike. While athlete burnout might seem like a simple

issue to define, even the definition itself is riddled with uncertainty of which factors cause which

results. Psychologists have studied external and internal factors which seem to contribute to

athlete burnout, and there is now a better understanding of how stress, sport specialization, and

negative thoughts all influence an athlete’s likelihood of burning out. Even after extensive

studies have been done, these causes still continue to overlap with one another. It seems

impossible to concretely prove which specific factors cause athlete burnout, but understanding

the variety of factors that might cause athlete burnout could lead to the potential solutions to the

issue itself.

As a Christian, athlete burnout might seem separate from theology, but, Colossians 3:17

calls Christians to give thanks to God in everything they do. Sport is no exception to theological

influence. Christian athletes going through burnout, struggling after quitting a sport due to

burnout and Christian parents of young athletes all should learn from scripture how to bring
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Factors that Cause Athlete Burnout

Introduction

Sports are a central aspect of the western world, and many non-westernized countries also

have sport intertwined with their culture. From soccer to football to hockey to synchronized

swimming, all sports have one thing in common: athlete burnout. A recurring problem in the

sports world today, especially in youth sport, coaches and organizations are trying to determine

which factors cause athletes to burnout and, eventually, quit. Kids are starting sports earlier in

their lives, and sport specialization, sport-specific stress, and negativity are only a few of the

potential causes of athlete burnout. However, these causes are widely studied by psychologists

and scientists alike, and they may form a foundation from which psychologists of the future can

better understand the problem of athlete burnout.

Background

Athlete burnout as a result of the stress of competitive sport has emerged as a recurring

problem within the past 40 years even though it was only defined more recently (Eklund &

Defresse, 2017). Dr. Ronald E. Smith of the University of Washington used a cognitive-affective

model to study athlete burnout in 1986 (Smith, 1986). In the past, burnout was a concept applied

to the workplace, but Dr. Thomas D. Raedeke’s 1997 article branched off of Smith’s original

thoughts when Raedeke’s own article “Is burnout more than just stress? A sport commitment

perspective” was published (Eklund & Defresse, 2017). Athlete burnout is modernly defined as:

experiencing emotional and physical exhaustion, sport devaluation and a reduced sense of

accomplishment in sport (Lundkvist et al., 2017). Smith focused on psychological stress as a

main cause of athlete burnout, while, in 1992, Dr. Jay Coakley studied the sociological factors

that might contribute to athlete burnout (Eklund & Defresse, 2017). Five years later, Dr. Raedeke
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explored the causational relationship between the athlete’s own perspective of their sport and

burning out (Eklund & Defresse, 2017). The overlap of external and internal factors has been

consistently hard to distinguish, and further study only muddied the water of whether or not

exhaustion causes devaluation and reduced sense of accomplishment or the opposite (Lundkvist

et al., 2017).

The issue itself can be summarized into a single sentence for simplicity, but the

relationship between exhaustion, devaluation, and reduced sense of accomplishment is more

ambiguous (Lundkvist et al. 2017). Athlete burnout might be overused as an explanation for

many different athletic problems such as any type stress and a wide range of physical injuries

(Eklund & Defresse, 2017). As written, a wide variety of problems stem from athlete burnout,

but a wide variety of problems also cause athlete burnout. Some of these problems stem from

athlete burnout while seemingly causing athlete burnout as well. Dr. Smith, Dr. Coakley and Dr.

Raedeke’s original hypotheses created the foundation upon which more recent psychologists

have been able to study more specific factors that cause athlete burnout. From overtraining, sport

specialization, internal traits, and environmental factors from coaches and teammates, there are

many different reasons why athletes seemingly burnout of their respective sports, but

psychologists and scientists are finding continual difficulty with proving causation.

Reason One: Sport Specialization

Sports specialization could be a main cause of athlete burnout today. More and more

coaches are advising younger athletes to compete in one sport throughout high school in order to

focus more on the individual athlete’s potential to succeed at the next level in that one sport

(Padaki et al. 2017). Once athletes are specialized in one sport, they are at a much greater risk of

burnout and physical injury as a result of overuse (Padaki et al. 2017). Athletes specialized in
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one sport are also expected to compete in the same sport year-round (Padaki et al. 2017).

Competing in a sport year-round leads to sport devaluation (Brenner et al. 2007). Young athletes

are experiencing problems that only teenage or adult athletes used to experience are children are

growing fatigued of sport, practice and competition, due to overtraining at younger ages

(Brenner et al. 2007). Athletes starting sports so young and staying in a single sport year-round

are bound to become bored of a sport they might have once enjoyed participating in. In the

future, this might prevent retired athletes from competing in that sport just for the sake of

physical well-being, social interaction, or as a healthy emotional outlet (Brenner et al. 2007).

Certain sports organizations have started creating or adjusting age eligibility rules

(AER’s) to account for the increased amount of athletic burnout due to sport specialization

(Myer et al., 2015). Specifically, the Women’s Tennis Association created a “phased in” AER

where athletes could not begin competing until they were 14-years-old, and, after 10 years,

research found that the rule helped increase career lengths by two years and reduced the

premature dropouts of young professional women’s tennis players from 7% to 1% (Myer et al.,

2015). The fact is that this rule change positively impacted the WTA players is evidence that

sports specialization is a cause of athlete burnout, to some extent. There is still only a correlation

between sport specialization and athlete burnout because each study is not well enough

controlled. There are gaps between individual sport specialization/team sport specialization and

male/female sport environments. Sport specialization is one environmental factor that could

cause athlete burnout, but external stressors also have correlated with athlete burnout.

Reason Two and Three: Stress and Negativity

The second two causes of athlete burnout have been seen to intertwine in multiple studies

by modern scientists. Going off of Dr. Smith’s model, life-stress and sport-specific stress have
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been correlated with athlete burnout. Athlete burnout has had a positive correlation with the total

score of life stress in previous studies (Chang et al., 2017). Dr. Raedeke’s hypothesis about the

impact of the athlete’s own perception of sport on the likelihood of burning out was “proved” in

the same study (Chang et al., 2017). However, in this study of 300 college athletes in China,

there were mediating and moderating roles between life-stress, perception of stress, and athlete

burnout (Chang et al. 2017). In another study of 195 college athletes in China, athlete burnout

had a higher correlation with sport-specific stress than general life-stress and perceived distress

(Chyi, Lu, Wang, Hsu & Chang, 2018). Sport-specific stress and general-life stress positively

predicted perceived stress and athlete burnout, and perceived stress positively predicted athlete

burnout (Chyi, Lu, Wang, Hsu & Chang, 2018). The factors all seemed to overlap even more

when specific one’s were controlled and the rest were tested again. Perceived distress was

controlled then general-life stress was seen to predict burnout (Chyi, Lu, Wang, Hsu & Chang,

2018). In contrast, when perceived stress and general-life stress were both added, general-life

stress was less likely to predict burnout after perceived distress was controlled (Chyi, Lu, Wang,

Hsu & Chang, 2018). Despite numerous studies researching the effect of life-stress and

negativity, it is still unclear whether one causes the other. However, it is evident that both impact

an athlete’s likelihood of burning out. Someone with negative thoughts is more likely to burnout

(Chang et al., 2017). An athlete with high amounts of life-stress and/or sport-specific stress is

also more likely to burnout (Chyi, Lu, Wang, Hsu & Chang, 2018).

Conclusion

All-in-all, there are many external and/or internal factors that might cause athlete

burnout, but sport specialization, negative thoughts, and life-stress all definitely cause athlete

burnout themselves one way or another. Coaches, parents, teammates, school, and culture most
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likely have correlations with each other and athlete burnout, but, the more potential causes there

are, the harder it is to determine whether or not they cause each other or athlete burnout directly.

Since this problem has been increasing in the past years, it is advisable that scientists continue to

study athlete burnout and its causes in specific environments and situations. Athletes and coaches

can better understand ways to overcome or prevent athlete burnout when the problem’s causes

have been studied in greater depth. The first step to finding solutions to athlete burnout is rooted

in figuring out which causes are most significant or most influential in each individual case. It

might be improbable to pinpoint an overarching reason why every athlete burns out, but finding

general trends will influence which factor sport psychologists look at first when encountering an

athlete who is in the process of burning out.

Christianity and Athlete Burnout

Introduction

Athlete burnout seems like a sport and personal problem, and its relationship to Christian

theology is difficult to decipher. However, there are Christian themes which connect with athlete

burnout. There are ways that athlete burnout is important to Christian athletes themselves and the

parents of young upcoming athletes. The Christian athlete must first understand how one’s

identity in sport can relieve them of burnout or comfort them after retiring from a sport due to

burnout. Also, Christian athletes need to understand how quitting is different than moving on or

adjusting one’s life to focus on their spiritual calling. Christian parents of athlete’s need to make

theological decisions about how they treat their young athlete early in their athletic career. While

theologians have yet to specifically make theological parallels with athlete burnout, these two

Christian themes are still important to aligning sport with Christian theology.

Christ as One’s Identity

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Identity is often a talking point of spiritual discussion. In Romans 6 the Apostle Paul

wrote about “Dead to Sin, Alive in Christ.” Dr. Jeffrey Oschwald outlined Romans 6 in 2014 and

noted that “Jesus lived to die and we die to live,” (Oschwald, 2014). Identity should be rooted in

Christ; our worldly self has been put to death. Dr. Nick J. Watson wrote about the dangers of

having one’s identity rooted in the competitive sport of Westernized culture. There are dangers

when sport allows an athlete to become self-reliant and empowered by their own athletic

capability rather than finding strength in the power of God (Watson, 2011). Westernized sport

cannot be the center of a Christian athlete’s identity because, if it is, that means that God is not

the center of their identity. Some theologians would called this “idolatry,” but it is more simply

putting something of the world above the God who made the world. Dr. Watson went on to

include work and vocation as theologically unfounded identifiers for a Christians, and that men

might be more apt to struggle with putting God at their center instead of work (Watson, 2011).

Anything that replaces Christ or is prioritized before Christ is not the theological mindset that a

Christian should have. Athletes might find more fulfillment in sport if they are Christian athletes

instead of athletes who are also Christian. Instead of competing, practicing, and working for

oneself, athletes can find higher purpose in doing everything, including sport, for the glory of

God who gave them the physical capabilities to compete in that very sport. This could be part of

a solution to athlete burnout. Athletes might experience less sport-specific pressure if sport is not

the most important aspect of their life. Their general perception of stress might be less negative if

they look at their sport through a Christian lens.

When to Persevere

Athletes who burnout typically see quitting as the solution to their emotional and

psychological struggle even if the sport was once something they loved doing. However, there
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are spiritual resolutions to burning out which might be able to help athletes rediscover purpose,

meaning, and enjoyment in their sport. Emotions during burnout can feel a lot like suffering.

Suffering could be a test of someone’s ability to spiritually persevere. In 2010, Dr. Brian D.

Majerus and Dr. Steven J. Sandage studied the self and Christian maturity (Majerus & Sandage,

2010). Majerus & Sandage (2010, p. 45) analyzed the first chapter of James and summarized its

central meaning:

“In Jas 1, James expresses that testing leads to perseverance and perseverance to maturity

(vv.2-4). This maturity allows one to be able to express humility in asking God for

wisdom (Jas 1:5). Similarly, it will be expressed in “belief and not doubt” whereas

immaturity is one who is “blown and tossed by the wind” (Jas 1:6)”

While doubting one’s purpose in a sport is far from doubting God, a Christian athlete should be

hesitant to quit a sport in the middle of a season when the practices are hard and the work level is

at its climax. That point in the season may be really hard and seem unbearable, but that is no

reason to give up quite yet. In contrast, there may be legitimate reasons to retire from a sport, but

there are many emotional and physical implications that a Christian athlete might have to cope

with.

When to Quit

There are many different reasons why an athlete might retire from sport, and one’s

mental, emotional and spiritual well-being might greatly improve by removing sport-specific

stress from one’s life. Generally, theologians have not looked much into this sport-specific topic,

but many theologians have given scriptural advice to retirees in general. Retirement can leave a

person feeling empty, without purpose or bored with life, but retirement from one specific task
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might mean moving on to a different task (Hauerwas, 2013). Hauerwas (2013, p. 1) noted that

athletes and people who retire are not retiring from doing something to doing nothing:

“... those who were lucky enough to “grow old in Christ” had as one of their

responsibilities to share the vulnerability of the body with their brothers and sisters in

Christ. They well understood that we are creatures whose lives move always toward

death. Accordingly, to grow old does not grant permission to be free of responsibility.”

This is important for retired athletes to understand as Christians. Finding greater purpose after

competitive sport could mean joining a recreational league, coaching a youth sports team, or

finding a different hobby to pass the time. Quitting sport can be fulfilling and can give athletes a

different perspective or branch them out into new social groups. Retiring from sport should be

seen as an opportunity to use one’s spiritual gifts elsewhere instead of just the conclusion of

using one’s physical and competitive gifts. There is no book in the Bible where scriptural “one-

liners” can contain such complex Christian themes like the book of Proverbs. Proverbs 19:21 is

encouraging to Christians who are looking for new purpose because it emphasizes the fact that

worldly goals begin and end as a part of God’s plan. Trusting God’s path for oneself could

relieve Christian athletes from the burden of dealing with all the pressure of current sport

competition or feeling that there is no other option for their future outside of sport.

Christian Parents of Young Athletes

Athletes themselves need to adhere to scripture when engaging in sport, but Christian

parents also need to understand how the Bible can reveal the best ways to be a parent of an

athlete. Children start playing sports earlier and earlier as time goes on, and youth leagues can

become demanding and competitive causing athletes to potentially burnout at younger ages.

Christian parents can help their athlete enjoy their sport throughout the long haul by not adding
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to their life-stress or sport-specific stress. Seventy percent of young athletes quit their sports

before they turn thirteen-years-old (Douglas, 2002). Dropouts start becoming more and more

common in athletic groups when athletes are ten-years-old (Douglas, 2002). What is most

disheartening to parents was the reason why these athletes consistently said that they dropped out

of sport. The majority of the children in Douglas’ study said that they stopped enjoying the sport,

practices and games, because their parents and coaches put too much pressure on them to win all

the time (Douglas 2002).

This is quite sad to hear that parents steal the fun and joy of sport away from their own

children. Humans were, in fact, made to play not made to compete (Treat, 2015). In Genesis 1-2,

Adam and Eve were free to go about the garden and play for their own enjoyment, while sports

add rules to the generally unstructured play, the pure play aspects of sport are stripped away

when there is an emphasis on young children winning rather than enjoying doing something with

some of their friends (Treat, 2015). Children especially need to have play integrated in their life

for greatest enjoyment, and parents need to emphasize a balance of work and play. Younger kids

do not need to look at sports as work

Conclusion

Christian athletes experience burnout the same as everyone else, and the athletic children

of Christian parents are just as likely to burnout as well. Sports can be a healthy way of

expressing oneself and glorifying God if athletes compete in the right way with the right mindset.

Christian athletes run into danger when their sport influences their perception of themselves

more than scripture and faith. Christian parents might cause their children to grow tired of

playing a sport if they put pressure on them to be a good athlete instead of encouraging to have

good sportsmanship, work ethic, and to work better with others. While the Bible might not
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explicitly mention athlete burnout, reading and meditating on scripture can allow athletes to

consider what kind of impact they are making on the sport world or what kind of impact the sport

world is having on them.

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