An Examination of Former High School Athletes' Perspectives on Life Skill Development and Transfer

Abstract

The purpose of this Master’s thesis was to examine former high school athletes’ perspectives on life skill development and transfer. Individual semi-structured interviews were conducted with 22 individuals (12 females, 10 males) between the ages of 18-56. Participants were recruited from the Southwest and Eastern regions of Ontario, Canada. Based on the data collected, two articles were written. Article one presents the participants’ perspectives on their developmental experiences and the influence of the context associated with their high school sport participation. The findings revealed that different types of life skill experiences emanated from high school sport, but that negative experiences also ensued. Participants reported differences in terms of how high school sport was experienced in rural settings compared to urban settings. In article two, the Conceptual Framework for Life Skills Interventions was used to examine the participants’ life skill development and transfer experiences. The findings are consistent with aspects of the framework and provide tangible examples of life skill development and subsequent transfer for the same skill by the same individual. Collectively, the findings from this Master’s thesis illustrate how the life skills learned during high school sport are being transferred for use at various stages across the lifespan.