A study on identity conflict, self-concept clarity, and dual career adaptability among collegiate athletes

The study examined the prospective associations among academic-athletic identity conflict (role interference), self-concept clarity, and dual career adaptability among Taiwanese collegiate student-athletes. Drawing on Conservation of Resources theory, self-concept clarity was conceptualised as a potentially relevant personal psychological resource associated with student-athletes' adaptation to concurrent academic and athletic demands. A two-wave prospective association design with a cross-sectional first stage (four-month interval) was employed. Identity conflict and self-concept clarity were assessed at Time 1, and dual career adaptability was assessed at Time 2. Valid paired responses were obtained from 414 student-athletes. A statistically significant indirect prospective association was observed through self-concept clarity: Time 1 identity conflict was negatively associated with Time 1 self-concept clarity, which was subsequently associated with lower Time 2 dual career adaptability measured 4 months later. The bootstrap 95% confidence interval for the indirect association did not include zero. Because baseline adaptability was not controlled for at Time 1, these findings represent prospective cross-lagged level-associations rather than intra-individual changes or development in adaptability over time. The findings are consistent with Conservation of Resources theory and suggest that self-concept clarity may represent one of several psychological resources relevant to dual career adaptation within the Taiwanese socio-cultural context.