College athletes and the influence of academic and athletic investment on sense of belonging

Abstract

While the athletic and academic experiences of student-athletes have been frequently examined by scholars (Houle & Kluck, 2015; Rettig & Hu, 2016), there is a lack of research into which investment creates a sense of belonging on campus for student-athletes. Other factors, such as sport status, have only been conceptually discussed, while transfer status and gender, have been examined in non-athlete populations, highlighting a gap in our college student understanding of sense of belonging. We used structural modeling to examine the relationship between athletic investment, academic investment, and demographics within a context of student-athletes. Results indicated as both athletic and academic investment increase, the student-athlete’s sense of belonging on campus decreased. Additionally, student-athletes who were transfers, in team sports, or men were more likely to have a reduced sense of belong on campus.