New Study Released: 'Either or' or 'as well as': Exploring the relation between health and performance throughout the career pathways of high-performing athletes, musicians, and mathematicians.
In short: Athletes experience pain, injures and long-term health challenges, whilst health itself is sacrificed in pursuit of success. The research found those involved - across the three performance environments - hold personal beliefs which make it difficult for high-performers to take care of themselves, in a holistic sense.
More Detail: Elite athletes are role-models for excellence, work ethic and health. Based on interviews with 10 participants, six themes were generated which capture a different articulation of the health-performance relationship. These six themes are: 1) an illusion of invulnerability; 2) health and performance as an antithesis; 3) psychic benefits of performing outweigh its cost; 4) health as a prerequisite for performance; 5) there is more to me and life; and 6) it is difficult to care for one's health.
The findings presented paradoxes and tensions of high-performance athletes, musicians, and mathematicians experience in regard to their health and highlight an internal performance narrative within the performance domain. The personal beliefs that high-performers hold, and are promoted within a culture of risk, make it difficult for those performers to engage in effective self-care, and to pursue positive health in a holistic sense.
Find it here:
John, J. M., Wachsmuth, S., & Thiel, A. (2024). 'Either or' or 'as well as': Exploring the relation between health and performance throughout the career pathways of high-performing athletes, musicians, and mathematicians. Sport, Exercise, and Performance Psychology.
