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The broad purpose of this paper is to contextualize the meaning and evolution of competitive sport participation among the aged by describing the life story of a senior aged participant. We used narrative inquiry to examine the integration of sport into the life course and continuity theory to examine the evolution of his life story. Continuity theory proposes that individuals are predisposed to preserve and maintain longstanding patterns of thought and behavior throughout their adult development. Based on this theory, we suggest that continuity in successful competitive sport involvement for this participant may represent a primary adaptive strategy for coping with the aging process. Successful involvement in sport appeared to mediate past and continuing patterns of social relationships, the development of personal identity, and a general propensity for lifelong physical activity.

This study examined physical education interns’ beliefs and perceptions about their student teaching internships, thus providing indicators regarding their developmental growth as teachers. Data were acquired from 46 student teacher interns from focus group interviews and Fuller’s Teacher Concerns Questionnaire (TCQ). Developmental stage theories from the work of Hunt (1966), Kohlberg (1984), Loevinger (1976), and Fuller (1969) were used to frame the concept of developmental growth of student teachers. Data indicated interns’ primary desires were to fit into the school organization, to get along with clinical teachers, and to gain pupil cooperation. Constraints to teaching included difficulties establishing or implementing a management system, the absence of timely supervision from clinical teachers, and feeling like strangers in the school organization. The ability of interns to resolve these constraints directly contributed to their self-image as teachers. Suggestions are provided for advancing interns’ developmental growth stages beyond initial levels.

Experienced and senior sport psychology practitioners achieved longevity in effective professional practice by embracing sustainable approaches to their profession, assumed to be influenced by their positive professional quality of life. The aim of this study was to gain insight into how these practitioners defined and attended to their profession-specific quality of life. Utilizing Consensual Qualitative Research method, researchers examined the perceptions and meanings that 20 internationally located practitioners attributed to their Sport Psychology-Professional Quality of Life (SP-PQL). Findings revealed a view of SP-PQL that encompassed five domains: (a) the lived experience of SP-PQL, (b) the nature of the SP profession, (c) SP-PQL as an ongoing journey, (d) deliberate engagement in the SP profession, and (e) the interconnection between the personal and the professional. These practitioners recognized the importance of a positive SP-PQL as a foundation for a positive, effective, and long-lasting career in the field.

Researchers have examined psychology professionals’ ability to maintain and sustain effective practices while managing to balance their personal and professional lives. Stamm’s concept of professional quality of life was intended to capture both positive and negative aspects of caregivers’ professional experiences. The concept, however, inadequately addresses the unique context of sport psychology practitioners’ (SPPs) practice. As part of a larger qualitative study of sport psychology professional quality of life (SP-PQL), in this paper the researchers explored the challenges and strategies articulated by a multinational sample of 20 senior-level SPPs related to developing and maintaining their SP-PQL. Findings from an analysis of in-depth interviews revealed challenges and the strategies that participants undertook to foster and sustain their SP-QOL. These findings can be used to inform efforts by current and future practitioners to identify aspects that may thwart or support their SP-PQL.