Wearing Their Tear: Understanding the Experiences of Chronically Injured Athletes at Princeton

Abstract

"Wearing Their Tear: Understanding the Experiences of Chronically Injured Athletes at Princeton” aims to help understand how Princeton student-athletes who are “chronically injured” understand their identity and rationalize their experiences. The study relies on in-depth interviews with intercollegiate athletes at Princeton. Findings show that the experience of chronically injured athletes can be generally understood as occuring within this three part model: “STRESS->ALIENATION AND EXPLORATION-> IDENTITY REFORMATION AND ASSIMILATION.” Chronically injured athletes experience stress from their injury, which alienates them from their team network and causes them to explore other identities. In time, they reform their identities and assimilate back into their team network.