Understanding the process of acculturation in soccer athletes: A longitudinal study

Abstract

The study aimed to understand how the process of acculturation in athletes of soccer academy occurred. It is a mixed design and longitudinal research in which acculturated athletes responded to a semi-structured interview and the Social Skills Inventory (IHS), Stress Symptoms Inventory (ISSL), Beck Anxiety Inventory (BAI) and Beck Depression Scale (BDI). Eight athletes participated in the qualitative research of the basic categories of a soccer club in the South of Brazil, residents at the Club for at least six months and aged between 16 and 20 years. In the quantitative stage 21 athletes participated, who fulfilled the instruments on admission, three and six months after their arrival at the Club. For the data analysis, content analysis and statistical descriptive and inferential statistics analysis were done. It was observed that 63% of the acculturated athletes presented social skills deficits after six months of the process of acculturation, being coping factors and self-exhibition the ones with the most significant deficit. The athletes describe points as the arrival at the Club without knowing anyone, the customs of the southern region, temperature, as well as the distance from home and the family as risk factors for adaptation and that interfere in their sports performance. The decrease of social skills and the athletes' speech strengthen studies that postulate the fact that the adaptation to a new culture can be a complex process and it can involve risk.