In today's episode, we continue our conversation with Dr. Aku Nikander, delving into the challenges faced by young athletes in their career journeys. Aku shares his findings on the role of sport organizations in shaping the aspirations and possibilities of youth athletes. Specifically, we uncover the impact of organizational culture and the tensions that arise when implementing a dual career approach in a talent development environment.

The conversation focuses on Aku's case study in a talent development environment that has been in existence for decades. Informed by the European Commission's dual career guidelines and the broader movement around dual careers, the organization defines itself as a dual career development environment. Curious about the integration of this concept at different cultural levels within the organization, Aku examines how well it supports dual career development as outlined in existing research and literature. Specifically, Aku focuses on the cultural aspects, as they greatly influence the thinking, development, behavior, and well-being of group members. With a particular interest in the coaches' adoption of dual career thinking and the athletes' career goals, Aku conducted observations and interviews in the environment to gain a comprehensive understanding of the dynamics at play.

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Timestamps

[00:00:58] Environment's impact on youth athlete development.

[00:09:13] Sports prioritized over education, devaluing student effort.

[00:13:32] Cultural change needed to support athletes in pursuing balanced dual careers.

[00:15:23] Elite sport faces dilemmas: competition intensifies, dual career as the ideal pathway.

[00:18:31] Low value of sporting achievement in Finland. Challenges in funding and support for elite sports. Discussion about athletes' rights and equity.

[00:22:11] New projects

Welcome to a new episode of the Meaningful Sport Podcast! In today's episode, we dive into the world of young athletes and explore how they navigate the challenges of building both their sporting careers and their education. Joining us for this conversation is Dr. Aku Nikander, a post-doctoral researcher at the University of Jyväskylä, whose research focuses on athletes' dual careers, career development, adaptability, and organisational culture. We'll be discussing topics such as career construction in sport and education, gender perspectives, and the role of environment in shaping young athletes' aspirations. As a researcher and a coach with extensive experience, Aku brings a unique perspective to the conversation.

Dr. Aku Nikander is currently a post-doctoral researcher at the University of Jyväskylä, with expertise on youth athlete development, dual careers, career construction, and organisational culture research in sport.

Timestamps

[00:03:21] 15 years experience coaching, focused on youth athletes. Achieving potential in sports and beyond is important.

[00:08:39] Young athletes often prioritize sports over education.

[00:12:02] Career adaptability: skills and competencies for developing a meaningful career.

[00:17:26] Adolescents' transitions affect career development, future concerns.

[00:19:12] Life in a sport school is hectic, no time for reflection. Sports too structured, limited autonomy.

[00:25:28] Young men often more confident, women face challenges.

Amy has an undergraduate degree in Psychology from the University of Leeds, who undertook a work placement year at BiB in 2017, working on the ‘Primary School Years’. Amy is currently a PhD Student, working with the JU:MP team and Loughborough University. Her PhD will focus on developing and implementing an intervention to increase physical activity in children and adolescents, using wearable activity trackers (such as Fitbits). Her PhD will take a mixed-methods approach (qualitative and quantitative methods) to investigate intervention impact and assess feasibility and acceptability of the intervention within the community.

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This podcast episode is sponsored by Fibion Inc. | The New Gold Standard for Sedentary Behaviour and Physical Activity Monitoring

Learn more about Fibion: fibion.com/research

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Collect, store and manage SB and PA data easily and remotely -

Discover new Fibion SENS Motion: https://sens.fibion.com/

Amy has an undergraduate degree in Psychology from the University of Leeds, who undertook a work placement year at BiB in 2017, working on the ‘Primary School Years’. Amy is currently a PhD Student, working with the JU:MP team and Loughborough University. Her PhD will focus on developing and implementing an intervention to increase physical activity in children and adolescents, using wearable activity trackers (such as Fitbits). Her PhD will take a mixed-methods approach (qualitative and quantitative methods) to investigate intervention impact and assess feasibility and acceptability of the intervention within the community.

_____________________

This podcast episode is sponsored by Fibion Inc. | The New Gold Standard for Sedentary Behaviour and Physical Activity Monitoring

Learn more about Fibion: fibion.com/research

---

Collect, store and manage SB and PA data easily and remotely -

Discover new Fibion SENS Motion: https://sens.fibion.com/