Preparation for Sports Retirement: Study Protocol

NCT ID: NCT07303504

Last Updated: 2025-12-26

Study Results

Results pending

The study team has not published outcome measurements, participant flow, or safety data for this trial yet. Check back later for updates.

Basic Information

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Recruitment Status

NOT_YET_RECRUITING

Clinical Phase

NA

Total Enrollment

26 participants

Study Classification

INTERVENTIONAL

Study Start Date

2026-02-01

Study Completion Date

2027-05-01

Brief Summary

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Background: This article presents the protocol for a randomised controlled trial designed to develop and evaluate a psychoeducational intervention aimed at preparing high-performance athletes for the challenges and opportunities presented by the transition to retirement from sport. The protocol was developed through a literature review and consultations with experts in sports psychology and career transition.

Methods: The study will be conducted at the Faculty of Psychology of the University of Salamanca (Spain). High-performance athletes aged 30 or older who are close to retirement or who have retired in the last five years will be recruited. Participants will be randomly assigned to two groups: the intervention group, which will undergo a psychoeducational programme consisting of 12 sessions over 3 months; and the control group, which will receive a minimum educational programme of one session. All participants will complete initial and final assessments, as well as a 3-month follow-up, collecting sociodemographic data and applying various psychological, social and health assessment instruments.

Discussion: This protocol describes a comprehensive psychoeducational intervention aimed at improving quality of life and attitudes towards retirement from sport, increasing life satisfaction, psychological flexibility, perceived social support, general health, self-efficacy and self-regulation, and reducing negative stereotypes associated with the end of a sporting career. The evidence generated will guide future interventions, policies, and educational programmes to promote a healthy, active, and satisfying transition to the post-sport stage.

Detailed Description

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Conditions

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Sport Retirement Psychoeducation Retirement Adaptation Psychosocial Factors Psychology

Study Design

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Allocation Method

RANDOMIZED

Intervention Model

PARALLEL

Primary Study Purpose

PREVENTION

Blinding Strategy

SINGLE

Outcome Assessors
The work of sequencing, randomisation, recruitment and allocation of the trial sample will be carried out by research staff who are not involved in the assessments or interventions of each group, thus avoiding any potential bias in the trial.

Participants will also be blinded and will not know which group they have been allocated to and therefore which intervention they will receive. In order to minimise any contamination between groups, the assessment process will be carried out by external research staff who will perform the measurements and who have been previously trained and educated to avoid subjective bias in the process, as they will be unaware of the intervention group to which they have been assigned, thus masking the blinded assessment by third parties in the clinical trial. In addition, the researchers responsible for the statistical analysis of the trial will be blinded in order to increase the rigour of the trial process and thus the scientific quality.

Study Groups

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Education Programme

Why: Participants will receive instructions and recommendations to facilitate a positive and healthy transition following retirement from elite sport. This minimally active intervention focuses on general guidelines for maintaining an active lifestyle and adapting to post-sport life, ensuring that the control group receives basic informational support without the structured psychoeducational sessions of the experimental group, which allows for an adequate comparison of effects. What (materials): Instructions and recommendations dossier for the program. What (procedures): Participants will be provided with a dossier containing instructions and recommendations to support the transition to sports retirement. Who will carry out the interventions: A qualified professional with experience in retirement processes will carry out the intervention. The team rotates among three professionals (psychologists specializing in retirement adjustment and a lawyer for legal aspects).

How: The participan

Group Type ACTIVE_COMPARATOR

Education Programme

Intervention Type BEHAVIORAL

Participants will receive instructions and recommendations to facilitate a positive and healthy transition following retirement from elite sport. This minimally active intervention focuses on general guidelines for maintaining an active lifestyle and adapting to post-sport life, ensuring that the control group receives basic informational support without the structured psychoeducational sessions of the experimental group, which allows for an adequate comparison of effects.

Psychoeducational Programme

Why: The program aims to facilitate a positive and healthy transition from elite sport to retirement. Its objectives include improving Quality of Life, Life Satisfaction, Psychological Flexibility, Perceived Social Support, Health, Self-Efficacy, and Self-Regulation, while simultaneously mitigating stereotypes associated with aging and the end of the sports career. What (materials): All sessions will require materials such as: projector, computer, screen, presentation of content, stationery, chairs, tables and self-recording of home tasks.

What (procedures): The program combines structured education with psychoeducational activities to: Understand the retirement process and its expectations; analyze the psychosocial impact of retirement; promote physical and mental health; provide training in financial planning and benefits management; support adaptation to role changes and foster social participation; facilitate the definition and monitoring of personal goals; consolidate learned.

Group Type EXPERIMENTAL

Psychoeducational Programme

Intervention Type BEHAVIORAL

The program aims to facilitate a positive and healthy transition from elite sport to retirement. Its objectives include improving Quality of Life, Life Satisfaction, Psychological Flexibility, Perceived Social Support, Health, Self-Efficacy, and Self-Regulation, while simultaneously mitigating stereotypes associated with aging and the end of the sports career.

Interventions

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Psychoeducational Programme

The program aims to facilitate a positive and healthy transition from elite sport to retirement. Its objectives include improving Quality of Life, Life Satisfaction, Psychological Flexibility, Perceived Social Support, Health, Self-Efficacy, and Self-Regulation, while simultaneously mitigating stereotypes associated with aging and the end of the sports career.

Intervention Type BEHAVIORAL

Education Programme

Participants will receive instructions and recommendations to facilitate a positive and healthy transition following retirement from elite sport. This minimally active intervention focuses on general guidelines for maintaining an active lifestyle and adapting to post-sport life, ensuring that the control group receives basic informational support without the structured psychoeducational sessions of the experimental group, which allows for an adequate comparison of effects.

Intervention Type BEHAVIORAL

Eligibility Criteria

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Inclusion Criteria

* Participants will be included if they are within the critical transition period, defined as:

Five years prior to sports retirement, when the first signs of preparation and emotional anticipation begin.

Five years after retirement, the stage in which identity, psychological, and professional adaptation processes are consolidated.

This interval reflects the progressive nature of adaptation to sports retirement.


Refusal to sign the informed consent or lack of availability to regularly attend the program sessions.

Exclusion Criteria

* Athletes presenting any of the following conditions will be excluded from the study:

Significant literacy difficulties or relevant deficits in linguistic comprehension that prevent adequate participation in the psychoeducational sessions or the completion of assessment instruments.

Severe unstabilized medical or psychological conditions that may interfere with the normal development of the program (e.g., untreated severe depressive episodes, limiting neurological disorders).
Eligible Sex

ALL

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Yes

Sponsors

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University of Salamanca

OTHER

Sponsor Role lead

Responsible Party

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Sara Jiménez García-Tizón

Principal Investigator

Responsibility Role PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOR

Locations

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Castilla y León, Salamanca, Salamanca 37005

Salamanca, , Spain

Site Status

Countries

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Spain

Other Identifiers

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USAL sports retirement

Identifier Type: -

Identifier Source: org_study_id