TY - JOUR
T1 - An Exploratory Study on the Conceptualization of Burnout among the Professional Esports Athletes
T2 - Focused on League of Legends Champions Korea League
AU - Ahn, Hyoyeon
AU - Kim, Inwoo
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2024 by the authors.
PY - 2024/6
Y1 - 2024/6
N2 - Research on the stress and burnout experienced by athletes in the esports field remains limited, necessitating an approach that considers the unique environment and circumstances of esports athletes. This study aims to explore the conceptualization of burnout experiences among professional esports athletes. The participants included 88 athletes from the League of Legends Championship Korea (LCK). Among these, in-depth interviews were conducted with 7 athletes who had experience in international tournaments (the World Championship), while an open-ended survey was completed by 81 athletes. Data collected through in-depth interviews and an open-ended survey were digitized and utilized for analysis. Through critical review by another author and inductive categorization, the conceptual components of esports athletes’ burnout were derived. Through the analysis of 251 raw datum, it was conceptualized into five conceptual factors: performance, overtraining, interpersonal relationships, physical and psychological exhaustion, and career and motivation. The results of this study confirm that esports athletes, like athletes in other conventional sports, experience burnout during their careers, highlighting issues in their unique environment, particularly in aspects of interpersonal relationships and training and rest conditions. This research can serve as a foundational resource for effective athletes’ psychological health management in the esports field and underscores the need for further research on burnout among esports athletes.
AB - Research on the stress and burnout experienced by athletes in the esports field remains limited, necessitating an approach that considers the unique environment and circumstances of esports athletes. This study aims to explore the conceptualization of burnout experiences among professional esports athletes. The participants included 88 athletes from the League of Legends Championship Korea (LCK). Among these, in-depth interviews were conducted with 7 athletes who had experience in international tournaments (the World Championship), while an open-ended survey was completed by 81 athletes. Data collected through in-depth interviews and an open-ended survey were digitized and utilized for analysis. Through critical review by another author and inductive categorization, the conceptual components of esports athletes’ burnout were derived. Through the analysis of 251 raw datum, it was conceptualized into five conceptual factors: performance, overtraining, interpersonal relationships, physical and psychological exhaustion, and career and motivation. The results of this study confirm that esports athletes, like athletes in other conventional sports, experience burnout during their careers, highlighting issues in their unique environment, particularly in aspects of interpersonal relationships and training and rest conditions. This research can serve as a foundational resource for effective athletes’ psychological health management in the esports field and underscores the need for further research on burnout among esports athletes.
KW - burnout
KW - conceptualization
KW - exploratory research
KW - professional esports athletes
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85195854353&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.3390/healthcare12111127
DO - 10.3390/healthcare12111127
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:85195854353
SN - 2227-9032
VL - 12
JO - Healthcare (Switzerland)
JF - Healthcare (Switzerland)
IS - 11
M1 - 1127
ER -