Abstract
This thesis by articles presents the work of three years of doctoral research on student athlete dual career and provides suggestions for the possible implementation of academic career assistance services for student-athletes. The research project consists of the three main phases and the thesis is divided in six chapters: (1) the introduction; (2) the presentation of a published study protocol for this project; (3) the first phase of the research project, consisting of a revision of the literature and guidelines on dual career; (4) the second phase, consisting of a qualitative study (submitted), the validation of a psychometric instrument (published), and a quantitative study (submitted); (5) the third phase that explored the context of the Free University of Bozen-Bolzano; and (6) the conclusive chapter. Findings from each of the three phases provide scientific knowledge to inform the implementation of academic career assistance services for student-athletes at the Free University of Bozen-Bolzano. In detail, they deepen knowledge on the risk and protective factors for mental health in student-athletes, they provide a psychometric instrument for the assessment of the athlete psychological well-being, they inform that well-being levels depend also on the type of student-athlete’s identity, and they offer the possibility to categorise student-athletes based on their identity profiles. These findings and the validated instruments can be useful also for other traditional or online universities and, in part, for sporting organisations.