‘Through the lens of ethnography’: Perceptions, challenges, and experiences of an early career practitioner-researcher in professional football

ABSTRACT

The present study critically explores the use of practitioner-researcher ethnography in professional football, and illustrates some of the challenges that the first author experienced as a result of the dual-role occupation. The first author occupied the position of insider sport psychology practitioner-researcher within one professional football club over a 3-year duration. Traditional ethnographic research methods were employed, including; observations, field notes, and reflections. Following thematic analysis, research on the potential for conflict and tension in ethnography, and ethical guidelines from caring professions (e.g. sport psychology, health, and nursing) were used to make sense of the data. A series of reflective extracts highlight moral, ethical, and personal challenges of occupying a dual role, including threats to identity, acceptance of academics in elite sport, and confidentiality. For those individuals whose livelihood is dependent on their successes as a practitioner-researcher an understanding of how to overcome methodological challenges will be beneficial in improving their organisational status. From the results of this study, we suggest that a range of support mechanisms (e.g. ethnographers club, regional support hubs, supervisor/researcher training and education), and the development of a clear sense of self are essential for the ethnographic practitioner-researcher.

KEYWORDS:

• Qualitative
• ethnography
• practitioner-research
• sport psychology
• longitudinal
• dilemmas

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Correction Statement

This article has been republished with minor changes. These changes do not impact the academic content of the article.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Francesca Champ

Dr Francesca Champ is a Lecturer in Sport & Exercise Psychology at the University of Central Lancashire.

Noora Ronkainen

Dr Noora Ronkainen is a Postdoctoral Researcher at Liverpool John Moores University.

Mark S Nesti

Dr Mark S Nesti is a Reader in Sport at Liverpool John Moores University.

David Tod

Dr David Tod is a Senior Lecturer in Sport Psychology at Liverpool John Moores University.

Martin Littlewood

Dr Martin Littlewood is a Reader in Sport Psychology at Liverpool John Moores University.