Abstract
Performance slumps, characterized by stressful, unexplained declines in athletic performance, present a universal problem estimated to impact up to 54% of athletes across sports and all levels of competition. Studying performance slumps has presented challenges due to their unique presentations in each sport. Exploring varied definitions and perspectives on performance slumps is crucial for advancing research and enhancing the development of effective coping strategies and interventions for athletes affected by these events. Therefore, the aim of this research is to explore how sports personnel (current athletes, coaches, retired athletes, and retired coaches) define slumps within their sports. Thirty-eight participants from 12 sports, familiar with local (n = 7), provincial (n = 9), national (n = 15), international (n = 2), and professional (n = 5) levels of competition, provided their definitions of a performance slump. Through summative content analysis, we identified five common themes: personal psychological changes, objective changes in performance, subjective changes in performance, plateaus, and time. These findings demonstrate the complexity of slumps, highlighting the significance of both mental and physical changes in performance. Moreover, the theme of “time” reveals varying perspectives across sports regarding the duration required for these changes to be recognized as slumps. With a more comprehensive understanding of how sports personnel define slumps, our next step is to investigate these phenomena more deeply, focusing specifically on understanding how high-performance athletes cope with the various mental and physical pressures of performance slumps.
