Confirmatory Factor Analysis of Perceived Exploitation of College Athletes Questionnaire

Abstract: The exploitation of college athletes has been a topic of controversy within American higher education for over half of a century. Ever since the term student-athlete was coined in the 1950s (Sperber, 1999), academics and administrators have debated the extent to which the commercialization of college sports has turned college athletes into commodities, excluded from the free market while their coaches, colleges, and conferences reap huge financial rewards (Branch, 2011; Van Rheenen, 2013; Zimbalist, 1999). Especially in the revenue-generating sports of men’s basketball and football, critics have highlighted the surplus gains expropriated by colleges and universities on the backs of these young men....

Exploitation in College Sports: Race, Revenue, and Educational Reward

International Review for the Sociology of Sport

Abstract: The question of whether college athletes are exploited is regularly debated in the popular press and academic literature about college sports. The concept of exploitation, with its philosophical and psychological implications, however, is rarely discussed in detail. This paper problematizes and expands the way in which the concept has been presented within the context of college sports, arguing that exploitation is primarily a moral construct understood as an unfair exchange between two parties. For college athletes, an unfair financial exchange can be measured by comparing the surplus value and marginal revenue product. These calculations may evidence the degree of economic exploitation, but many people still believe college athletes are fairly compensated with a subsistence wage in the form of an athletic scholarship. It is more difficult to quantify the promise or value of an education above and beyond this subsistence wage, most often defined as a college degree. The over-representation of Black college athletes on revenue-producing teams, and the corresponding lower graduation rates of this population when compared to other students, highlight the racial and cultural divisions of opportunity. Institutions face a crisis of conscience when educational opportunities are offered to certain students based primarily on their athletic ability, especially when these opportunities are perceived as disingenuous due to the academic preparation and demanding athletic commitments of these recruited college athletes.

Van Rheenen, D. (2013). Exploitation in College Sports: Race, Revenue and Educational Reward. International Review for the Sociology of Sport Volume 48, Issue 5, October 2013: 550-571.  Reprinted in Sport and Leisure Management, M. Weed (Ed.). NZ: Canterbury Christ Church University, December 2013.

The Elimination of Varsity Sports at a Division I Institution
Journal for the Study of Sports and Athletes in Education

Abstract: The elimination and subsequent reinstatement of five varsity sports at the University of California, Berkeley during the 2010-11 academic year may provide a modern success story in college sports, but the events which transpired at Berkeley also exposed many of the fundamental tensions inherent to NCAA Division I athletics today. This success story might be read as a cautionary tale, highlighting the exclusion of the college athletes themselves within the decision-making process. While their sports were ultimately saved, these young people’s lives were transformed. Grounded in critical theory, this study provides a systematic evaluation of student athlete responses to sport elimination, examining their perceptions of the decision-making process and the reasons underlying why particular sports were eliminated while others were not. Although gender equity issues were considered important to the decision, few gender differences
were found among the impacted college athletes. In addition to the perceived importance of financial considerations underlying the institutional decision to eliminate sports, participants also reported feeling that the university over-invested in revenue sports at the expense of non-revenue or Olympic sports.

Van Rheenen, D., Minjares, V., McNeil, N., and Atwood, J.. (2011). The Elimination of Varsity Sports at a Division I Institution: A Student Athlete Perspective. Journal for the Study of Sports and Athletes in Education, Volume 5, Issue 3, Fall 2011: 161-180.

Exploitation in the American Academy: College Athletes and Self-perceptions of Value
The International Journal of Sport and Society

Abstract: The exploitation of college athletes, particularly Black revenue athletes, has been a persistent topic of controversy within American higher education for the past half century. Strikingly absent in this literature are the college athletes themselves. This research study of 581 NCAA Division I college athletes examines these participants’ perceptions of feeling exploited by the university for their athletic ability and potential. Comparative analyses are reported based upon gender, race, year-in-school and scholarship status. Differences between revenue, defined as football and men’s basketball, and nonrevenue or Olympic sports (all other intercollegiate athletic teams) are reported. Findings demonstrate significant differences across several of these demographic and sport-specific categories. Findings also suggest that the perceived exploitation experienced by college athletes is more complicated than a simple financial or educational exchange. Several social and educational implications are discussed.

Van Rheenen, D., (2011). Exploitation in the American Academy: College Athletes and Self-Perceptions of Value. The International Journal of Sport and Society Volume 2, Issue 4, 2011: 11-26. 

Becoming REGS: The Impact of Institutional Sport Elimination on Division I Student Athletes

Abstract: "The elimination of varsity sports at American colleges and universities has become a frequent strategy to reduce rising institutional subsidies for intercollegiate athletics. This paper analyzes the psychological effects of institutional sport elimination on a sample of college athletes
from five varsity programs at a large public Division I university on the west coast of the United States. Utilizing historical trend analyses and quantitative methods, findings suggest that the involuntary loss of a sponsored athletic identity had varying effects on these participants’ athletic
commitment but did not alter their self-identification as athletes. While the majority of these college athletes remained committed to their educational goal of graduating from the institution, the decision negatively impacted these college athletes’ sense of belonging on campus
and their general commitment to the university."

Van Rheenen, D., McNeil, N., and Atwood, J. (2012). Becoming REGS: The Impact of Institutional Sport Elimination on Division I Student Athletes. The International Journal of Sport and Society.

Out of Bounds: When Scholarship Athletes Become Academic Scholars (Book)

Abstract: Out of Bounds explores the trajectories and challenges of exceptional men and women athletes who later became outstanding academic scholars. The book reports findings from participatory, qualitative research, and problematizes ways we have come to think about the separation and integration of athletic and academic practices - embodied in both institutions and individuals, and reflected through intersecting categories and experiences of race, gender, and social class. Through the provocative and surprising narratives of gifted athletes who became prolific scholars, this book offers significantly new ways of thinking about the connections, contradictions, and possibilities of sports and schools.

Van Rheenen, D. and Mahiri, J. (2009).  Out of Bounds: When Scholarship Athletes Become Academic Scholars. New York, NY:
Peter Lang Publishing, 2010.

Noncognitive Predictors of Student Athletes' Academic Performance
Journal of College Reading and Learning

Abstract: This study of 200 Division I athletes examined the role of four noncognitive variables in predicting academic performance. Using a paper and pencil Likert scale instrument the noncognitive variables, athletic-academic commitment, feelings of being exploited, academic self-worth, self-handicapping excuses as well as several background and academic preparation variables were studied as predictors of academic performance. All four noncognitive variables were found to be significant and independent predictors of academic performance. Student athletes' relative athletic-academic identification and achievement motivation play important roles in student athletes' academic performance.

Van Rheenen, D. & Simons H. (2000). Non–Cognitive Predictors of Student Athletes’ Academic Performance (2000), with H.D. Simons. Journal
of College Reading and Learning 30: 167-181

“Hiring” (Chapter 7). In Academic Advising Administration: Essential Knowledge and Skills for the 21st Century. 
National Academic Advising Association (NACADA)

Abstract: Good hiring decisions pay dividends and play a major role in retaining students. Poor hiring decisions can disrupt initial training, affect staff morale, place a heavy burden an adviser development programming, create ongoing personnel headaches, and jeopardize student persistence and success. To build an outstanding staff, administrators must define the specific work done and to be done in the office: What is the organizational mission and what jobs fulfill it? What are the organizational primary goals and functions? Understanding these programs elements affects position descriptions, recruitment, and selection of the best job candidates.

 Van Rheenen, D. (2011). “Hiring” (Chapter 3). In Academic Advising Administration: Essential Knowledge and Skills for the 21st
Century. NACADA Monograph Series Number 22 (2011): 97-107.

Final Report of the Advising Task Force
Report Commissioned by Vice Provost of Teaching and Learning, University of California, Berkeley

Abstract: Report on the role advising students has upon the various groups of the student body.

Van Rheenen, D., Hagstrom, S., Rivas, E., and DePalma, M. (2009).  Final Report of the Advising Task Force, Report Commissioned by Vice Provost of Teaching and Learning, University of California, Berkeley, September 2009.

Advising Student-Athletes on a College Campus: UC Berkeley Collaboration with a
National Academic Advising Association (webinar)

Abstract: The Webinar Advisory Board's role is to develop and coordinate a process for submission, recruitment, review, and selection of topics for webinar programs, to develop the annual webinar series topics and recommend presenters for webinars, to review participant evaluations on a regular basis and make recommendations for changes or improvements in the process or the delivery, and to oversee or facilitate the content review for specific webinars when needed. 

Van Rheenen, D. (2008). Advising Student-Athletes on a College Campus, National Academic Advising Association (NACADA). National Webinar, June 11, 2008. [online access no longer available]