Date

7-4-2023

Department

School of Behavioral Sciences

Degree

Doctor of Philosophy in Counselor Education and Supervision (PhD)

Chair

Jose Maldonado

Keywords

Native Dominican baseball players, Major League Baseball, cultural, language, education, psychological, mental health wellbeing, Resiliency, Schlossberg’s transitional theory

Disciplines

Counseling

Abstract

The purpose of this phenomenological study, informed by Schlossberg’s Transition Theory, was to understand the lived experiences of native-born Dominican baseball players entering the Major League Baseball (MLB) Dominican Republic (DR) academies, transitioning through MLB’s developmental system, and exiting the developmental system into a successful major-league career. This study sought to answer the following research questions: RQ1: What social, cultural, and language challenges are experienced by Dominican players during their transition through the major league developmental system; RQ2: What learning and cognitive challenges are experienced by Dominican players during their transition through the MLB’s developmental system; and RQ3: What psychological and mental health challenges are experienced by Dominican players during their transition through the MLB’s developmental system. The study employed interviews of a purposive sampling of nine native Dominican MLB players who have transitioned through the developmental system from the DR and whose achievements represent a level of success that provided a rich source of information (Patton, 2022). The study identified three main themes that helped describe this population's lived experiences, challenges, and success. This study analyzed relevant factors of acculturation and language adjustability, educational levels, emotional maturity, and psychological resiliency. A qualitative analysis explored the challenging circumstances Dominican players experience across the seven-to-twelve-year transition to a successful major league career.

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