THE EXAMINATION OF ATHLETES' PROFESSIONALISM LEVELS

The purpose of this study is to examine the professionalism levels of athletes. For this purpose, a descriptive survey model was used in the study. The population of the study consists of students studying at sports higher education institutions during the 2023-2024 academic year. The sample of the study consists of a total of 112 athletes, 65 males and 47 females, randomly selected from students studying at Ordu University's sports higher education institutions. As a data collection tool, a "Personal Information Form" developed by the researcher and the "Professionalism Scale for Athletes" developed by Güngör et al. (2022) were used. Initially, the students were informed about the study. There was no time restriction during the data collection process. The Cronbach's alpha coefficient of the responses given to the items in the scale was calculated. The general Cronbach Alpha reliability coefficient for the scale related to attitudes towards healthy eating was calculated as 0.902. In the data analysis of the study, normality distribution analysis was applied according to skewness and kurtosis results. According to the analysis results, the data were evaluated using the Student-t test for pairwise comparisons and one-way variance analysis (ANOVA) and Tukey multiple comparison tests for multiple comparisons. No significant differences were found in variables such as gender, type of sport, being a national athlete, age, and years of experience in sports. The professional behavior of athletes is crucial for the operation and system of sports competitions. In this regard, it was found that the research variables did not have any effect on the level of professionalism. As a result, it is recommended that the current research topic be examined in a more comprehensive manner. Additionally, it is of great importance for athletes to act sportsmanlike, to be aware of the sense of responsibility in sports, and to view sports as a way of life.