From attention to intention: shifting our prepositions and preconceptions about sport and flourishing in high-performance sport

Purpose: This paper aims to conceptually reframe how sport and flourishing are mutually understood by shifting from a sole focus on attention (e.g., how does well-being ‘fit’ within sport contexts) to intention (e.g., what do sport contexts offer for human flourishing). Such discussions aim to centralize how sport psychology can serve as a ‘beacon of hope’ for communicating these ambitions within high-performance sport.

Background: Sport is often seen as a microcosm of society, reflecting both its potentials and pitfalls. Across socioecological levels—from grassroots to elite—scholars have shown how sport can both support and undermine well-being. Yet, conceptual clarity pertaining to flourishing within sport, and what sport offers for flourishing remains underdeveloped. This paper proposes a dual conceptual model of sport and flourishing, bridging disciplinary insights from psychology, sociology, and philosophy to align sport contexts with broader flourishing scholarship.

Methods: We conducted a narrative literature review with critical commentary. Drawing on a fractal view of flourishing (rather than a monolithic one), we critically examine the key challenges within the sport literature and explore properties connected to flourishing within sport (e.g., embeddedness, purview and scope of well-being, quality of the sport environment) and sport for flourishing (e.g., pertaining to individuals, communities, and for humanity).

Conclusions: Understanding sport as both a container and conduit for human flourishing invites theoretical, methodological, and applied possibilities. We conclude the first talk of this symposium with a call for a more unified sport and flourishing community and scholarship.