Examining Talent Development Environments in Nigeria Using The TDEQ-9S: Differences Across Sex, Sport, Age, and Environment-Type

This study aimed to examine athlete perspectives of the talent development environment in Nigeria, and explore differences across sex, sport, age and environment-type. Six hundred and fifty-two athletes, across 20 sports, completed the Talent Development Environment Questionnaire-9S (TDEQ-9S). The results revealed that Fostering Athlete Understanding and Clear Long-term Development Priority & Preparation were the highest scoring factors while Active Management of Holistic Development (Education, Parents, Life Management), and Coherent and Approachable Expert Support Network in Sport were lowest scoring factors. MANOVA tests revealed statistically significant differences across TDEQ-9S factors for sport, age, and environment-type but not sex. Statistically significant higher scores were apparent for individual sports and older athletes across four and six factors respectively. Significantly higher scores were found for State managed talent development environments across all TDEQ-9S factors, except for Fostering Athlete Understanding. Item-by-item analysis revealed more nuanced findings, highlighting the complementary ways these TDEs are serving Nigerian athletes, and the areas for improvement that can be targeted in an efficient way. Implications for both the Nigerian context and more broadly for researchers and practitioners in other developing countries are discussed.