National Collegiate Athletic Association Division and Primary Job Title of Athletic Trainers and Their Job Satisfaction Or Intention to Leave Athletic Training (Original Research) (Report‪)‬

Membership in the National Athletic Trainers' Association (NATA) has declined in recent years, generating much debate about the professional commitment of athletic trainers. Although it increased steadily starting in the mid-1970s and continuing to 2005, (1) membership declined for the first time in history in 2006. (2) Data from the NATA have indicated an approximate attrition of 19990 members between 2001 and 2006. (1) Examination of membership categories indicated a comparatively low (2.1%) increase in total certified membership compared with a 23% increase in total student membership from 2007 to 2008. (1) This suggests new membership from students is driving membership numbers. Clearly, NATA membership numbers are declining, but whether individuals simply are not renewing their memberships in the organization or if they actually are abandoning the athletic training profession is unclear. Therefore, speculating whether a decline in NATA membership also could indicate a decline in job satisfaction and ultimately affect a person's decision to leave the profession entirely is reasonable. Although attrition in athletic training was examined in the early 1990s, (3) the issue has resurfaced as the constructs of job satisfaction and intention to leave have gained attention in the athletic training literature. (4-6)