This study aimed to provide theoretical basic materials allowing a wide range of understanding to verify the correlation between participation in school sports club activities and changes of ego identity of middle school students as well as the factors influencing changes of their ego identity, after inquiring into factors influencing the level of ego identity of middle school students and the formation of the level of their ego identity through comparing their state between before and after their participation in school sports club activities. In particular, this study was carried out during the period of research from September of 2016 to November of 2018, with a view to inquiring into changes and mechanism of ego identity of students participating in school sports club activities in the long term. As for the subjects of study, this study selected a total of 6 students composed of 3 female and 3 male students, as research participants, registered as members of “Volleyball Club” of school sports club of J Middle School from January of 2017 to September of 2018. This study analyzed materials based on 4 types of data analysis proposed by Stake(1995), after collecting in-depth interview materials, student journals and teachers’ memos. The research results can be summarized as follows.

Firstly, what are the level of ego identity of students and limiting mechanism before the student’s participation in the Volleyball Club?

Before research participants participated in the Volleyball Club activities, their ego identity was equivalent to “diffusion level”. It is because they lacked clear directionality of school life and future, and they were not trying to actively find a way to establish a goal for values or growth. The limiting factors influencing ego identity of research participants were identified in 4 categories as follows:
Firstly, it is an aimless school life. Due to the lack of objectives for themselves and school life, research participants apparently seemed to be satisfied with their respective life but they helplessly fall asleep during the class or distract class playing pranks. In addition, they were simply exchanging trivial chatters with classmates or playing childish pranks on them (cutting up didoes) during the break and lunch time, and this turned out that they were very hardly exposed to the opportunity of improving relationship with their teachers or classmates, or confirming their real abilities.
Secondly, it is the deficiency of time and space to help improve/grow themselves. Research participants were not students who only concentrate on study, and most of them were not really interested in studying. For this reason, they did not have any meaningful experience in the class where most of their time was spent at school and they were not given an opportunity to display their dream and talent even in the creative talent and discretion activities. After school, the majority of them go directly to their respective private institute and go back home after the institute to rest and sleep. This repetitive pattern of life did not allow them to reflect on themselves and they felt limited in promoting their capacities for leisure activities.
Thirdly, it is indifferent parents of theirs. Most of research participants underwent conflicts with their parents not only in terms of career but also behaviors irrelevant to learning. Research participants were distanced from life as autonomous decision makers and experienced deceased self-confidence, because their parents neglected their capacities, constantly pressed them into study and showed bias in their real interests.
Fourthly, it is the succession of helpless results. The majority of research participants experienced helplessness with study. This helplessness with study occurred because they realized that they were not able to get better grades through studies at school and private institutes even though they recognized that they had no will to study. Moreover, it turned out that they were demotivated for educational activities and experienced reduced self-respect due to bias and indifference of their teachers.
The 4 limiting factors made it difficult for research participants to recognize their true values and capacities and hesitate to establish clear goal and direction for the future, being the first graders of middle school. Thus, the level of ego identity of students led them to remain in the state of “confusion.”

Secondly, what are the level of ego identity of students and promoting mechanism after the student’s participation in the Volleyball Club?

The ego identity of each research participants posterior to participation in the Volleyball Club belonged to “the level of moratorium and achievement.” Though research participants belonging to “moratorium level” did not make a clear decision of their career, they have strong confidence in their abilities and intend to autonomously behave in accordance with their chosen values and goal. Research participants with “achievement level” are aware of their values and have relatively firm ideas of the future, and intend to autonomously behave in accordance with their chosen values and goal. The promoting factors influencing ego identity of research participants were identified in 6 categories as follows:
Firstly, it is the formation of a space for their existence. Research participants started to feel the values of their existence through participating in the Volleyball Club activities. They could recognize the values of their existence through regular psychological processes such as “Rewarding Volleyball Club activities,” “Satisfactory school life,” and “Proud me.” Regarding such psychological process, they constantly felt “Rewarding Volleyball Club activities” and “Satisfactory school life” until reaching “Proud me.” Once they experience “Proud me”, they kept sensing the feeling in the state of an organic connection.
Secondly, it is reinforcement of ego resilience. Research participants felt shame about their bodies due to bias of their parents, teachers and friends (bias in physical, mental and learning terms) and negative evaluations regarding the participation in the Volleyball Club activities and they also felt sorry and upset about distrust given by people mentioned before. Moreover, research participants experienced some conflicts among the members due to the restriction of environment where the sports activity was carried out, lack of volleyballs and competition of position which is inevitable for a group play. Also, they went through discord with members because of the difference of degree of immersion and level of skill once they started a key role in the Volleyball Club. In addition, they also experienced disappointment and pain caused by repeated failure of volleyball skills. The environment relatively exposed to comparison whether willing or not led them to go through decreased self-confidence of volleyball or self-esteem. However, they strengthened their ego resilience by overcoming bias, conflicts, disappointment, pain and reduction of self-confidence and self-esteem.
Thirdly, it is the improvement of self-esteem. Research participants felt frustrated for they experienced plenty of failure while learning volleyball. Nonetheless, they were able to lead their failure into success through autonomous practice and incessant exercises of volleyball skills without giving it up. Besides, research participants also experienced recognition and support from their peers and teachers with respect to difficulty in Volleyball Club activities and high-level volleyball abilities. Thus, they could receive recognition and supports from their parents by showing changes of their life habits and the new aspect of achieving a goal through volleyball activities. This success experience based on their efforts and recognition and supports from their friends, teachers and parents contributed to increasing values and capacities of research participants.
Fourthly, it is changes in their general attitudes in school life. Research participants demonstrated changes in their life attitudes and received psychological supports from their teachers, and this contributed to improving the relationship with their teachers and removing bias against their teachers. Furthermore, the relationship with peers improved due to fellowship overcoming adversity with the united goal. Also, the relationship between members of a younger generation and an older generation improved through learning the value of existence of the colleagues with more years of experiences, and they could establish a positive relationship with peers who do not belong to the Volleyball Club for they could recognize advantages of patience and diverse relationship. Likewise, research participants showed higher satisfaction with school since they felt thankful to human / physical / financial supports given by school. They could get better grades compared with the period prior to participation in the Volleyball Club because their interest and self-confidence in study increased.
Fifthly, it is the development of emotional intelligence of sports. Through actively participating in the Volleyball Club training 7 months after they started the club activities, research participants could meet the coach’s expectations, settle internal conflicts, control impulsive behaviors and practice “the wanted behavior” required for sports activities. Moreover, research participants, who participated in the Volleyball Club activities for about 12 months, realized the importance of “us” in addition to “me.” Therefore, they started to carry out behaviors including decision-making for the benefit of the team instead of their individual emotions, services for the growth of the Volleyball Club and dedication to maintain the team.
Sixthly, it is the succession of goal establishment closely related to growth. Research participants could set up concrete goals to adapt themselves to the volleyball and master the basic skills since they started to participate in the club. Each member carried out the Volleyball Club activities while focusing on the improvement of volleyball techniques by establishing higher individual performance goals as time goes by. However, such individual goals changed into goals to improve performance abilities for themselves and the team, when they became members with more years of experiences. As a result, research participants were able to develop self-trust away from being obsessed with the results and the attitudes of determining one’s capacities as well as challenge spirit.
Based on these 6 promoting factors, research participants could achieve their ego identity towards “the level of delay and achievement” for they could highly recognize their values and capacities and build the attitude of setting up and challenging goals by seeking and establishing the proper career meeting their aptitude and competence. In other words, research participants went through crisis, confusion and frustration through the Volleyball Club activities, but, at the same time, they also obtained efforts and achievement to overcome such psychological difficulties. In the middle of this process, it is estimated that it was possible for research participants to find their capacities, highly recognize their true values and grow themselves while asking and answering to this question of “Who am I? What am I doing indeed? How am I supposed to live?”