The present study aimed to identify and elucidate the role of technology in the internal (psychological-motivational) factors of athletes within the sports talent identification process in Iraq, framed within the individual catalysts of Gagné’s Differentiated Model of Giftedness and Talent (DMGT). Adopting a qualitative approach, the research employed Reflexive Thematic Analysis. The coding process commenced with a deductive orientation based on Gagné’s individual catalysts and was subsequently supplemented by inductive codes derived from the empirical data. The research population consisted of coaches and talent identification managers in men’s football and basketball in Iraq. Through purposive and expert sampling, 16 participants from Baghdad, Erbil, and Basra were selected until theoretical saturation was reached. Data were collected via semi-structured interviews and analyzed manually.

The data analysis yielded 18 organizing themes and four overarching themes: technology as a source of behavioral-physiological evidence for assessing internal factors; the tension between coach intuition and objective technological data; institutional, infrastructural, and financial gaps; and concerns regarding trust and cultural suitability. The findings revealed that while coaches possess a rich perception of potential technological mechanisms, this potential remains largely unrealized due to a lack of targeted investment, cultural trust limitations, and a predominant reliance on intuition. The results indicate the existence of a mediating layer between the presence of individual catalysts and their identifiability within the talent identification system—a dimension that is less addressed in existing Gagné-based theories. Realizing this layer necessitates the simultaneous development of technical infrastructure, cultural trust, and the interpretive skills of coaches.