Part 1: Why Study Youth/Children in Sport?

• Why Study Youth/Children in Sport? There are large numbers of youth/children involved in organised youth sport (Sport NZ; 2012, 2016)

  • (i) Approx 500,000 participants aged 6-18 years play sport in NZ. That is equivalent to about 1/6th of the population
  • Percentage wise is pretty high  
  • (ii) In the USA there are approximately 25 million participants aged 6-18 years (1/8th of population)
  • (iii) In the UK there are approximately 7.5 million participants aged 5-15 years  (1/10th of population)
  • Lots of youth participating in sport, choosing to do something they don’t have to do
• Why Study Youth/Children in Sport? Youth/Children spend a lot of time in youth sports 

  • How many sports, training etc did you do in your youth?
  • Big participation in time not just number of people
• Why Study Youth/Children in Sport? Sport is important for youth/children (Chase & Machinda, 2011 → social status) 

  • Is important (is voluntary), but why?
  • Participate in sports team (watch back)
• Why Study Youth/Children in Sport? Sport is important for youth/children

  • New Zealand youth consistently rate sport as one of the most important activities in their lives (over academics). (Battrick & Thomson, 1993)
  • Prestige of sport participation
  • Social status, peer pressure
  • Parental pressure / expectations
  • Societal expectations
• Why Study Youth/Children in Sport? Sport is important for youth/children  (Chase & Machida, 2011; Chase & Dummer, 1992)

  • New Zealand youth consistently rate sport as one of the most important activities in their lives (over academics)
  • Prestige of sport participation
  • Feeds into social status 
  • Respect in peer group, esp if in 1 of 1st teams
  • More important than academics 
  • How much is free choice (intrinsic)?
• Why Study Youth/Children in Sport? Youth/Children participate in sport at a critical time: during puberty & adolescence 

  • ===>> it needs to be determined whether this influence is positive or negative
• Why Study Youth/Children in Sport? Youth/Children participate in sport at a critical time: during puberty & adolescence 

  • ===>> it needs to be determined whether this influence is positive or negative
  • In physiological & physical maturation changes 
  • Including psychological change
  • Sport can help or can get in the way
  • Big number competing at sport in critical time of life
• Why Study Youth/Children in Sport? Youth/Children participate in sport at a critical time: during puberty & adolescence 

  • ===>> it needs to be determined whether this influence is positive or negative
  • Why do youth choose to participate?
  • More than 1 reason (are multiple)