Children and Sport Psychology 08 16 2010 The Importance of Children s Sport Psychology Some of the most important implications of sport psychology are found in the children s sport arena where participants are plentiful and are highly involved Why a Psychology of the Young Athlete So many children are involved an estimated 45 million in the Children are intensely involved in youth sport Participation peaks at a critical developmental period in the child s United States life age 12 Organized sport is not automatically beneficial qualified competent Why Children Participate or Discontinue Participation in Sport adult leadership is needed Why children participate o Learn new skills o Fun o Affiliation o Thrills and excitement o Exercise and fitness o Competitive challenge winning Why children withdraw o Failure to learn new skills o Lack of fun o Lack of affiliation o Lack of thrills and excitement Underlying psychological motive for participation or withdrawal o Lack of exercise and fitness o No challenge failure o Perceived competence o Goal orientations o Stress response Why Children Discontinue Participation in Sport Participation statistics o Peak participation occurs between the ages of 10 and 13 years o For every 10 children who begin a sport season 3 to 4 quit before the start of the next season Motives for withdrawal o Major reason Other things to do o Some negative reasons e g Not as good as I wanted to be Boredom Did not like the pressure cited by some children The importance of perceived competence o Children with low perceptions of their athletic abilities drop out or do not participate in sport whereas children with high perceptions of their competence participate and persist Sport specific dropouts withdraw from a particular program but enter into other sports Sport general dropouts withdraw from all sport participation Sport general dropouts are a special concern Key o Understand underlying motives for withdrawal Summary o Most of the motives children have are intrinsic e g to have fun learn skills winning clearly is neither the only nor the most common motive for participation o Most young athletes have multiple reasons for participation not a single motive o Although most children withdraw because of change of interests a significant minority discontinue for negative reasons e g lack of fun pressure o Underlying the descriptive motive e g fun is the child s need to feel worthy Strategies for Structuring Sport Situations to Meet the Needs of Young Athletes Coaches can enhance motivation by structuring environments to meet specific needs Facilitating Motivation in Young Athletes Implications for practice o Enhance perceived competence teach young athletes to define success as exceeding their own goals not simply winning o Keep participation and withdrawal statistics o When children discontinue rigorously analyze why they are withdrawing from sport Is the child interested in another sport Is withdrawal permanent or temporary Did the child have a say in the decision What are effects on long term welfare Positive Role of Friends in Youth Sport Companionship Spending time together Pleasant play association Enjoying being around one s friends Enhancement of self esteem Having friends say things or take actions that boost one s self esteem Help and guidance Providing assistance in learning sport skills as well as general assistance such as in school Pro social behavior Saying and doing things that conform to social convention such as sharing or not saying negative things Intimacy Mutual feelings of close personal bonds Emotional support Expressions and feeling of concern for one another absence of conflicts some friends do not argue fight or disagree Conflict resolution Ability of friends to resolve conflicts Attractive personal qualities Positive characteristics such as personality or physical features Negative Role of Friends in Youth Sports Conflict e g insults arguments Unattractive personal qualities e g self centered Betrayal Role of Friends in Youth Sport Inaccessibility lack of opportunity to interact o Key Peer relations affect motivation for physical activity Friendship in Sport Implications for Practice Enhance peer relationships by creating motivational climates that enhance task goals and foster cooperation versus competition Conduct drills that require small groups of players to interact which will maximize involvement Reduce displays of social status e g public picking of teams In sport settings provide time for children to be with friends and to make new friends Encourage positive peer reinforcement Emphasize teamwork foster cohesion and emphasize the pursuit of group team goals Stress and Burnout in Children s Competitive Sport Are young athletes placed under too much stress o No the majority of young athletes are not under excessive stress less than 10 are Survey on young wrestlers o Y axis young wrestlers X axis score o Most had a low to moderate score almost 2 3 of them Is state anxiety heightened in young athletes o High stress state anxiety levels are relatively rare but affect 2 5 million children in specific situations o Stress among elite junior competitors is caused by fear of failure and feelings of inadequacy o Children at risk for heightened state anxiety exhibit certain personal characteristics Key o Excessive trait anxiety does not appear to be associated with youth sport participation Personal Characteristics of Children at Risk for Heightened State Anxiety High trait anxiety Low self esteem Maladaptive perfectionism Low performance expectancies relative to team Low self performance expectations Frequent worries about failure Frequent worries about adult expectations and evaluation by others Less perceived fun Less satisfaction with their performance regardless of winning or losing Perception that participation is important to parents Outcome goal orientation and low perceived ability Situational Sources of Stress Defeat versus victory o Children experience more state anxiety after losing than after winning Event importance Sport type o The more importance that is placed on a contest the more state anxiety that is experienced by participation o Children in individual sports experience more state anxiety than children in team sports Stress Induced Burnout Burnout is a special case of sport withdrawal in which a young athlete discontinues sport involvement in response to chronic stress Characteristics of burnout include one dimensional self