To gauge an opinion of the general public and find out if the competition aspect of sports is more important than participation.
Key Terms for this topic:
Winning: Can be defined as relating to the act of being successful; victorious.
(http://www.thefreedictionary.com/winning)
Participation: Can be defined as taking part of, or engagement: the act of sharing in the activities of a group.
(http://wordnetweb.princeton.edu/perl/webwn?s=participation)
Sport: Can be defined as an activity involving physical exertion and skill in which an individual or team competes against another or others for entertainment.
(http://oxforddictionaries.com/definition/english/sport)
Youth: Can be defined as the state of being young, or the period between childhood and adult age.
(http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/youth)
(http://www.thefreedictionary.com/Youth)
Literature One: Research in Youth Sports: Critical Issues Status*
Ryan Hedstrom & Daniel Gould
Institute for the Study of Youth Sports
Literature Review/Summary
This article explores studies that were conducted to gain insight in to youth sports involvement, participation and also attrition. Often youth participate in sports for numerous reasons and motives. The first study surveyed 8000 youth looking at the reasons why they were participating in sports (Seefeldt, Ewing, & Walk, 1992). The top reasons included fitness, improve skills, social interaction, to do something I'm good at, being a member of a team, but overall the most important reason was having fun. Finally, "to win" was ranked 8th in the results, so enjoyment was far superior to winning in that age group.
Although studies for key motives can help researchers gain a better understanding of the reasons for participation by youth, there can be deeper motives. For example a child that is more adept and proficient in his/her physical capabilities have been found more likely to
References: Feigley, D.A. (2013). The Role of Winning in Youth Sports. Retrieved from http://youthsports.rutgers.edu/program-areas/24-articles/44-the-role-of-winning-in-youth-sports