Analysis: the youth sport environment is becoming increasingly professionalised and providing appropriate parental support is incredibly complicated
By Shannon Burke, Anglia Ruskin University and Lee-Ann Sharpe, Ulster University
Participating in youth sport provides children and adolescents with many physical, psychological, and social health benefits. For example, youth sport participation supports the development of positive peer relationships and the development of important skills, such as leadership and discipline. Also, taking part in youth sport has been shown to improve academic performance and gives children the opportunity to develop fine and gross motor skills. Importantly, however, children and adolescents are more likely to experience positive developmental outcomes if they experience positive relationships with sporting mentors, such as parents and coaches.
Within the youth sport system, parents are one of the more salient and significant members. Many professional athletes, such as Rory McIlroy, have publicly spoken about the importance of their parents' support in their pursuit of world excellence. In the early years of sport participation, it is parents who introduce children to sport and provide the opportunities for participation. Parents also provide important resources for sport engagement, such as equipment, membership fees, and transportation. Parents can act as role models by participating in sport or by taking on the role of coach. As parents participate in these roles, they provide a model of what is considered appropriate and inappropriate behaviour and normalise sports participation for their children.
However, being a sport parent isn’t easy, and there are a range of challenges that parents experience in the youth sport environment. Parents experience stressors relating to the financial and time investment that youth sport requires. Their children’s behaviour and performance can at times also be viewed as a significant source of stress. Parents watch from the side-lines as their children experience success, failure, deselection, and injury. These stressors are compounded by the fact that the youth sport environment is becoming increasingly professionalised, with little support available for parents.
We need your consent to load this rte-player contentWe use rte-player to manage extra content that can set cookies on your device and collect data about your activity. Please review their details and accept them to load the content.Manage Preferences
From RTÉ 2FM's Game On's The Thursday Topic, coach Shane Smith and Child and Adolescent Psychotherapist Colman Noctor on parenting and sport
As such, we are often met with reports of abusive and 'pushy' parental behaviours in media outlets. A recent study with youth athletes has illustrated that unsupportive parental behaviour includes support withdrawal, negative comments or swearing, making physical contact with, or punishing youth athletes after a poor performance. The display of negative body language and facial expressions and pressure to practice and perform, are also considered inappropriate parental behaviours. Such negative parental involvement has been linked to increased pre-competitive anxiety, decreased levels of sport enjoyment, and shown to contribute to youth sport dropout. Equally, the provision of appropriate parental support is associated with sport enjoyment and continued participation. But how can parents provide appropriate support? The answer is… it’s complicated.
A recent study has illustrated that parents provide a variety of types of support. For example, parents provide financial support for equipment, competition fees, and travel expenses. Parents also provide transport to and from competitions. As youth athletes deal with the trials and tribulations, selections and deselections of youth sport, the emotional support provided by parents is also very important. In this respect, athletes’ have expressed a desire for parents to adopt a ‘person-first’ approach, whereby they are treated as a person first, athlete-second and provide them with unconditional love and support, irrespective of their performance. Parents may also provide informational support, relating to the technical and strategic elements of their child’s sport. Finally, through autonomy support parents provide children and adolescents with opportunities for sport participation, but also with the freedom to make their own decisions regarding their sport involvement.
Read more: Why do girls stop playing sport? Let's ask them
However, providing appropriate parental support is incredibly complicated and adopting a one-size-fits-all approach is unlikely to work for all families. That is, perceptions and interpretations of parental support can vary greatly among young athletes. Each youth athlete possesses their own unique perspective, which is shaped by previous experiences and a myriad of different characteristics. The sporting knowledge and experience of parents can influence how children interpret their parents’ behaviour. For example, children who perceive their parents to have appropriate sport knowledge are more likely to interpret the provision of informational support as supportive.
Read more: How family can be crucial to the development of athletes in sport
However, youth athletes who view their parents to have limited sport experience and knowledge, are more likely to interpret the same informational support as inappropriate. Similarly, the context (i.e., practice or competitive environment) and indeed the timing of support (e.g., before, during, or after competition) can also influence how youth athletes interpret their parents’ behaviour. This is further complicated by what stage the youth athlete is in their developmental journey, as youth athletes’ interpretations of parental support change as they progress through the various stages of athlete development.
So, if youth athletes possess unique views on supportive parental behaviour, how can parents provide appropriate support? Well, research has shown that communication is critical. It is essential that parents and their youth athletes engage in open, two-way communication regarding parental support. Moreover, given that youth athletes’ views of parental support change as they progress through the stages of athlete development, it is important that this communication occurs regularly.
"It’s important that parents talk to their kid about what their kid wants regularly, not just when they first start playing sport, because obviously what you want changes over time… just talk about it, because every kid is different".
Questions that parents may ask include: "How would you like me to support you at competition today?" "Is there anything that you would like me to do differently?" Through this communication, youth athletes are afforded the opportunity to express their views of positive parental support in a safe and comfortable environment, while it provides parents with an opportunity to gain a better understanding of their children’s preferences.
Previously, we have seen sport clubs populated with lists of dos and don’ts and parental codes of conduct. However, given that perceptions and interpretations of parental support can vary among youth athletes, such a prescriptive and one-size-fits-all approach may prove ineffective. As we continue to develop parent-education, it is important that we continue to address the challenges sport parents experience. It is also critical that parents’ attention is drawn to the individual nature of providing parental support, and indeed factors which influence how youth athletes interpret their parents’ behaviour.
We need your consent to load this rte-player contentWe use rte-player to manage extra content that can set cookies on your device and collect data about your activity. Please review their details and accept them to load the content.Manage Preferences
From RTÉ Archives, 11-year-old Cavan golfers Lisa and Leona Maguire return home from the 2006 World Junior Golf Championships (Broadcast August 2, 2006)
Finally, given the importance of bi-directional communication, generating opportunities for regular open communication between parent and youth athlete, while also creating space for the development of communication skills within youth sport organisations may be of particular interest.
Dr Shannon Burke is a Lecturer in Sport and Exercise Psychology at Anglia Ruskin University, Cambridge, and Dr Lee-Ann Sharp is a Lecturer in Sport and Exercise Psychology at Ulster University.
The views expressed here are those of the author and do not represent or reflect the views of RTÉ
