Youth\'s Decision to Withdraw From

¶ … YOUTH'S DECISION to WITHDRAW FROM a SPORT

To Have Fun"

The number one reason a youth relates that he/she participates in a sport "is to have fun" Seefeldt, Ewing, and Walk (1992; cited by Hedstrom and Gould, 2004, p. 21) purport. Motives which influence a youth's decision to participate in sports include a number of other reasons, often multiple and include the: "interplay of skill development, physical development, and social interaction" (Ibid.).

Regarding a youth's motives to participate in school-sponsored sports, the motive "to win" ranks number 8. Youth who participated in sports outside of those their school sponsored, albeit, did not even list the reason, "to win" as a reason they decided to participate in sports. Research repeatedly reveals that a number of youth withdraw from sport "because they experience 'too much stress' and 'not enough fun'" (Klint and Wiess, 1986' cited by Holt and Mandigo, 2004). Drop-out rates for organized youth sport programs routinely average up to 35% each year (Gould and Petlichkoff, 1988; cited by Holt and Mandigo, 2004) Consequently, understanding how youth can better cope with/in competitive sport experiences proves to be a significant study (Crocker, Hoar, McDonough, Kowalski, and Neifer; cited by Holt and Mandigo, 2004). A youth's decision to withdraw from sports may arise from, or partially relate to numerous contextual and performance stressors, which may include but not limited to: a: excessive amounts of pressure; b: conflicts with the coach/coach criticisms of player; c: dearth of fun; d: excessive emphasis on winning, e: fear of being hurt or injured; f: experiencing conflicts with members on opposing teams; g: making repeated physical/mental errors, h:

parent/s exerting pressure by being over-involved and/or expressing unreasonable expectations for the youth to succeed (Anshel and Delany, 2001; Crocker and Isaak, 1997; Gould and Eklund, 1996; Goyen and Anshel, 1998: Klint and Weiss, 1986; Scanlan and Lewthwaite, 1984; cited by Holt and Mandigo, 2004). Along with the intent "to have fun," researchers purport youth possess deeper motives for their participation in sports. (Gould and Petlichkoff, 1988; cited by Hedstrom and Gould, 2004, p. 21). In a similar sense, this researcher notes and reports in this literature review chapter, that a myriad of "reasons" may contribute to a youth deciding to withdraw from a sport.

Hedstrom and Gould (2004, p. 23) cite Seefeldt, Ewing, and Walk, (1992) to relate the following four "reasons" youth give for their withdrawal from sport activities.

Youth lost interest in the sport's activity.

The sport and/or participating in it was no longer fun.

The youth felt as if their coach was not a good instructor and/or "played favorites." 4. The youth wanted to participate in some other activity (could include a job) or no longer had time for engaging in the sport (Hedstrom and Gould, 2004, p. 23).

Another researcher relates similar reasons for youth withdrawing from sports.

While the frequency of the specific motives given for withdrawal vary among studies, a number of reasons such as conflicts of interest, lack of success or improvement, lack of playing time, dislike of the coach or boredom appear in the majority of reports (Weiss; cited by Molinero, Salguero, Tuero, Alvarez and Marquez, 2006).

The National Council of Youth Sports reports that than 44 million children participated in youth and high school sports during 2007, "12 million more than in 1997." But according to a study by the National Alliance for Youth Sports, nearly 75% of approximately 20 million youth sports participants quit by the age of 13" (Lenzi, 2008, ¶ 8).

Ten of the most frequently selected reasons related in one study of youth's participation in sport activities included the following:

To have fun;

To do something I'm good at to improve my skills

To stay in shape

To get exercise

For the excitement of competition

For the challenge of competition

To learn new skills

To play as part of a team

To go to a higher level of competition, (Seefeldt,1993, p. 56)

Seefeldt (1993, p. 61) states: "The reasons that youth gave for dropping out of sport were the antithesis of those given for participating in sport."

Youth ages 10-16 reported "not having fun" and "no longer interested in the sport" as the major reason they decided to withdraw from a sport. Youth 17 and 18 years-old related the identify of reasons, however they added: "wanting to get a job" to their list of reasons for withdrawing from sport.

Younger athletes, who generally withdrew from non-school sponsored sports noted reasons for their withdrawal to include: problems with older children; being bored at practice; not liking the way a uniform fit or looked on them; other players playing too rough; coach did not allow them to play often; conflicts with teammates or feeling of a team members did not like them; experienced time/energy conflict due to other sports' demands; not appropriate sport for age group. In another study noted by Lenzi (2008), reasons for withdrawal from sports by youth included:

Other sports took too much time;

Took job, giving less time;

Did not enjoy it anymore;

Was not good enough;

Too much pressure to perform well;

Parents discouraged me from continuing;

Too expensive;

Injury played a role;

Coach was the reason;

No longer an opportunity;

Spend more time on non-sport activities.

Reasons" this Researcher Relates for this literature review, this researcher relates "reasons" youth decide to withdraw from sports under the following four categories. Some of the reasons may include: a: Youth lost interest and/or no longer considered sport fun; b: Coach and/or team influence; c: Psychological, physical and/or emotional reasons; d. Familial matters (includes time).

2.2 Youth Lost Interest or No Longer Considered Sport Fun as "to have fun," as Seefeldt, Ewing, and Walk (1992; cited by T (Hedstrom and Gould, 2004, p. 21) note, constitutes the primary reason, among numerous reasons, youth relate for their participation in sports, it naturally follows that when the sport is no longer fun, the youth may withdraw. Numerous studies exploring youth sport attrition have many youth who drop out are either participating in other sports or plan to continue the same sport at a later time (Gould, Feltz, Horn, and Weiss,1982; Klint and Weiss, 1986; cited by Hedstrom and Gould, 2004, p. 23). Researchers we salmon youth sport attrition note it vital to "distinguish between those athletes who drop out of all sports and those that go on to sample others." Gould and Petlichkoff (1988 cited by Hedstrom and Gould, 2004, p. 23 refer to these variances as "sport-specific and domain-general forms of sport withdrawal." Gould, cited by Holt and Mandigo (2004) states: "One social arena where children may experience psychosocial stress is via participation in organized youth sport." Descriptive research reveals youths base their motives for participating in various sports feelings they experience such as " competence (e.g., learning new skills), affiliation (e.g., making friends), competition (e.g., to win), and fun (e.g., for excitement)" (Weiss, 2000; cited by Holt and Mandigo, 2004). Along with positive alluring motives youth experience, however, a number of negative outcomes also link to youth sport participation. This includes decreased fun and satisfaction (Scanlan and Lewthwaite, 1984; cited by Holt and Mandigo, 2004); physical injury (Smith, Smoll, and Ptacek, 1990; cited by Holt and Mandigo, 2004); deteriorated performance (Gould, Eklund, Petlichkoff, Peterson, and Bump, 1991; cited by Holt and Mandigo, 2004); burnout" (Smith, 1986; cited by Holt and Mandigo, 2004).

Ultimately, these un-fun factors frequently contribute to a youth deciding to withdraw from sport" (Petlichkoff, 1996; cited by Holt and Mandigo, 2004).

Teachable Moments in Sports

Lenzi (2008, para. 4) contends that, whether considered fun or not, "every practice and every game is a teachable moment," however, simultaneously poses the questions: "Will we help raise productive members of society or will we raise athletes? Or will we teach, 'a team is a place where parents go crazy?'" One vital lesson from youth participating in sports, Lenzi stresses, includes value of being part of a team. As youth are involved, they also learn the value of ensuring things get done right.

Martens (1996; cited by Brady, 2004, p. 48) argued that a number of the practices currently utilized and in youth sports, turns youth away from instead of to the continuing practice of physical activity.

To redress this situation, he proposed two principles that are germane to continued participation in sports: the "Self-Worth Principle" and the "Fun Principle." The Self-Worth Principle encompasses the need to feel competent and worthy and to experience success. Martens stated that being competent in the physical domain was important and that positive experiences, accompanied by both the internal feedback of accomplishment and the external recognition of success, enhance competence and feelings of worthiness. However, a number of practices result in lowered self-worth and feelings of incompetence: pushing athletes into activities that are developmentally too advanced, over-emphasizing competition, shifting the emphasis from learning to performing skills, failing to recognize small steps in progress, carping about the gap between current and desired skill levels, comparing players with those who are developmentally more advanced, and openly criticizing players and causing embarrassment for inadequate performance in front of peers and parents.

The Fun Principle stated that as "we take the fun out of physical activities, we take the kids out of them" (Martens, 1996, p. 306). Martens said that learning should be enjoyable and that when winning is pursued in the extreme, it produces behaviors that destroy children's self-worth and rob them of fun. However, adults frequently violate this principle by over organizing, constantly instructing and evaluating, over drilling and routinizing the learning of skills, replacing unstructured play with calisthenics, and using physical activity as a form of punishment. Martens noted that the irony in youth sports is that "we turn young people off of the very thing we want to turn them on to" (p. 309). If lifelong participation in physical activity is the goal, then the emphasis should shift from the outcome to the quality of experiences, according to Martens. (Brady, 2004, p. 48)

Differences in Youth Who Withdraw from Sports

In their study, Butcher, Lindner and Johns (2002) identify four different dropout types of youth who withdraw from sports. These include: a: elite competitors; b: sampler dropouts; c: low level participants; d: high level participants. The elite competitors possess significantly different ranks from the other three dropout types.. The main reasons the elite competitors related for their withdrawal from sports included: "too much pressure to perform well, injury, needing time for studying, and the coach" (Butcher, Lindner and Johns, 2002). The second most important reason the sample dropouts gave for their withdrawal from sports reflected their perceptions of their competence in sports to be poor; that for some reason or another, they were not quite good enough. For the low and high level participants, other sport, as well as non-sport, activities ranked second and third in importance. From the study by Butcher, Lindner and Johns (2002), one could conceivably consider that the classification of a youth participating in a sport, which in turn appears to denote his/her dedication to the sport, contributes to his/her decision whether to continue and for withdrawal from sport. A youth's classification could also contribute to whether or not the youth considers components/factors involved in the sport as "fun."

2.3 Coach and/or Team Influence in American society, Crone (1999) notes, particular social situations more likely stimulate more emphasis on winning. These include "coaches and athletes of football and basketball teams, the size of schools, and schools that offer athletic scholarships." Consequently, coaches, generally realize the amount of emphasis their school places on winning prior to their acceptance of a particular coaching position. Because of the inherent pressure to win in their positions, along with the damaging consequences when their team loses, coaches routinely attempt to control as many variables as possible involved in winning. In turn, perceptions of their coach by youth participating in sports does in fact, impact their decisions whether to participate in for withdrawal from sport.

The influence of leadership, particularly from coaches, serves as one interesting reason youth relate for the reason they withdrew from a sport. In the investigation of youth sport attrition, Orlick (1973; cited by Hedstrom and Gould, 2004, p. 23) found athletes expressed concern with how competition was repeatedly over emphasized within the sport. Youth experienced stress and frustration when they did not get to play to gain playing experience or the coach/leader did not afford them the opportunity to learn appropriate skills. In fact, most sports participants who withdrew "blamed" their coach for their withdrawal.

Gould, Feltz, Horn and Weiss (1982; cited by Hedstrom and Gould, 2004, p. 23) pointed out that youth reported their coach not being fun as a major motive for their decision to withdraw from sport.

Hardy (1986; cited by Brady, 2004, p. 46) concluded regarding the at times "ambivalent and paradoxical nature of youth sport": that competition in and of itself does not constitute anything wrong. What Hardy perceives as wrong, is the way adults sometimes use children's competition to further or achieve their own goals and/or aims. Competition becomes wrong, Hardy concurs, when adults plays emphasis upon winning, regardless of the goals of the youth and/or what winning at all cost, costs the youth.

Apache (2006), who examined the development of the Youth Sports Behavior Assessment System (YSBAS), relates the following nine behavioral categories evolving from the evaluating the Coaching Behavior Assessment System (CBAS):

Positive Reinforcement -- a positive reaction either verbally or by Nonverbal technique in response to a desirable and specific performance by a single player or group of players.

Mistake Reinforcement -- Encouraging comments made to a player or group of players following a mistake. Emphasis is on encouraging player(s) to do better and not be concerned about error.

Positive Technical Instruction -- Comments made to a player or players on technical skills or playing strategy not elicited by a mistake. Example, during game-play a parent might state to their child or to other players command suggestions indicating their location on the field or their attention to a certain player such as, "watch number 7," "you are playing too far out, move in closer," and "keep your arms up."

Mistake Technical Instruction -- Comments made to a player or players providing technical instruction following a mistake. Example, after a ballplayer allows a hit ball to pass under his glove one might hear a parent state "turn your glove over and place it squarely on the ground."

Punishment -- Negative comments directed at a player or players following a mistake. Intent of comments is to express disapproval of player's action and to personally berate.

Keeping Control -- Comments. made in response to players misbehaving on sidelines, or to the inattentiveness of the players during the game.

General Encouragement -- Comments and/or nonverbal communications (i.e. clapping) made to a player or players towards nonspecific support and encouragement of their performance. Example, "good hustle," "way to go Blackhawks."

Negative Comments -- Negative comments or nonverbal displays towards opposing players.

Negative Comments to Coaches or Referees -- Negative comments made to coaches and/or referees during a game due to any circumstance. Comments made towards other parents are and included in this category. (Apache, 2006, ¶ s 7-16)

Morale Considerations

Coaches cited a youth's negative self-talk and/or the practice of him/her berating his/her teammates when one makes a mistakes during competitions as indicators of low team morale. Scanlan et al. (1993; cited by Gilbert, Gilbert and Trudel, 2001, p. 29) note the following coaching strategies that when utilized, help combat low team morale and possibly deter youth from withdrawing from the sport:

Coaches record developmental statistics for their athletes, such as number of passes, number of shots on net, or number of positional rule infractions. Such statistics provide objective measures of the athletes' progress that do not depend on the outcome of the game. For example, only a few athletes will record goals during a soccer match, but everyone on the team can record a pass or a shot on net. This strategy gives all athletes (regardless of skill or level of personal development) an opportunity to experience success in sports. It can also have important positive consequences for their self-esteem and level of enjoyment, which in turn influence their desire to continue participating in sports (Scanlan et al., 1993). (Gilbert, Gilbert and Trudel, 2001, p. 29)

Another effective strategy for improving team morale is to schedule social events for the team (e.g., pizza and movie nights, camping trips, visits to local amusement parks). These types of team gatherings can help promote team cohesion, a sense of affiliation, and a positive team atmosphere, all of which contribute to participant enjoyment and motivation (Boyd et al., 1997; Petlichkoff, 1993; Smith and Smoll, 1997).

Almost all coaches in this study by Gilbert, Gilbert and Trudel (2001, p. 29) related concerns regarding "sudden, unexplainable decreases in individual or team performance," described as a "lull" or "drop" in performance.

These decreases, which may also may influence a use decision to withdraw from a sport, usually evolve from challenges with individual techniques and/or team tactics. Coaches usually utilized the strategies address these problems, noting that the athlete is not physically able to properly execute a particular skill, or he/she is in a mental rut and cannot exert the necessary concentration and/or effort. To discourage youth from withdrawing from the sport, coaches routinely utilized different strategies to improve the youth's skill development and enhance his/her motivation and interest. This strategy proposes to permit athletes to temporarily get out of routine training procedures that the youth may consider to be too routine and/or no longer fun. In an ego-goal perspective, coaches, parents, and teachers may defined success "normative criteria, interpersonal competition, and the demonstration of superiority over others."

Contrary to this concept, in a Mastery Motivational Climate, " the criteria for success in a task-goal perspective are self-referenced, with the predominant emphasis on improvement, learning, and skill mastery." Nicholls (1989; cited by Brady, 2004, p. 48) argued that whether a youth being task or ego oriented evolved from a combination of the following three related factors:

dispositional differences, situational characteristics, and developmental differences.

Youth's Disposition

According to Dweck and Leggett (1988; cited by Brady, 2004, p. 48), a youth's disposition, noted as a "proneness" or individual-difference variables, impact the probability of him/her adopting a particular goal perspective. Situational factors, on the other hand, reportedly possess the potential to alter probabilities. Treasure and Roberts (1994; cited by Brady, 2004, p. 48) additionally suggest that as youth equate ability with effort, they tend to be task oriented. They may become more ego oriented, however, as they mature and acquire a more discriminating perception of their abilities. "This increased differentiation is mediated by the interactional patterns and reward systems of significant others (coaches, parents, and teachers)" (Brady, 2004, p. 48).

2.4 Psychological, Physical and/or Emotional Reasons

Other Potential Reasons Youth May Decide to Withdrawal from a Sport

Other potential reasons for youth to withdraw from a particular sport include possible negative effects from port specialization. These include, but may not be limited to: "physical and psychological burnout, loss of social contacts through other sports, loss of transferable athletic skills, and loss of the influence of coaches of other sports" (Hecimovich, 2004, p. 26). Athletes routinely experience negative stresses from gymnastics, as well as from their participation in a number of other sports, as they "have to" invest great amounts of their time to the sport. In turn, these athletes experience social isolation, as well as a dearth of opportunities for social development. Negative stretchers, however, are not exclusive to gymnasts. All youth who participate in a single sport all year are subject to this problem.

Three possible negative effects that may evolve from of sport specialization include: a:

physiological/physical; b: psychological; c: sociological. Contemporary educators and professionals, as well as other adults, who coach/lead youth in sport activities, routinely encounter the four following challenges:

declining participation levels at certain ages, especially for girls;

the prominence of untrained coaches at both the community and school levels;

the pressure by adults to have youths specialize earlier in a sport, resulting in year-round seasons and the probability of earlier attrition or burnout; and the need for more opportunities for at-risk youth. (Hecimovich, 2004, p. 26)

Factors Contributing to Females' Decisions Regarding Sports Participation

Females routinely report experiencing negative incidents in sport activities, including physical and emotional trauma, that they stated contributed to their withdrawing from participation in sports (Gilbert, 2001; cited by Hedstrom and Gould, 2004, p. 24). Decisions you can make regarding whether to withdraw or continue their participation in sports, according to Elling and Knoppers (2005), possess the potential to integrate or ignore the differentiating effects of sport. A variety of complex personal, social-cultural and contextual factors, albeit, appear to influence these decisions. The various inclusion/exclusion dimensions relating to sport involvement can be categorized as: a: "structural inclusion and exclusion referring to (non) participation"; b: "cultural or symbolic inclusion and exclusion through social (normative) images"; c: "affective inclusion and exclusion through friendship networks." (Ibid.)

Adolescents Considerations

As a youth enters adolescence, this denotes of time in his/her life when he/she begins to make his/her own decisions and choose between various value orientations, as well as whether or not to participate in sport and/or other leisure activities. In a youth's search for his/her own identity, he/she regularly detaches him/her self in different ways from his/her parents; instead succumbing to peer pressure/favor. At this stage in the life of a youth, he/she also increases his/her awareness "natural' physical differences and of gendered and ethnic identities (e.g., Balk, 1995; Scraton, 1987; cited by Elling and Knoppers, 2005), and in turn, "explicitly and implicitly identify with some groups and subcultures and distance themselves from others through their leisure activities and choice of sports (Bartko and Eccles, 2003; Youniss et al., 1994; cited by Elling and Knoppers, 2005).

Girls particularly, during their puberty many decide to withdraw from sports and choose other types of fitness regimes and/or other free time activities (Breedveld, 2003; cited by Elling and Knoppers, 2005).

Empirical Studies Find Empirical studies repeatedly find that youth who participate in sport display/experience fewer behavior problems than youth who withdraw from sports or do not participate in sport activities. One major American study, completed by Jeziorski (1994; cited by Donaldson and Ronan, 2006)"found that participants in sports earned better grades, behaved better in the classroom, had fewer behavior problems outside the classroom, dropped out less frequently, and attended school on a more regular basis with fewer unexcused absences as compared to nonparticipants." In addition, when compared to youth who participated in sports, Jeziorski reported that it appeared youth who did not participate in sports more likely dropped out of school, more likely use/abused drugs, more likely became parents in their teen years; more likely smoked cigarettes; more likely broke the law and were arrested. Segrave and Hastad (1982; cited by Donaldson and Ronan, 2006) similarly contended that a negative relationship between nonparticipation in sport activities and delinquency exists in youth during their adolescent and college years. In fact, the study completed by Segrave and Hastad related increased sports activity to youth involved in lower levels of delinquency. A number of other studies also appear to confirm the connection between exercise are reduced behavioral problems (Brown and Siegel, 1988; cited by Donaldson and Ronan, 2006).

When Gruber (1986; cited by Donaldson and Ronan, 2006) explored the impact of children and adolescent physical activity on their self-esteem through a meta-analysis of 27 studies, he found stronger evidence revealing a "consistent relationship between an increased number of sports and amount of time spent in them reduced externalizing and societal behavior problem" Youths who participated. In more formal sports and for a longer periods of time "reported significantly lower levels of delinquent behavior, aggression, and peer-related problems." The youth involved in sports also showed notably lower anxiety levels, as well as reportedly experiencing fewer depression-linked problems, we and as compared to youth who did not participate in or withdrew from sports. These particular findings confirm other numerous some studies which related a negative relationship exists between sport participation and problem behaviors (Steptoe and Butler, 1996; Jeziorski, 1994; cited by Donaldson and Ronan, 2006).

Burnout" or Overtraining Syndrome

With more children becoming involved in organized and recreational athletics, incidences of overuse, a common etiologic factor that contributes to injuries in the pediatric and adolescent athlete, increase. A number of children who participate in one sport a may also simultaneously participate on multiple teams, as well as participate in sports all throughout the year. In turn, they may over train, which can lead to burnout. Burnout, according to Brenner (2007, ¶ 1) can produce a detrimental effect on a youth. Parental pressure constitutes one factor to overtraining. Brenner identifies and counsels youth at-risk children for burnout, along with their families. Literature describes burnout and adult athletes, however, a dearth of information regarding this subject can be found, as it applies to youth and their pitches a patient in sports. The overtraining syndrome, (Brenner, 2007, ¶ 6) explains, can be defined as a "series of psychological, physiologic, and hormonal changes that result in decreased sports performance." He identifies several traditional manifestations as "chronic muscle or joint pain, personality changes, elevated resting heart rate, and decreased sports performance." A youth are too spread in a sport, two experiences burnout, may also display signs of "fatigue, lack of enthusiasm about practice or competition, or difficulty with successfully completing usual routines."

Parents in adults should recognize burnout as a serious scenario and reduce training when it occurs. Instead of overexerting him/her self and focusing only on one sport and training routine, athletes need to make a point to be participate in a variety of activities. Brenner (2007) suggests the following guidelines to prevent overtraining/burnout, and a youth deciding to withdrawal from sport:

Keep workouts interesting, with age-appropriate games and training, to keep practice fun.

Take time off from organized or structured sports participation 1 to 2 days per week to allow the body to rest or participate in other activities.

Permit longer scheduled breaks from training and competition every 2 to 3 months while focusing on other activities and cross-training to prevent loss of skill or level of conditioning.

Focus on wellness and teaching athletes to be in tune with their bodies for cues to slow down or alter their training methods. (Brenner, 2007, ¶ 7-8)

Hecimovich (2004) points out that a number of youth sports who experience overtraining syndrome completely withdraw from sports. A youth too embarrassed to quit or pressured to continue, however, "may incur a sports-related self-injury in order to leave gracefully." Youth to withdraw from the sport more likely live sedentary lifestyles when they become adults.