Specialization versus Diversification
Impact of Female Youth Sport Experiences on Early Adulthood
Keywords:
specialization, diversification, female athletes, sport enjoymentAbstract
As youth sport becomes more commercialized (Coakley, 2010), a large debate is whether youth athletes should specialize in one sport at an early age, or sample a variety of sports, known as diversification (Baker, Cobley, & Fraser-Thomas, 2009). These two youth sport pathways are described in the Developmental Model of Sport Participation (DMSP; Côté, Baker & Abernathy, 2007) as two pathways to reach elite level sport participation. Females, in comparison with males, have lower sport participation rates in addition to higher withdrawal rates (Keathley, Himelein, & Srigley, 2013; Sabo & Veliz, 2012; Tucker Center, 2018) which is why it is important to study this population. Therefore, the purpose of this paper was to determine if female’s current sport participation and activity enjoyment was related to their youth sport experience as a specialized or diversified athlete. Participants (n=186)completed surveys asking about their youth sport experiences, current sport involvement, and physical activity enjoyment (Kendzierski & DeCarlo, 1991). Chi square results demonstrated a significant difference in current sport participation between respondents who specialized or diversified as a youth athlete (X2=11.37, p<.01), indicating that those who specialized were less likely to participate in sports as young adults. There were not significant results between those who specialized and those who diversified regarding current physical activity enjoyment. With the United States obesity rate on the rise (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2019), it is important for youth athletes to consider the influence early sport specialization can have on their long-term sport participation.
References
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Baker, J., & Cote, J. (2006). Shifting training requirements during athlete development: The relationship among deliberate practice, deliberate play, and other sport involvement in the acquisition of sport expertise. In D. Hackfort & G. Tennenbaum (Eds.) Essential Processes for Attaining Peak Performance, (pp. 92-109). Oxford: Meyer & Meyer.
Baker, J., Cote, J., & Abernethy, B. (2003). Sport-specific practice and the development of expert decision-making in team ball sports. Journal of applied sport psychology, 15(1), 12-25.
Bodey, K. J., Judge, L. W., & Hoover, J. V. (2013). Specialization in youth sport: What coaches should tell parents. Strategies: A Journal for Physical and Sport Educators, 26, 1, 3-7.
Brustad, R., Vilhjalmsson, R., & Fonseca, A. (2008). Organized sport and physical activity promotion. In A. Smith and S. Biddle (Eds.), Youth physical activity and sedentary behavior: Challenges and solutions (pp. 351-375). Champaign, IL: Human Kinetics
Butcher, J., Lindner, K. J. & Johns, D. P. (2002). Withdrawal from competitive youth sport: a retrospective ten-year study. Journal of Sport Behavior, 25(2), 145–163.
Brunnquell, J., Spaeth, K., Casalegno, M., Gatzke, C., Mateski, S., Wiggins, M., & Braun, S. (2016). The impact of time trends on exercise frequency and enjoyment in college-age male and female students. Journal of Fitness Research, 5(3), 80–89.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2019). Overweight & obesity. Retrieved from https://www.cdc.gov/obesity/index.html
Coakley, J. (2010). The ‘logic’ of specialization: Using children for adult purposes. Journal of Physical Education, Recreation, & Dance, 81(8), 16-25.
Côté, J. (1999). The influence of the family in the development of sport. The Sport Psychologist, 13, 395–416.
Côté, J., Baker, J. & Abernethy, B. (2003). From play to practice: a developmental framework for the acquisition of expertise in team sport, in: J. Starkes & K. A. Ericsson (Eds) Expert performance in sports: advances in research on sport expertise (Champaign, IL, Human Kinetics), 89–114.
Côté, J., Baker, J., & Abernathy, B. (2007). Practice and play in the development of sport expertise. In G. Tenenbaum & R.C. Eklund (Eds.), Handbook of Sport Psychology (pp. 184-202). Hoboken, NJ: Wiley.
Côté, J. & Fraser-Thomas, J. (2007). Youth involvement in sport. In P.R.E. Crocker (Ed.), Sport psychology: A Canadian perspective (266-294). Toronto: Pearson
Côté, J., Lidor, R., & Hackfort, D. (2009). ISSP position stand: To sample or to specialize? Seven postulates about youth sport activities that lead to continued participation and elite performance. International Journal of Sport and Exercise Psychology, 9, 7-17
Côté, J., & Vierimaa, M. (2014). The developmental model of sport participation: 15 years after its first conceptualization. Science and Sports, 29, 63-69.
Cremades, J. G., & Wiggins, M. S. (2008). Direction and intensity of trait anxiety as predictors of burnout among collegiate athletes. Athletic Insight: The Online Journal of Sport Psychology, 10(2).
Crocker, P., Bouffard, M., & Gessaroli, M. (1995). Measuring enjoyment in youth sport settings: A confirmatory factor analysis of the Physical Activity Enjoyment Scale. Journal of Sport & Exercise Psychology, 17, 200-205
Dodge, T., & Lambert, S. (2009). Positive self-beliefs as a mediator of the relationship between adolescents' sports participation and health in young adulthood. Journal of Youth & Adolescence, 38, 813-825.
Duncan, S. C., Duncan, T. E., Strycker, L. A. & Chaumeton, N. (2007). A cohort-sequential latent growth model of physical activity from ages 12 to 17 years. Annals of Behavioral Medicine, 33, 80-89.
Ericsson, K. A., Krampe, R. T. & Tesch-Ro¨mer, C. (1993). The role of deliberate practice in the acquisition of expert performance. Psychological Review, 100, 363–406.
Fraser-Thomas, J., & Cote, J. (2006). Youth sports: Implementing findings and moving forward with research. Athletic Insight, 8, 12-27.
Ginsburg, R. D., Danforth, N., Ceranoglu, T. A., Durant, S. A., Robin, L., Smith, S. R., . . . Masek, B. (2014). Patterns of specialization in professional baseball players. Journal of Clinical Sport Psychology, 8(3), 261-275.
Gould, D. (2010). Early sport specialization: A psychological perspective. Journal of Physical Education, Recreation, and Dance, 81, 33-36.
Hill, G. M., & Simons, J. (1989). A study of the sport specialization on high school athletics. Journal of Sport and Social Issues, 13(1), 1-13.
Jayanthi, N., Pinkham, C., Dugas, L., Patrick, B., & LaBella, C. (2013). Sports specialization in young athletes: evidence-based recommendations. Sports Health, 5(3), 251-257.
Jayanthi, N. A. & Dugas, L. (2017). The risks of sports specialization in the adolescent female athlete. Strength and Conditioning Journal, 39, 20-26.
Jones, I., & Gratton, C. (2015). Research methods for sports studies (3rd ed.). London: Routledge.
Kang, H. (2013). The prevention and handling of the missing data. Korean Journal of Anesthesiology, 64(5), 402-406.
Keathley, K., Himelein, M. J., & Srigley, G. (2013). Youth soccer participation and withdrawal: Gender similarities and differences. Journal of Sport Behavior, 36, 171–188.
Kendzierski, D. & DeCarlo, K. (1991). Physical activity enjoyment scale: Two validation studies. Journal of Sport & Exercise Psychology, 13, 50-64
LaPrade, R. F., Agel, J., Baker, J., Brenner, J. S., Cordasco, F. A., Cote, J., . . . & Provencher M. T. (2016). AOSSM early sport specialization consensus statement. Orthopedic Journal of Sports Medicine, 4(4), 1-8.
Law, M. P., Côté, J., & Ericsson, K. A. (2007). Characteristics of expert development in rhythmic gymnastics: A retrospective study. International Journal of Sport and Exercise Psychology, 5(1), 82-103.
Lerner, J., Burns, C., & Roiste, A. D. (2011). Correlates of physical activity among college students. Recreational Sports Journal, 35(2), 95-106.
Leslie, E., Owen, N., Salmon, J., Bauman, A., Sallis, J. F. & Lo, S. K. (1999). Insufficiently active Australian college students: Perceived personal social, and environmental influences. Preventive Medicine, 28(1), 20-27.
Malina, R.M. (2010). Early sport specialization: Roots, effectiveness, risks. Current Sports Medicine Reports, 9, 364-371.
Martin, E. M., Ewing, M. E., & Oregon, E. (2017). Sport experiences of Division I collegiate athletes and their perceptions of the importance of specialization. High Ability Studies, 28(2), 149-165.
Murphy, M. H., Rowe, D. A., & Woods, C. B. (2016). Sports participation in youth as a predictor of physical activity: A 5-year longitudinal study. Journal of Physical Activity & Health, 13(7), 704-711.
National Physical Activity Plan. (2016). The 2016 United States report card on physical activity for children and youth. Retrieved from http://www. physicalactivityplan.org/reportcard/2016FINAL_ USReportCard.pdf
Ogden, C., & Carrol, M. (2010). Prevalence of obesity among children and adolescents: United States, trends 1963-1965 through 2007-2008. Retrieved June 17, 2011, from http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/hestat/obesity_child_07_08/obesity_child_07_08.pdf
Padaki, A. S., Popkin, C. A., Hodgins, J. L., Kovacevic, D., Lynch, T. S., & Ahmad, C. S. (2017). Factors that drive youth specialization. Sports Health: A Multidisciplinary Approach, 9(6), 532-536.
Pate, R., Trost, S., Levin, S., & Dowda, M. (2000). Sport participation and health-related behaviors among US youth. Achieves of pediatric and Adolescent Medicine, 154, 904-911.
Perkins, D., Jacobs, J., Barber, B., & Eccles, J. (2004). Childhood and adolescent sports participation as predictors of participation in sports and physical fitness activities during young adulthood. Youth & Society, 35, 495-520
Robertson-Wilson, J., Baker, J., Derbyshire, E. & Cote, J. (2003) Childhood physical activity involvement in active and inactive female adults, Avante, 9, 1–8.
Russell, W. & Molina, S. (2018). A comparison of female youth sport specializers and non- specializers on sport motivation and athletic burnout. Journal of Sport Behavior, 41, 330- 349.
Russell, W. D. (2014). The relationship between youth sport specialization, reasons for participation, and youth sport participation motivations: A retrospective study. Journal of Sport Behavior, 37(3), 286–305.
Russell, W. D., & Limle, A. N. (2013). The relationship between youth sport specialization and involvement in sport and physical activity in young adulthood. Journal of Sport Behavior, 36 (1),82-98.
Sabo, D., & Veliz, P. (2012). The decade of decline: Gender equity in high school sports. Ann Arbor, MI: SHARP Center for Women and Girls.
Samuels, P. (2014). Statistical hypothesis testing. Retrieved from https://www.researchgate.net/publication/275018715
Scanlan, T. K., Carpenter, P. J., Lobel, M., & Simons, J. P. (1993). Sources of enjoyment for youth sport athletes. Pediatric Exercise Science, 5(3), 275-285.
Scheerder, J., Thomis, M., Vanreusel, B., Lefevre, J., Renson, R., Vanden, E. B., & Beunen, G. (2006). Sports participation among females from adolescence to adulthood. International Review for the Sociology of Sport, 41, 413-430.
Shores, K., Becker, C. M., Moynahan, R., Williams, R., & Cooper, N. (2015). The relationship of young adults' health and their sports participation. Journal of Sport Behavior, 38(3), 306-320.
Stewart, C., & Shroyer, J. (2015). Sport specialization: A coach's role in being honest with parents. Strategies A Journal for Physical and Sport Educators, 28(5), 10-17.
The State of Obesity. (2018). Better Policies for a Healthier America. Retrieved from https://stateofobesity.org/childhood/
Tucker Center for Research on Girls & Women in Sport. (2018). The 2018 Tucker Center Research Report, Developing Physically Active Girls: An Evidence-based Multidisciplinary Approach. Retrieved from https://www.cehd.umn.edu/tuckercenter/library/docs/research/2018-Tucker-Center-Research-Report_Developing-Physically-Active-Girls_Full-Report.pdf
Vealey, R.S., & Chase, M. A. (2016). Best Practices for Youth Sport. Champaign, IL: Human Kinetics.
Wall, M., & Côte, J. (2007). Developmental activities that lead to dropout and investment in sport. Physical Education & Sport Pedagogy, 12(1), 77–87.
Wiersma, L. D. (2000). Risks and benefits of youth sport specialization: Perspectives and recommendations. Pediatric Exercise Science, 12(1), 13-22.
Zervas, Y., Ekkekakis, P., Emmanuel, C., Psychoudaki, M., & Kakkos, V. (1993). The acute effects of increasing levels of aerobic exercise intensity on mood states. In Proceedings of the 8th world congress of sport psychology, 22-27.
American Academy of Pediatrics. (2000). Intensive training and sports specialization in young athletes. Pediatrics, 106, 154-157.
Baker, J., Cobley, S., & Fraser‐Thomas, J. (2009). What do we know about early sport specialization? Not much! High ability studies, 20(1), 77-89.
Baker, J., & Cote, J. (2006). Shifting training requirements during athlete development: The relationship among deliberate practice, deliberate play, and other sport involvement in the acquisition of sport expertise. In D. Hackfort & G. Tennenbaum (Eds.) Essential Processes for Attaining Peak Performance, (pp. 92-109). Oxford: Meyer & Meyer.
Baker, J., Cote, J., & Abernethy, B. (2003). Sport-specific practice and the development of expert decision-making in team ball sports. Journal of applied sport psychology, 15(1), 12-25.
Bodey, K. J., Judge, L. W., & Hoover, J. V. (2013). Specialization in youth sport: What coaches should tell parents. Strategies: A Journal for Physical and Sport Educators, 26, 1, 3-7.
Brustad, R., Vilhjalmsson, R., & Fonseca, A. (2008). Organized sport and physical activity promotion. In A. Smith and S. Biddle (Eds.), Youth physical activity and sedentary behavior: Challenges and solutions (pp. 351-375). Champaign, IL: Human Kinetics
Butcher, J., Lindner, K. J. & Johns, D. P. (2002). Withdrawal from competitive youth sport: a retrospective ten-year study. Journal of Sport Behavior, 25(2), 145–163.
Brunnquell, J., Spaeth, K., Casalegno, M., Gatzke, C., Mateski, S., Wiggins, M., & Braun, S. (2016). The impact of time trends on exercise frequency and enjoyment in college-age male and female students. Journal of Fitness Research, 5(3), 80–89.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2019). Overweight & obesity. Retrieved from https://www.cdc.gov/obesity/index.html
Coakley, J. (2010). The ‘logic’ of specialization: Using children for adult purposes. Journal of Physical Education, Recreation, & Dance, 81(8), 16-25.
Côté, J. (1999). The influence of the family in the development of sport. The Sport Psychologist, 13, 395–416.
Côté, J., Baker, J. & Abernethy, B. (2003). From play to practice: a developmental framework for the acquisition of expertise in team sport, in: J. Starkes & K. A. Ericsson (Eds) Expert performance in sports: advances in research on sport expertise (Champaign, IL, Human Kinetics), 89–114.
Côté, J., Baker, J., & Abernathy, B. (2007). Practice and play in the development of sport expertise. In G. Tenenbaum & R.C. Eklund (Eds.), Handbook of Sport Psychology (pp. 184-202). Hoboken, NJ: Wiley.
Côté, J. & Fraser-Thomas, J. (2007). Youth involvement in sport. In P.R.E. Crocker (Ed.), Sport psychology: A Canadian perspective (266-294). Toronto: Pearson
Côté, J., Lidor, R., & Hackfort, D. (2009). ISSP position stand: To sample or to specialize? Seven postulates about youth sport activities that lead to continued participation and elite performance. International Journal of Sport and Exercise Psychology, 9, 7-17
Côté, J., & Vierimaa, M. (2014). The developmental model of sport participation: 15 years after its first conceptualization. Science and Sports, 29, 63-69.
Cremades, J. G., & Wiggins, M. S. (2008). Direction and intensity of trait anxiety as predictors of burnout among collegiate athletes. Athletic Insight: The Online Journal of Sport Psychology, 10(2).
Crocker, P., Bouffard, M., & Gessaroli, M. (1995). Measuring enjoyment in youth sport settings: A confirmatory factor analysis of the Physical Activity Enjoyment Scale. Journal of Sport & Exercise Psychology, 17, 200-205
Dodge, T., & Lambert, S. (2009). Positive self-beliefs as a mediator of the relationship between adolescents' sports participation and health in young adulthood. Journal of Youth & Adolescence, 38, 813-825.
Duncan, S. C., Duncan, T. E., Strycker, L. A. & Chaumeton, N. (2007). A cohort-sequential latent growth model of physical activity from ages 12 to 17 years. Annals of Behavioral Medicine, 33, 80-89.
Ericsson, K. A., Krampe, R. T. & Tesch-Ro¨mer, C. (1993). The role of deliberate practice in the acquisition of expert performance. Psychological Review, 100, 363–406.
Fraser-Thomas, J., & Cote, J. (2006). Youth sports: Implementing findings and moving forward with research. Athletic Insight, 8, 12-27.
Ginsburg, R. D., Danforth, N., Ceranoglu, T. A., Durant, S. A., Robin, L., Smith, S. R., . . . Masek, B. (2014). Patterns of specialization in professional baseball players. Journal of Clinical Sport Psychology, 8(3), 261-275.
Gould, D. (2010). Early sport specialization: A psychological perspective. Journal of Physical Education, Recreation, and Dance, 81, 33-36.
Hill, G. M., & Simons, J. (1989). A study of the sport specialization on high school athletics. Journal of Sport and Social Issues, 13(1), 1-13.
Jayanthi, N., Pinkham, C., Dugas, L., Patrick, B., & LaBella, C. (2013). Sports specialization in young athletes: evidence-based recommendations. Sports Health, 5(3), 251-257.
Jayanthi, N. A. & Dugas, L. (2017). The risks of sports specialization in the adolescent female athlete. Strength and Conditioning Journal, 39, 20-26.
Jones, I., & Gratton, C. (2015). Research methods for sports studies (3rd ed.). London: Routledge.
Kang, H. (2013). The prevention and handling of the missing data. Korean Journal of Anesthesiology, 64(5), 402-406.
Keathley, K., Himelein, M. J., & Srigley, G. (2013). Youth soccer participation and withdrawal: Gender similarities and differences. Journal of Sport Behavior, 36, 171–188.
Kendzierski, D. & DeCarlo, K. (1991). Physical activity enjoyment scale: Two validation studies. Journal of Sport & Exercise Psychology, 13, 50-64
LaPrade, R. F., Agel, J., Baker, J., Brenner, J. S., Cordasco, F. A., Cote, J., . . . & Provencher M. T. (2016). AOSSM early sport specialization consensus statement. Orthopedic Journal of Sports Medicine, 4(4), 1-8.
Law, M. P., Côté, J., & Ericsson, K. A. (2007). Characteristics of expert development in rhythmic gymnastics: A retrospective study. International Journal of Sport and Exercise Psychology, 5(1), 82-103.
Lerner, J., Burns, C., & Roiste, A. D. (2011). Correlates of physical activity among college students. Recreational Sports Journal, 35(2), 95-106.
Leslie, E., Owen, N., Salmon, J., Bauman, A., Sallis, J. F. & Lo, S. K. (1999). Insufficiently active Australian college students: Perceived personal social, and environmental influences. Preventive Medicine, 28(1), 20-27.
Malina, R.M. (2010). Early sport specialization: Roots, effectiveness, risks. Current Sports Medicine Reports, 9, 364-371.
Martin, E. M., Ewing, M. E., & Oregon, E. (2017). Sport experiences of Division I collegiate athletes and their perceptions of the importance of specialization. High Ability Studies, 28(2), 149-165.
Murphy, M. H., Rowe, D. A., & Woods, C. B. (2016). Sports participation in youth as a predictor of physical activity: A 5-year longitudinal study. Journal of Physical Activity & Health, 13(7), 704-711.
National Physical Activity Plan. (2016). The 2016 United States report card on physical activity for children and youth. Retrieved from http://www. physicalactivityplan.org/reportcard/2016FINAL_ USReportCard.pdf
Ogden, C., & Carrol, M. (2010). Prevalence of obesity among children and adolescents: United States, trends 1963-1965 through 2007-2008. Retrieved June 17, 2011, from http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/hestat/obesity_child_07_08/obesity_child_07_08.pdf
Padaki, A. S., Popkin, C. A., Hodgins, J. L., Kovacevic, D., Lynch, T. S., & Ahmad, C. S. (2017). Factors that drive youth specialization. Sports Health: A Multidisciplinary Approach, 9(6), 532-536.
Pate, R., Trost, S., Levin, S., & Dowda, M. (2000). Sport participation and health-related behaviors among US youth. Achieves of pediatric and Adolescent Medicine, 154, 904-911.
Perkins, D., Jacobs, J., Barber, B., & Eccles, J. (2004). Childhood and adolescent sports participation as predictors of participation in sports and physical fitness activities during young adulthood. Youth & Society, 35, 495-520
Robertson-Wilson, J., Baker, J., Derbyshire, E. & Cote, J. (2003) Childhood physical activity involvement in active and inactive female adults, Avante, 9, 1–8.
Russell, W. & Molina, S. (2018). A comparison of female youth sport specializers and non- specializers on sport motivation and athletic burnout. Journal of Sport Behavior, 41, 330- 349.
Russell, W. D. (2014). The relationship between youth sport specialization, reasons for participation, and youth sport participation motivations: A retrospective study. Journal of Sport Behavior, 37(3), 286–305.
Russell, W. D., & Limle, A. N. (2013). The relationship between youth sport specialization and involvement in sport and physical activity in young adulthood. Journal of Sport Behavior, 36 (1),82-98.
Sabo, D., & Veliz, P. (2012). The decade of decline: Gender equity in high school sports. Ann Arbor, MI: SHARP Center for Women and Girls.
Samuels, P. (2014). Statistical hypothesis testing. Retrieved from https://www.researchgate.net/publication/275018715
Scanlan, T. K., Carpenter, P. J., Lobel, M., & Simons, J. P. (1993). Sources of enjoyment for youth sport athletes. Pediatric Exercise Science, 5(3), 275-285.
Scheerder, J., Thomis, M., Vanreusel, B., Lefevre, J., Renson, R., Vanden, E. B., & Beunen, G. (2006). Sports participation among females from adolescence to adulthood. International Review for the Sociology of Sport, 41, 413-430.
Shores, K., Becker, C. M., Moynahan, R., Williams, R., & Cooper, N. (2015). The relationship of young adults' health and their sports participation. Journal of Sport Behavior, 38(3), 306-320.
Stewart, C., & Shroyer, J. (2015). Sport specialization: A coach's role in being honest with parents. Strategies A Journal for Physical and Sport Educators, 28(5), 10-17.
The State of Obesity. (2018). Better Policies for a Healthier America. Retrieved from https://stateofobesity.org/childhood/
Tucker Center for Research on Girls & Women in Sport. (2018). The 2018 Tucker Center Research Report, Developing Physically Active Girls: An Evidence-based Multidisciplinary Approach. Retrieved from https://www.cehd.umn.edu/tuckercenter/library/docs/research/2018-Tucker-Center-Research-Report_Developing-Physically-Active-Girls_Full-Report.pdf
Vealey, R.S., & Chase, M. A. (2016). Best Practices for Youth Sport. Champaign, IL: Human Kinetics.
Wall, M., & Côte, J. (2007). Developmental activities that lead to dropout and investment in sport. Physical Education & Sport Pedagogy, 12(1), 77–87.
Wiersma, L. D. (2000). Risks and benefits of youth sport specialization: Perspectives and recommendations. Pediatric Exercise Science, 12(1), 13-22.
Zervas, Y., Ekkekakis, P., Emmanuel, C., Psychoudaki, M., & Kakkos, V. (1993). The acute effects of increasing levels of aerobic exercise intensity on mood states. In Proceedings of the 8th world congress of sport psychology, 22-27.
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