United States Sports Academy - "America's Sports University"

Abstract

This study examined factors that motivate parents to involve their children in a gymnastic program. The gymnasts (N=156) were predominantly female (n=136, 87%), ranged from 2 to 18 years of age (M=7.5, SD=3.2). Gymnasts were classified as recreational (n=109, 70%) or competitive (n=47, 30%). Multiple-choice items, addressed the domains of skill mastery, ego competitiveness, fitness, team membership, fun/excitement, recognition and affiliation. The rank order of reasons that parents of competitive and recreational gymnasts supported their child’s participation in the gymnastic program were fitness (M=4.38, SD=1.10), skill development (M=4.37, 0.94), fun (M=4.36, SD=0.86), affiliation (M=3.77, SD=1.04), team membership (M=3.36, SD=1.11), recognition (M=3.28, SD=1.09) and competition (M=2.64, SD=1.13). Competition (M =3.53 vs. M= 3.28) and team membership factors (M=3.06 vs. M=2.46) were rated higher statistically (p<.05) by parents of competitive gymnasts.

The importance of physical activity for children is well documented. A physically active lifestyle is important because physical activity and fitness have been shown to associate with lower blood pressure among adolescents (Boreham, Twisk, Savage Cran & Strain, 1997) and favorable cholesterol profiles (Schmidt, Stenzel & Walkulski, 1997).

A majority of children receive their physical activity by participating in organized sport programs outside of school (Sallis, 1994). When youth are asked what motivates them to participate in organized sport programs, responses typically include skill development, affiliation, fitness, fun, competition, excitement or challenge, and release of energy (McCullagh, Matzkanin, Shaw, & Maldonado, 1993).

Parents have been shown to be powerful influences on their children’s physical activity patterns (Stucky-Ropp & DiLorenzo, 1993). The role of parents in influencing their children’s physical activity occurs via direct and indirect supports, (Dempsey et al., 1993) as they directly support participation in organized activities by registering their child and paying participation fees (Atsalakis & Sleap, 1996). Parents indirectly support physical activity by transporting children to places where their children can be active (Hoefer, Mckenzie, Sallis, Marshall & Conway, 2001). Additionally, parents with positive attitudes toward registering their child and who perceive registration procedures to be easily accomplished are more apt to enroll their children in organized physical activity programs (Atsalakis & Sleap, 1996).

Dempsey and colleagues (1993) examined how parents’ beliefs about their children’s activity influenced the activity patterns of their children and concluded it is possible the parents' belief system and support are the primary influences on their child’s physical activity. These authors further stated that the factors most important to parents in deciding to support their children’s physical activity are unknown. Accordingly, the purpose of this study was to describe parental rationale, based on the work of McCullagh and colleagues (1993), for supporting their children’s participation in a private gymnastic program.

Method

Sample

The target population was parents of children who participate in a private gymnastic club. Club records identified 432 registered participants who were either on competitive teams or were recreational gymnasts.

Questionnaire

A 58-item survey based on the work of McCullagh et al., (1993), that was constructed using data from recreational soccer players. The questionnaire requested demographic information including parental age, parental educational attainment, age and gender of child, and the level (competitive or recreational), length, and number of days per week of current organized gymnastic participation. Parents also rated the importance of the factors identified by McCullagh and colleagues (1993) that described rationale for supporting their child’s gymnastic involvement. The importance of these factors was measured on five-point Likert scales. Individual items are presented in Table 1.

Procedures

During a two-week period all parents who entered the gymnastic facility to deliver or retrieve their children were approached and asked to complete the questionnaire. Questionnaires were sent home with those children whose parents did not frequent the gym during the two-week data collection period. Parents who completed the survey at the gym were asked not to complete a duplicate survey if their child brought one home. Parents with more than one child in the program were asked to complete one questionnaire per child.

Statistical Analysis

Descriptive statistics were utilized to report the responses to questionnaire items. Analysis of variance was used to identify differences in responses of parents of recreational and competitive gymnasts.

Results

Of the 250 surveys that were distributed, 156 (62.4%) were retrieved during the three-week period. Of the 156 parents completing surveys, 132 were female (85%) and 24 were male (15%). In addition, the respondents were generally middle-aged (M=36, SD=6.6 years) and well-educated. The descriptive characteristics of the children for whom the parents were reporting indicated that gymnasts ranged from 2 to 18 years of age (M=7.5, SD=3.2). There were 109 (70%) recreational and competitive 47 (28.8%) gymnasts.

Descriptive statistics addressing the rational parents used in supporting their children’s participation in gymnastics are presented in Table 1. The ten top-ranked items were related to fun, skill, or exercise. All items assessing the competitive aspects of gymnastics were ranked among the lowest ten.

Table 2 depicts the descriptive statistics of individual items in each category and the rank order of reasons that parents supported their child in the gymnastic program. These factors were ranked in identical orders by parents of both competitive and recreational gymnasts. Team membership (F=4.1, p=.04 M=3.53, SD=1.22 vs. M= 3.28, SD=1.08) and competition factors (F=16.4, p=.001, M=3.06, SD=1.06 vs. M=2.46, SD=1.18) were rated statistically (p < .05) more important by parents of competitive gymnasts as compared to the parents of recreational gymnasts.

Discussion and Conclusion

Skill development and fun were the three top-rated reasons that parents reported for supporting their child’s involvement in gymnastics. It is evident that parents of these gymnasts are interested in providing support for sport activities that their children regard as fun and have the potential to produce physical fitness and skill. Competition was consistently ranked as one of the least important factors, regardless of whether the child was a competitive or recreational gymnast. These findings are consistent with studies that examined reasons youth participate in other team sport activities (McCullagh et al., 1993; Passer, 1982). Differences in scores provided by the parents of competitive and recreational gymnasts occurred only for the team and competitive constructs. These differences might be expected as these constructs are directly related to competition. Thus, while there are differences between parents of competitive and recreational gymnasts, team membership and competition were rated relatively low by both sets of parents.

The results of this study are important to those in sports as Passer (1982) noted that this type of information is important to youth sport personnel who are interested in structuring the athletic environment to provide participants with a maximally rewarding experience.

Fitness, skill development, and fun are important to parents, and they expect their child’s sport participation to produce these outcomes. Coaches can use this information to attract and keep participants.

References

Boreham, C.A., Twisk, J., Savage, M.J., Cran, G.W., & Strain, J.J. (1997) Physical activity, sports participation, and risk factors in adolescents. Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise, 29, 788-793.

Hoefer, W.R., McKenzie, T.L., Sallis, J.F., Marshall, S.J. & Conway, T.L. (2001). Parental provision of transportation for adolescent physical activity. American Journal of Preventive Medicine, 21, 48-51.

McCullagh, P., Matzkanin, K. T., Shaw, S. D., & Maldonado, M. (1993). Motivation for participation in physical activity: A comparison of parent-child perceived competencies and participation motives. Pediatric Exercise Science, 5, 224-233.

Passer, M. W. (1982). Children in sport: Participation motives and psychological stress. Quest, 33, 231-244.

Sallis, J. F. (1994). Determinants of physical activity behavior in children. In R. R. Pate & R. C. Hohn (Eds.), Health and Fitness Through Physical Education (pp.31-43). Champaign, IL: Human Kinetics.

Schmidt, G.J., Stensel, D.J., & Walkuski, J.J. (1997). Blood pressure, lipids, lipoproteins, body fat and physical activity of Singapore children. Journal of Pediatrics and Child Health, 33, 484-490.

Stucky-Ropp, R. C., & DiLorenzo, T. M. (1993). Determinants of exercise in children. Preventive Medicine, 22, 880-889.

Table 1
Means, Standard Deviations, and Rank of Motivational Items Associated with Supporting Children’s Participation in Organized Gymnastics

Factor	M	SD	Rank
To have a good time	4.75	0.68	1
To have fun	4.69	0.70	2
To get exercise	4.62	0.77	3
To improve skills	4.61	0.73	4
To learn new skills	4.60	0.73	5
To feel good when s/he does well	4.51	0.83	6
To do something s/he is good at	4.37	1.17	7
Help to be healthy	4.36	0.94	8
To be physically fit	4.32	0.98	9
To feel important	4.28	4.49	10
Motor development	4.28	0.96	10
To help learn discipline	4.24	0.95	12
To stay in shape	4.22	1.03	13
The coaches	4.15	1.02	14
The excitement	4.07	1.07	15
The team spirit	4.04	1.01	16
The challenge	3.98	1.00	17
The action	3.93	1.10	18
To meet new friends	3.84	1.04	19
To make better at sports	3.83	1.13	20
To get interested in sports	3.74	1.17	21
To be with friends	3.67	1.03	22
Physical therapy	3.62	1.33	23
To reduce risk for disease	3.61	1.17	24
Being on a team	3.27	1.19	26
To gain recognition	3.03	1.17	27
To help control weight	2.79	1.48	28
To compete	2.62	1.10	29
To compete against others	2.52	1.13	30
Awards	2.5	1.15	31
To test ability against others	2.48	1.15	32
To help work out anger	2.39	1.28	33
Medical advice	2.39	1.34	33
To earn college scholarship	2.28	1.32	35
To win against others	1.94	1.05	36
The uniforms	1.91	1.13	37

Table 2
Means and Rank of Motivational Factor Categories Associated with Supporting a Child’s Participation in Organized Gymnastics

Category Items	M	SD	Rank
Fitness To get exercise To stay in shape To be physically fit Help to be healthy	4.38	0.94	1
Skill/mastery To improve skills To do well To learn new skills Do something good at Motor development To better sport skill	4.37	0.89	2
Fun/excitement To have a good time To have fun The action The excitement	4.36	0.86	3
Affiliation To be with friends To meet new friends	3.77	1.04	4
Team Being on a team The coaches The team spirit The uniforms The equipment	3.36	1.11	5
Recognition To feel important To gain recognition Awards	3.28	1.09	6
Medical Physical therapy To reduce disease risk To help control weight Medical advice	3.10	1.10	7
Competition To compete The challenge To win against others To earn a scholarship To compete Test skill vs. others	2.64	1.13	8