Youth participation in organized and informal sports activities across childhood and adolescence: exploring the relationships of motivational beliefs, developmental stage and gender

Participation and enjoyment in Out-of-School activities during adolescence as predictors of activities in adulthood

This study examined associations between adolescents' participation in out-of-school activities and their participation in activities at age 26 (N = 1041, 50% girls, 77% White). More frequent adolescent participation in sports, arts, volunteer/community service, and religious activities increased the odds of participating in the same type of activity at age 26. Adolescents' enjoyment of activities partially explained the developmental continuity in activity participation. There was limited evidence that individuals' participation across different types of activities was associated. Finally, the diversity or breadth of adolescents' activity participation was associated with larger activity breadth at age 26. These findings suggest that adolescents' out-of-school activities help set the stage for participating in similar, but not different activities during young adulthood.

Program Quality and Developmental Outcomes Related to Youth Volleyball in Ethiopia: Assessing Relationships and Variations

This study aims to assess program quality and developmental outcomes of a youth volleyball project in one of the regional states in Ethiopia, and further examine variations between groups across gender and project site zones. We applied a cross-sectional survey design, collecting quantitative data from youth volleyball players (n = 215) with a mean age of 16.18 years (SD = 0.69) through a self-reported questionnaire. The results indicated that young players’ perceptions did not vary significantly across gender, except for the mean score of the perceived experience variable for girls (M = 2.68, SD = 0.318) was significantly higher than the mean score of boys (M = 2.58, SD = 0.258). One-way (project site zone) analyses of variance (ANOVAs) identified that youth volleyball projects in the central zone were consistently rated higher than those in the western zone, except for the current practice rating. Moreover, correlation analysis results indicated the presence of a significant relationship, both within and between program quality and developmental outcome variables. Furthermore, the results of regression analysis indicated that the program quality variables together predicted each of the developmental outcomes, accounting for 18.9% to 31.7% of the variances. It is concluded that the quality of the youth volleyball program in Ethiopia varies considerably across the project site zones and the program quality variables significantly relate to the developmental outcomes measured with differential effects. The data from this study reveals several practical applications for Ethiopia and beyond in terms of guiding youth volleyball projects. Moreover, the findings of the study showed that youth sport and the manner in which it is structured and delivered to youth players influences the attainment of positive developmental outcomes. These results suggest that contextual differences really do have an effect on the quality of youth sport program processes and developmental outcomes.

Peer Support and Role Modelling Predict Physical Activity Change among Adolescents over Twelve Months

Physical activity levels decline during adolescence; however, some individuals initiate or maintain physical activity participation during this period of life. Socialisation impacts physical activity participation, yet few studies have explored the role of parental and peer processes concurrently on youth physical activity transitions over time. This study examined whether mother's father's and friends' support, modelling and teasing predicted adolescents' physical activity initiation, drop-off or maintenance over twelve months. In total, 803 adolescents (62.5% females, M age = 13.72) from Dublin, Ireland, completed self-report measures of support, modelling, teasing, and physical activity. Participants were classified as physical activity maintainers (17.8%), low active maintainers (58.8%), drop-offs (10.3%) or physical activity initiators (13.1%). The results revealed that parental support and modelling were unrelated to adolescents' physical activity transitions, however mother's and father's support predicted sustained physical activity participation twelve months later. In contrast, peer processes predicted physical activity maintenance, initiation and drop-off at one-year follow-up underscoring the salient role of peers for adolescents' behaviour change. In line with expectancy-value theory, the findings indicate that parents and peers represent distinct socialising agents that impart their influence on adolescents' physical activity maintenance and behaviour change through various mechanisms, highlighting the need to consider both sources of socialisation concurrently in future studies of adolescent behaviour change.

Review of the Evidence for Motivation Deficits in Youth with ADHD and Their Association with Functional Outcomes

Preeminent theories of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) suggest that motivation deficits are core underlying features of the disorder. However, it is currently unclear whether empirical evidence supports the assertion that significant group (ADHD v. comparison) differences in motivation exist or that problems with motivation contribute to the functional impairments that youth with ADHD experience. Accordingly, this review focused on evaluating and summarizing the empirical literature on the presence of motivation deficits and their association with functional outcomes in samples of youth with ADHD. Twenty studies met the review inclusion criteria. Results support the assertion that youth with ADHD have lower academic-related motivation in comparison to their peers and that motivation plays an important role in academic outcomes, with the strongest evidence to date for reading achievement. However, the available evidence is limited, and few existing studies are aligned with the much larger theoretical and empirical motivation literature in typically developing youth. Given preliminary evidence that motivation plays a role in the academic impairments of youth with ADHD, the review concludes with a discussion of whether current ADHD interventions adequately target motivation and highlights important future directions.

Does Eagerness for Physical Activity Matter? The Association Between Eagerness and Physical Activity Among Adolescents

This study investigated the association between perceived parental support and eagerness for physical activity (EPA) among adolescents, and the association between EPA and physical activity. We further examined whether perceived athletic competence (PAC) mediates a presumed association between EPA and physical activity level, when controlling for gender. This study included 320 adolescents (aged 12-13) from 18 schools in two medium-sized Norwegian municipalities. Questionnaires and accelerometers were assessed during spring 2017. Structural equation modeling was applied to examine the associations. Standard regression coefficients are presented. Data demonstrated that perceived parental support was positively associated with EPA (β = 0.52), and eagerness was positively associated with PAC (β = 0.52). Both EPA (β = 0.20) and PAC (β = 0.24) were also positively associated with moderate to vigorous physical activity (MVPA). When mediating the relationship between EPA and MVPA, through PAC, the effect on MVPA increased (from β = 0.20 to β = 0.32). Analysis revealed that 87% of the adolescents fulfilled the national health recommendations for physical activity. This study highlights the relevance of EPA and PAC in studies of physical activity among adolescents, and the impact of perceived parental support for adolescents' EPA and physical activity level.

In-Season Variations in Head Impact Exposure among Youth Football Players

Head impact exposure (HIE) is often summarized by the total exposure measured during the season and does not indicate how the exposure was accumulated, or how it varied during the season. Therefore, the objective of this study was to compare HIE during pre-season, the first and second halves of the regular season, and playoffs in a sample of youth football players (n = 119, aged 9-13 years). Athletes were divided into one of four exposure groups based on quartiles computed from the distribution of risk-weighted cumulative exposure (RWE_CP). Mean impacts per session and mean 95th percentile linear and rotational acceleration in practices and games were compared across the four exposure groups and time frames using mixed effects models. Within games, the mean 95th percentile accelerations for the entire sample ranged from 47.2g and 2331.3 rad/sec² during pre-season to 52.1g and 2533.4 rad/sec² during the second half of regular season. Mean impacts per practice increased from pre-season to the second half of regular season and declined into playoffs among all exposure groups; however, the variation between time frames was not greater than two impacts per practice. Time of season had a significant relationship with mean 95th percentile linear and rotational acceleration in games (both, p = 0.01) but not with practice accelerations or impacts per session. The in-practice mean levels of 95th percentile linear and rotational acceleration remained fairly constant across the four time frames, but in games these changed over time depending on exposure group (interactions, p ≤ 0.05). The results of this study improve our understanding of in-season variations in HIE in youth football and may inform important opportunities for future interventions.

Mexican-Origin Youth Participation in Extracurricular Activities: Predicting Trajectories of Involvement from 7th to 12th Grade

The potential benefits of participation in extracurricular activities may be especially important for youth who are at risk for academic underachievement, such as low income Mexican-origin youth in the U.S. To advance understanding of factors that drive participation for this population, this study examined Mexican-origin youth's trajectories of participation in extracurricular activities across Grades 7-12 and tested theoretically-derived predictors of these trajectories. Participants were 178 adolescents (53.9 % Female, Mage = 12.28) and their mothers who separately completed in-home interviews. Youth reported the frequency of their participation across a range of extracurricular activities. Latent growth curve models of overall extracurricular activities participation, sports participation, and fine arts participation were individually estimated via structural equation modeling. The findings demonstrated developmental declines in overall participation and in sports participation. For fine arts, declines in participation in middle school were followed by subsequent increases during high school (a curvilinear pattern). Motivationally-salient predictors of participation trajectories included youth's traditional cultural values orientation (sports), the mothers' educational aspirations for the youth (sports, fine arts, overall activity), and youth gender (sports, fine arts). Overall, the results suggest variability in participation trajectories based on program type, and highlight the need for additional research to enhance our understanding of the impact of culturally-relevant predictors on participation over time.