Martha E. Ewing

The effects of equipment modification on children's self-efficacy and basketball shooting performance

The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of modification of basketball size and basket height on shooting performance and self-efficacy of girls and boys 9 to 12 years of age. Subjects (N = 74) completed a self-efficacy questionnaire before and after shooting 10 baskets under four conditions. Shooting conditions were a combination of basketball size (womens or mens) and basket height (10 or 8 ft). Repeated measures analyses of variance indicated that children made more baskets and had higher shooting scores at the 8-ft basket than the 10-ft basket. This was especially evident for girls and 9- and 10-year-old children. Self-efficacy was higher prior to shooting, and boys had higher self-efficacy than girls. Self-efficacy was highest when children shot at the 8-ft basket. These results indicated that basket height modification can positively influence childrens shooting performance and self-efficacy.

Psychological characteristics of elite young athletes

The psychological aspects of youth sports participation is one area of research that has been identified as important by parents, coaches, and sport psychology researchers. Unfortunately, little research has been conducted on this topic with elite young athletes. This paper briefly reviews the psychological research on children in sport in the areas of participation motivation and psychological stress and then focuses on the psychological research with elite young athletes. The last section of the paper discusses issues and recommendations for studying the elite young athlete.

Youth's perceptions of rule-breaking and antisocial behaviours: Gender, developmental level, and competitive level differences

The present study was designed to assess young athletes perceived frequency of observing antisocial behaviour in sport, perceived frequency of rule-breaking in sport, and the perceived rationale for why youth are engaging in rule-breaking in sport. The sample consisted of 2479 youth drawn from across the USA. A majority of youth reported observing some type of rule-breaking in sport. The most common perceived rationales for rule-breaking involved aspects surrounding the pursuit of winning. Even though rule-breaking had been observed by a majority of youth in sport, antisocial behaviours were typically perceived to occur infrequently. Gender, developmental level, and competitive level differences were observed. However, in general, there were a small number of group differences, and participants typically viewed these issues more similarly than differently. Overall, youth are perceiving a positive sport environment in which they play.

Effects of an injury prevention program on injury rates in American youth football.

The purpose of this study was to determine if the time-loss (TLIR) and non-time-loss injury rates (NTLIR) in youth football were decreased by the implementation of the P.R.E.P.A.R.E injury prevention program. This study consisted of two groups: coaches and players. Some coaches took the program and select elements of the program were instituted. The injury rates (IR) in the players were compared pre and post. There was a reduction of some of the IRs during the intervention season. This reduction may be due in part to some of the coaches completing the entire program and all of the coaches instituting six elements of the program. Continued research is needed to determine if the IRs, in youth football, are consistently reduced by implementation of the program. Further research is needed to examine the impact of coaches taking and implementing the program on the reduction of injuries in other youth sports.

Quantifying aggressive riding behavior of youth barrel racers and conflict behaviors of their horses

ABSTRACT Research shows that thoroughbred race horses reach top velocity when no whip is used and that increased whip use is not related to variation in velocity or improved finish position. The cloverleaf barrel race is a popular timed event among American youth riders, who are often encouraged to aggressively use both the whip and leg to increase the velocity of the horse. Hence, the purpose of this study was to quantify aggressive riding behaviors among youth riders in a timed cloverleaf barrel race, as well as specific horse behaviors. The first hypothesis stated there is a positive correlation between aggressive rider behaviors and performance time, such that increased aggressive riding would result in increased, and hence slower, run times. The second hypothesis asserted a positive correlation exists between aggressive rider behaviors and horse behaviors. Study participants included 64 horse‐and‐rider teams competing in a state‐level cloverleaf barrel race. This class was chosen because it allows for recording of individual runs of horse‐and‐rider pairs. Patterns were of the same measured distance, in the same arena, with the same footing conditions. Each horse‐and‐rider combination was videotaped from the time they approached the gate to the time they dismounted after their run. Three trained observers separately assessed horse and rider behaviors, and frequency of behaviors was recorded using a predetermined ethogram. Interobserver reliability of trained personnel ranged from 0.69 to 0.97. Aggressive riding did not enhance competition time (mean equaled 19.33 ± 1.77 seconds). There was a small but significant positive relationship between mean gate and whip scores (r = 0.25; P < 0.05): horses whipped more during the run were more likely to react poorly to entering the arena. Similarly, there was a small but significant correlation between mean kick and pop‐up scores (r = 0.30; P < 0.05): horses kicked more frequently by the rider were more likely to perform small rears. Finally, mean tail lashing and pop‐up score were significantly correlated (r = 0.36; P < 0.005). These data suggest that rider behavior does influence horse behavior in cloverleaf barrel racing and provide supporting evidence for future youth education programs.

What Influences Collegiate Coaches’ Intentions to Advance Their Leadership Careers? The Roles of Leader Self-Efficacy and Outcome Expectancies

The purpose of the current study was to examine the influences of leader self-efficacy and coaching career outcome expectancies on intentions for advancement in leadership careers of collegiate assistant coaches in the United States. We also investigated psychosocial antecedents of these factors and explored gender differences. Female and male collegiate assistant coaches (N = 674) participated in an online survey consisting of measurements of leadership career advancement intentions, leader self-efficacy, and coaching career outcome expectancies, and their putative antecedents (i.e., developmental challenges, head coach professional support, family-work conflicts, and perceived gender discrimination). Results showed that leader self-efficacy and coaching career outcome expectancies were related to coaches’ leadership career advancement intentions. Developmental challenges and head coach professional support were positively related to leader self-efficacy, while family-work conflicts and perceived gender ...

Sport experiences of Division I collegiate athletes and their perceptions of the importance of specialization

Abstract The purpose of the current study was to investigate Division I athletes’ prior sport participation and athletes’ perceptions regarding sport specialization. Athletes (N = 1041) completed self-report surveys and indicated that participation in their collegiate sport began around nine years of age (M = 9.10, SD = 3.83). Athletes played a large number of sports in elementary and middle school with participation decreasing during high school. For those athletes who specialized in one sport, specialization occurred typically at 12.5 years of age. In addition, athletes past sport background and perceptions of specialization differed depending on their college sport with some sports (i.e., gymnastics) starting participation and specializing earlier than others (i.e., football, cross country, and track and field). Interestingly, no differences existed in past sport experiences or perceptions of specialization dependent on scholarship status or expected playing status. This study supports prior research that early specialization is not a requirement for elite level performance.