Martin Toms

Three Worlds: new directions in participant development in sport and physical activity

The twin challenges of inactivity and the 2012 Olympics have tightened the focus in UK sport promotion. However, the twin track approach which treats these challenges as distinct concerns may limit the efficacy of interventions in either area. We propose that a continuum between participation, performance sport and elite achievement represents the most efficacious and logical focus for practitioners and researchers alike. We explore the genesis of this, and other problematic features through critical consideration of key theories. Finally, we propose a multidimensional approach to lifelong sport and activity participation as a theoretically justified basis for research and intervention design.

The specialising or sampling debate: a retrospective analysis of adolescent sports participation in the UK

Abstract Whether young people should specialise in one competitive sport at an early age, or pursue a wider range of sports during adolescence is a topic of some debate (Baker, Cobley, & Fraser-Thomas, 2009) and is fundamental within sports policy and coaching practice. The purpose of this retrospective recall study was to identify whether early specialisation or sporting diversification (sampling) throughout childhood and adolescence can influence performance levels prior to adulthood. An online questionnaire was used to collect the sport participation histories of 1006 UK sports people, which were then compared with the developmental framework provided by the Developmental Model of Sport Participation (DMSP, Côté & Fraser-Thomas, 2007). A significant association between the number of sports participated in at the ages of 11, 13, and 15 and the standard of competition between 16 and 18 years was found. Individuals who competed in three sports aged 11, 13, and 15 were significantly more likely to compete at a national compared with club standard between the ages of 16 and 18 than those who practised only one sport. The findings reported here provide some empirical support for the sampling performance pathway DMSP model in a UK context.

Promoting lifelong physical activity and high level performance: realising an achievable aim for physical education

Background: Even though all school-aged children in most countries experience some form of curricular physical education many do not maintain a lifelong involvement in sport or physical activity. From a theoretical perspective, the development models that dominate sport are limited by their staged and linear approaches to development (e.g. Côtés Developmental Model of Sport Participation) and their focus on a ‘distinct’ pathway to elite sport. R.P. Bailey and colleagues in 2010 advocated a new approach to understanding development in sport that enables a lifelong flow between different, but interrelated, motives for participation in sport (e.g. Participation, Personal Excellence, Elite Excellence). It is suggested that a common set of skills facilitate participation for these related but distinct motives across the lifespan. However, we argue that many curricular models in PE do not equip individuals with the skills necessary to maintain their involvement in sport and progress back and forth between different types of activities. Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to explore the psycho-motor and psycho-behavioural factors that underpin prolonged engagement in sport and physical activity, against a consideration of the extent to which these factors are promoted within PE. Key findings: Offering an operationalisation of this purpose, the Developing the Potential of Young People in Sport (DPYPS) model was used as an illustration of a developmental and educationally-oriented framework that recognised the interrelated importance of developing key developmental skills, namely psychomotor and psycho-behavioural skills, in a PE context. Essentially the skills offered within the DPYPS program are those psychological and psychomotor fundamentals that underpin learning, development, and performance and act as the foundation of lifelong engagement in sport and physical activity.

Participant development in sport and physical activity: The impact of biological maturation

Abstract Recent literature sees participation in sport and physical activity as a lifelong continuum. As a consequence, youth sport must be seen as more than just about young athletes achieving elite performance. Accordingly, there is a need to improve our understanding of development in order to help grow and maintain involvement in sport and physical activity since the spectrum of participation is linked on a bio-psycho-social perspective throughout life. Reflecting this need, the paper reviews the evidence underpinning various ‘accepted constructs’ of development such as non-linear biological growth, specialised physical development periods, and the associated acute and chronic training prescription implications. Based on such, the paper identifies a need for academics and practitioners to work more closely to establish an evidence-base related to accelerated and decelerated periods of athletic development during maturation using controlled longitudinal investigations in order to help nurture athletic development and participation pathways from a lifelong perspective to a greater extent.

“Why Play Cricket … ?”: A Preliminary Analysis of Participation by Young Males

For almost a decade there has been considerable debate and discussion about the roles and relative importance of school-based and club-based cricket in the development of elite young male cricketers;4 and state schools have often been accused of failing to provide Britains youth with an adequate introduction to the fundamentals of the game.5 The recent Political intervention into debates about the place of team games in the schooling of young people has further fanned the flames, and in spite of the success of the England womens team, cricket is now, once again, in the spotlight. Indeed, so much so, that cricket has been identified by the Sports Council as a ‘focus sport’.6