Systematic Observation of the Verbal Behavior of Families of Youth Athletes in Grassroots and Team Sports

Elisa I. Sánchez-Romero, Francisco J. Ponseti Verdaguer, Pere A. Borràs and Alejandro García-Mas
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Elisa I. Sánchez-Romero: Department of Social, Legal and Business Sciences, Catholic University of Murcia (UCAM), 30107 Murcia, Spain
Francisco J. Ponseti Verdaguer: Department of Pedagogy, University of the Balearic Islands, 07122 Palma, Spain
Pere A. Borràs: Department of Pedagogy, University of the Balearic Islands, 07122 Palma, Spain
Alejandro García-Mas: Department of Psychology, University of the Balearic Islands, 07122 Palma, Spain

IJERPH, 2020, vol. 17, issue 4, 1-10

Abstract: Some of the more protective and favorable factors for the development and health in children and teenagers are family and sport, so family involvement in the children’s sports activities is vital in their sports process. The purpose of this study was to analyze the verbal behavior (positive, negative, and neutral comments) of family spectators of school-age athletes regarding sociodemographic and sporting variables. The sample consisted of 190 family spectators of 215 male and female ( M age = 11.66; SD = 1.60) football, basketball, and volleyball players. The Parents’ Observation Instrument at Sport Events (POISE) was used for the observation and LINCE was used to codify the verbal comments made. After registering 38,829 comments, the results showed statistically significant differences in relation to the comments made and the gender of athletes, geographical area, kind of sport, and the sporting category. The findings highlight that in a competitive environment, the comments made by spectators related to athletes do not seem to be initiators of potentially violent situations but rather are dependent on the atmosphere in question. Further research is required in this area to foster positive conduct relating to grassroots sports.

Keywords: physical activity; grassroots sports; clubs sports; school sport; families; spectators; verbal behavior; competitive environment (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2020
References: View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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