National Trends in Youth Sport during the COVID-19 Pandemic: Understanding American Parents' Perceptions and Perspectives

American children participate relatively ubiquitously in youth sport and parents are intimately engaged in their participation. However, the onset of the novel coronavirus 2019 (COVID-19) has dramatically changed how families consume youth sport. Given this, it is important to explore the new and st...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inJournal of sport behavior Vol. 44; no. 3; pp. 303 - 320
Main Authors Dorsch, Travis E, Blazo, Jordan A, Arthur-Banning, Skye G, Anderson-Butcher, Dawn, Jayanthi, Neeru, Hardiman, Amand, Farrey, Tom, Solomon, Jon, Lerner, Jennifer Brown
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published Mobile Journal of Sport Behavior 01.09.2021
Subjects
Children & youth
Coronaviruses
COVID-19
Disease control
Disease prevention
Disease transmission
Families & family life
Pandemics
Parents & parenting
Participation
Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2
Sociodemographics
Sports
United States > US
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Summary:American children participate relatively ubiquitously in youth sport and parents are intimately engaged in their participation. However, the onset of the novel coronavirus 2019 (COVID-19) has dramatically changed how families consume youth sport. Given this, it is important to explore the new and still-changing landscape of youth sport in the United States. The purpose of the present study was to better understand parent perceptions of the current state of youth sport in the United States amidst the backdrop of the COVID-19 pandemic. To address this purpose, a large and statistically representative subset of youth sport parents in the United States (N = 2603; Mage = 38.72) was recruited via Qualtrics panel to complete a study-designed instrument assessing their perceptions prior to, and during, COVID-19-related restrictions. Results highlight youth sport parents' COVID-19-related perspectives, as well as their perceptions of return-to-play protocols in various organizational, community, and sociodemographic contexts. The present work has the potential to shape the ways families engage with youth sport if and when COVID-19-related restrictions are ultimately lifted.
ISSN:0162-7341
2641-3477