Abstract
Increasing concern has been expressed about the possible detrimental effects of competitive youth sports upon aspects of psychological development, especially concerning aggression, anxiety, and poor self-concept. This study examined the self-concepts of 208 participants and nonparticipants in third and sixth grade youth team spores from urban, middle, and lower middle-class backgrounds. A three-factor (participation × grade × sex) analysis of variance applied to self-concept data yielded a significant main effect with participants higher in self-concept than nonparticipants. Significant interactions indicated that differences were not uniform. Perhaps at different ages (grades) participation and nonparticipation in youth team sports may provide different social reinforcement for boys and girls.