NEGATIVE EFFECTS OF SPORTS ON KIDS

Negative Effects of Sports on Kids



Negative Effects of Sports on Kids

Introduction

There is no doubt in saying that most parents want the best for their children. We want our children to have access to all the greatest things in life and start out life with a bang. Many parents in modern America strive to become a “super-parent” for this exact reason and push their children to excel in every area of life possible—one notable example is the total obsession with pushing their children in sports. There are very many great benefits sports can have on your child's life, but pushing them too hard can also have adverse effects. Dreams of multimillion-dollar contracts, Olympic glory and college scholarships have many parents pushing their children harder than ever to play sports. Kids join sports leagues at younger ages; some by force, to participate year-round in the hopes of creating the next superstar. Involving your child in sports has many positive benefits. However, pushing children into playing sports can negatively impact their emotional development and damage the parent-child bond.

Research studies show that sports pose various risks to children, which usually occur when sports program fails to provide a proper environment for playing. An appropriate program for sports is one that has less focus on children's victory in games, and mostly focuses on the provision of entertainment which is healthy and attractive to children. An environment characterized by high level of competition is likely to affect negatively children psychologically, as it tampers with development particularly where some children are not in a position to win. When children are always cautioned for making mistakes while playing, they tend to develop low self esteem for themselves as they feel inadequate. This is very risky for children, particularly at their young stage of development since they must have positive rather than negative attitude regarding their capabilities. Hence sports programs should offer children with extensive advice on how to treat mistakes, as learning opportunities, which should result, to further improvements on certain areas (Allender & Gill & Foster, 2006).

Discussion

Here, are some different ways that a child can be harmed by taking sports too seriously.

Increase in Injuries

An oft-discussed trend in these modern times is that there has been a surge in the number of children who experience injuries in sports, and if you look at the way we train our kids to play the “games” these days, it is no wonder. Many different types of sports usually wear the body down over time—and some, like football, can even add up to brain injury (Tye & Romano, 1997).

It is no wonder that forcing a child who is still growing to take their sport to the ultra-competitive level will lead to lots of injuries. Increasing trends show coaches who take the game as seriously as any college or pro-level coach, expecting nothing but the best from their teams, and children who specialize in one sport year-round, never giving their bodies time to ...