Parent Socialization of Safety Concerns in Youth Football (2014)

Undergraduates: Andrew Romaine, Chantelle Martin, Helen Robertson

Faculty Advisor: J.D. DeFreese
Department: Exercise & Sport Science

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Eccles¿ expectancy-value model explains that parental beliefs influence a variety of child outcomes, including sport involvement (e.g., Fredricks & Eccles, 2005). Perceptions of costs and benefits are central to this model, but of particular interest to sport are safety concerns, which warrant specific attention in the contact sport of youth football. Accordingly, the goal of this study was to examine associations between parent and child perceptions of football-related costs, benefits, safety, and child psychosocial outcomes. Guided by Eccles¿ model, we hypothesized that parent safety concerns would moderate relationships among parent cost/benefit perceptions, child cost/benefit perceptions, and child outcomes of sport motivation and enjoyment. Youth football parents (N = 105, M_age = 42) completed valid and reliable online assessments of study variables during the fall 2013 season. Though the data did not support the safety concerns moderation hypothesis, correlational analyses of perceived costs, perceived benefits, and football outcomes were consistent with the theoretical model. Further exploration showed parent and child safety concerns to mediate some model pathways. Of note, parent concerns for head safety were not associated with child cost/benefit perceptions or psychosocial outcomes. The results expand on this existing model of family sport socialization and provide valuable insight into current parental and child attitudes toward youth football safety.