Introduction
The participation of girls in athletics tapers off as they transition into teenage hood and as they become young women. The rate at which female teens stop participating in athletics is much higher as compared to male teens. TrueSport (2014) reported that the number of female high school athletes is about 17 times greater than that of female athletes in colleges. This shows a great decline in young girls’ participation in athletics during adolescence. Women’s Sports Foundation (2011) found out that by the age of seven, the number of girls who have quit athletics and sports generally far surpasses that of boys. In late teenage, the percentage of girls who have dropped off sports is a staggering forty percent. Statistics gathered by Women’s Sports Foundation in Britain in 2014, show that 67% of girls are willing to participate in athletics even more than they currently do. The common tendency is that young girls tend to join sports much later as compared to boys. Therefore, by the time they become teenage females, they possess less practice, skill development and experience and their drop rate is twice that of boys when they reach the age of 14 (Robbins et al., 2003).
Reasons Why Female Teens Stop Participating in Athletics
Female teens stop participating in athletics because of lack of access. Women’s Sports Foundation (2011) reports that the opportunities available for girls to participate in high school sports are 1.3 million fewer than the opportunities that boys have. Kimm et al., (2002) found that limited athletics opportunities and lack of physical education in colleges and high schools compel female teens to look elsewhere for sporting opportunities. These opportunities may be expensive or non-existent altogether making female teens to drop off from athletics. Additionally, inadequate playing facilities near the homes of teenage females make it hard for them to access the playing facilities and continue participating in sports. NSW Sport and Recreation (2002) found out that female teens also drop off from athletics because of transportation and safety issues. Athletics are usually concentrated in specific places, and female teens who stay in urban environments that are densely populated will be compelled to travel far away to access facilities. Traveling through unsafe neighborhoods to reach these facilities using public means of transportation puts young girls at risk. Lack of safe transportation options makes female teens to quit participating in sports and stay in their homes.
Additionally, female teens are at a high likelihood to drop out of athletics because of lack of positive role models they can emulate. In the contemporary life, young girls continuously encounter images that put emphasis on external beauty. Dyer et al., (2006) writes that there is a general scarcity of strong and confident female athletic role models that the female teens can emulate. Pursuance of beauty is what is constantly promoted among female teens at the expense of athletics participation. Images of external beauty cover acres of space in print media and large amounts of time on visual and digital media which prompt young females to prefer staying in this mold rather than vigorously pursuing success in athletics. Peer pressure also contributes to this in that young girls are pressured to pursue beauty vigorously. The lack of strong encouragement for girls to participate in healthy physical activities and athletics results in female teens dropping out of athletics.
Personal Barriers
Female teens also stop participating in athletics because of personal reasons. Pachecho et al., (2012) found out that body image is one of the reasons, and a third of female teens feel shy being seen by others while participating in sports. This is further exacerbated by the lack of self-confidence among girls. Women and female teens, on average, are less confident in their body image, sporting abilities and performance, and this puts them off from sports in adolescence as Dingle (2005) found out. Additionally, the athletics’ clothing and equipment do not favor female teens because they are usually expensive and are aimed at males. The faith of the female teens also requires them to dress in particular ways as is the case with the Muslim faith as Women’s Sports Foundation (2011) found. All these are personal barriers that increase the chances of female teens stopping to participate in athletics.
Social and Cultural Barriers
There exists cultural and social barriers that cause female teens to drop out of athletics at a much higher rate as compared to male teens. Culturally, athletics are dominated by males. The definition, organization, construction and promotion usually depict sports as a male activity (TrueSport Report, 2014). Negative sexuality prejudices and attitudes also increase the chances of female teens quitting athletics. Dingle (2005) reports that there are cultures that regard women’s sports as unfeminine and associate it with lesbianism. Female teens in sports are also at high susceptibility to encounter sexual harassment and abuse by their authority figures. In addition, women and girls sometimes draw unwanted attention from fans when participating in athletics and this has the potential to make them drop out while still adolescents. Moreover, females are invisible in the mainstream athletics industry. Usually, women’s sports are covered poorly by media outlets thus rendering it invisible to the teens. Moreover, Dingle (2005) found out that women employed in sports as coaches or organizers and at other levels are too few, and thus the female teens lack positive role models who can motivate them to continue participating (Dingle, 2005).
Economic Reasons
TrueSport (2014) reports that female teens from economically disadvantaged backgrounds have limited access to athletics and physical activity. This is more pronounced especially among urban girls from lower socioeconomic families as well as those of color. These cadres of female teens are at a high susceptibility to drop out of athletics because of reasons such as lack of funds to pay membership fees in clubs, responsibilities in household chores and unsafe neighborhoods. Female teens from poor neighborhoods lack a structured social support that can encourage and permit them to engage in male-dominated athletics.
Why it is Beneficial to Continue Participating in Sports
Young women should participate in athletics because of its many benefits to their growth. Sports are important because they impart life skills to girls that encompass leadership, confidence, and teamwork. These are skills that are better developed during teenage years for future use in professional and family life and future leadership engagements. Participation in athletics is also good for the future health of female teens. Straurowsky et al., (2009) report that the participation of girls in athletics during adolescence reduces their susceptibility to breast cancer in their later life by 20%. The health benefits extend to improving endurance and strength in female teens. Athletics is part of physical activities that help build muscles and bones, reduces stress and anxiety and helps female teens to control their weight (U.S Department of Health and Human Services, 2008). Additionally, athletics increases self-esteem in teens, improves their blood pressure and lowers the body cholesterol levels. The health benefit that athletics endows on female teens is enough reason to encourage them to participate even more and reduce the rates at which they drop out of athletics when teenage hood sets in.
In addition, female teens should continue participating in athletics because it can enable them acquire a positive body image. Research shows that female teens who participate in athletics while in high school have more positive body image than those who are non-athletes (Miller et al., 2000).
Female teens should also continue participating in athletics because of the relationship value it has. Sabo and Veliz (2008) suggest that the participation of girls in sports is related with higher satisfaction levels for their families. This satisfaction is felt in both single-parent and dual-parent families. Higher levels of family satisfaction hint at family cohesiveness and support of the female teen. Sabo and Veliz (2008) also found out that the participation of female teens in sports is a significant asset in many American families since it fosters trust and communication between the teens and their parents.
Furthermore, Pachecho et al., (2012) found out that female teens should continue participating in athletics so as to develop their talents and curve a career in sports. Girls who drop out of athletics at the time they are transitioning into teenage hood increase the potential of their talents becoming inactive. Teenage years offers the best moment for girls to develop any sporting talents they possess and remain competitive.
Conclusion
The participation of female teens in athletics drops off at the onset of teenage. This is due to a myriad of reasons including lack of access, safety and transportation issues, social-cultural barriers, economic and personal reasons. However, there are many benefits that accompany continued participation of female teens in athletics. These include imparting important life skills, lowering susceptibility to breast cancer, building a career in sports, boosting their body image, and a host of other health benefits. These numerous benefits necessitate that female teens are continuously encouraged and given the right environment to actively participate in athletics.
References
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