Higher Levels of Income and Education are Associated with More Specialized Sport Participation Behaviors: Results from a Representative Sample of Youth Sport Parents from the United States.
Eric G Post, Matthew J Rivera, Darleesa Doss and 1 others
PMID 37795335WHAT IT FOUND
Higher-income and more-educated parents were more likely to report specialized youth sport behaviors such as club teams, multiple teams, and single-sport play.
Not every behavior differed, and the survey cannot prove causes.
Key findings
01Parents reporting household income of $75,001 or more were more likely than parents reporting less than $75,000 to report club team participation, multiple teams at the same time, and single-sport specialization.
02Parents with a bachelor's degree or above were more likely than parents with less education to report club team participation, multiple teams, single-sport specialization, private coaching, and an injury requiring medical care.
03Higher income and higher education groups reported spending more on their child's sport in the previous year than lower income and lower education groups.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for PTs
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What it does not show
The study measured associations at one time, so it cannot show that income, education, specialization, or injury caused one another. All data were parent-reported, and the paper does not report how many parents were invited or dropped out. The sample was proportionally representative by race/ethnicity but not by income or education. Income and education were split into only two categories because of small numbers, which hides differences within categories. Income and education overlap, and the analysis did not isolate their separate effects. Injury was only a yes-or-no report of needing medical care, with no detail about injury type, severity, or sport. Specialization was defined as yes or no using a single definition, so the 47.0% rate may not compare with other studies. The sample had only 236 parents, leaving small numbers in some race/ethnicity groups.
Declared interests
The authors reported no conflicts or disclosures.
The easy way to misread this
Do not read these associations as proof that higher income or education causes specialized sport participation or injury. The study was a one-time survey of parent reports, and income and education overlap.