Dropped Interest: Generation Z Students’ Demotivating Reasons on Gradual Dislike on Sports and Recreation

Abstract

Gen Zs are different from older generations because they are the first consumers to have grown up wholly in the digital era. They're tech-savvy and mobile-first—and they have high standards for how they spend their time online. Scholars have identified a decreasing involvement of Gen Zs in sports and recreation. This problem was worsened by the huge influence of social media and other platforms, which made them get distracted and lose interest in sports and recreation. Some scholars revealed few explanations on this problem; however, there is no concrete evidence scrutinizing the reasons behind this phenomenon to the generation z students. Hence, this study was conducted primarily to investigate the demotivating reasons of generation z students' gradual dislike of sports and recreation. Using a phenomenology approach, gen zs in Southern Philippines who are identified as not interested in sports and recreation served as primary participants of this study. The triangulation of results revealed six significant concerns from research participants. These include the inadequate childhood exposure to sports and recreation, influence of technological advancements, reduced physical interaction due to the pandemic, and health difficulties. The data were then used to generate conclusions and recommendations to help generation z students boost their interests to participate in sports and recreational activities.