Exploring parents’, coaches’, and children’s experiences and perceived outcomes in preschooler sport

ABSTRACT There is limited and conflicting evidence of the benefits of early years (<6) sport participation, yet sport programmes directly targeting this demographic are commonplace. Given known positive and negative outcomes associated with sport participation among older children and youth, there is a need to explore unique benefits, risks, and associated experiences of younger children’s sport involvement; this research may inform parenting decisions around early sport enrolment, and implications for children’s development over the life course. In this exploratory study, experiences and perceived outcomes of preschooler sport participation were examined from the perspective of parents (n = 10), coaches (n = 7), and children aged 3–5 years (n = 10). Results emerging from individual semi-structured interviews revealed themes related to (a) physical activity and energy management, (b) physical literacy and sport skill acquisition, (c) understanding success and failure, (d) socialisation and social skills, and (e) life skills and school readiness. Findings indicate substantive diversity in experiences and perceived outcomes across participants, tied in part to children’s age, length of time in programs, programme/sport type, and concurrent attendance of other programs (e.g. music, daycare, kindergarten). Preschooler sport experiences were not universal, and despite parents’ sometimes inflated expectations, positive developmental outcomes did not emerge through children’s mere attendance alone, but rather were the result of unique interacting contextual factors. Continued research is warranted, as positive outcomes among older children and youth in sport should not automatically be imprinted upon the preschooler demographic.