Sport, Physical Activity, Young People, and the Criminal Justice System: Perspectives on Prevention and Diversion

Dear Colleagues,

The instrumental use of sport and physical activity to address issues related to youth crime and anti-social behaviour has long been presented as an attractive (and potentially cost-effective) alternative within crime prevention and diversion policy directed at young people (Nichols, 2007; Meek, 2014; Morgan and Parker, 2023). This logic is largely based upon the potential for active participation in sport and physical activity to offer an antidote to boredom, support the formation of positive interpersonal connections, and help young people acquire pro-social qualities (Coalter, 2013; Parker et al., 2018; Morgan and Parker, 2024), which a growing academic evidence base has corroborated.  

The scaling-up of sport-based, youth-focused crime prevention and diversion interventions has significant political backing. For instance, the joint International Olympic Committee/United Nation Office on Drugs and Crime initiative SC:ORE is representative of policy efforts to use sport and physical activity to prevent and combat youth crime by offering skills training alongside sport to build more peaceful and safer communities.

However, critical scholars have appealed for more nuanced and precise research that examines the specific mechanisms that enable sport and physical activity interventions to have a deeper and broader impact on youth crime outcomes (see Morgan and Parker, 2023) and how issues related to youth crime are experienced across different jurisdictions (Murray et al., 2024). Consequently, this Special Issue aims to feature cross- and interdisciplinary scholarship which adds to our understanding of how sport and physical activity can/may be used to support young people vulnerable to or already engaged in the criminal justice system, with a specific focus on strategies developed with preventative or diversionary intent. For the purposes of this Special Issue, we broadly conceive prevention as an intentional provision which addresses re-offending and focuses on individuals who may have had some prior contact with criminal justice services, while diversion comprises intentional provision which acts to steer young people away from deeper penetration into the criminal justice system (Wilson et al., 2018; Tilley and Sidebottom, 2017; Harris and Seal, 2016).

We particularly welcome contributions from early career researchers and/or practitioners operating within initiatives which use sport and physical activity to prevent and/or divert youth crime. In addition, we encourage empirical papers that showcase collaboration between academics and youth-focused delivery organisations or capture the perspectives and voices of young people.

Dr. Haydn Morgan
Dr. Conor Murray
Dr. Brendan Coyle
Dr. Peter Harris
Dr. Richard Hester
Prof. Dr. Andrew Parker
Guest Editors

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• sport
• physical activity
• youth crime
• prevention
• diversion
• youth work