Search Results (28)

Sport volunteering plays an important role in achieving the goals of sustainable development by supporting the social dimension of sustainability, fostering social integration, and promoting a healthy lifestyle. However, there is a lack of systematic research in Poland on the motivations of sport volunteers, particularly in the context of mass endurance events. This study employed a quantitative, cross-sectional design involving 148 sport volunteers engaged in mass endurance events in Poznan, Poland. To measure motivation, the Polish adaptation of the VMS-ISE scale was used. Data analysis was conducted using one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA). The results showed that volunteer motivations were relatively homogeneous regardless of gender and education level, with the exception of passion for sport, which was significantly stronger among men (p = 0.037). Significant differences were found based on place of residence: residents of medium-sized cities demonstrated the highest motivation for personal development (p < 0.001), whereas individuals from rural areas exhibited stronger patriotism, a greater need for interpersonal interaction, and a higher valuation of external rewards (p < 0.05). The motivations of sport volunteers in Poland are complex and sensitive to environmental factors. Understanding these differences allows for better alignment of recruitment and volunteer management strategies, which can enhance both the effectiveness and sustainability of volunteer engagement. It is recommended to develop volunteer programs that take into account the demographic and socio-cultural characteristics of participants. Full article

Participation in organized sport is widely encouraged for youth development, yet positive outcomes are not guaranteed. Parents play a pivotal role in shaping young athletes’ experiences, requiring emotional support, interpersonal skills, and self-regulation. This study examines the meanings parents attribute to their children’s sports participation and how young athletes construct their experiences under parental and coaching influences. An interpretive phenomenological methodology involved semi-structured interviews with coaches, focus groups with parents, and open-ended questionnaires to young athletes. Seventeen players (M = 11.2 years, SD = 0.59), nineteen parents (M = 47.6 years, SD = 3.61), and two coaches from the same football club volunteered to participate in the study. Participants were selected through purposive sampling to ensure a homogeneous experience. The findings reveal that parental involvement balances support and pressure, while trust-building between parents and coaches significantly impacts the athletes’ experiences. The evolving role of technology and the importance of social dynamics within teams also emerged as critical factors. Intrinsic motivation, fostering emotional bonding through the sport, and adopting a developmental rather than purely competitive framework were emphasized factors identified as supporting positive youth sport experiences. These findings offer insights into how interconnected relationships among parents, coaches, and athletes influence children’s sports engagement and development. Full article

Effective volunteer management in sports tourism events depends on understanding motivations, segmenting profiles, and fostering satisfaction to ensure continuity and event success. The purpose of this study was to examine volunteer motivation, investigate differences in motivation based on gender and age, and identify key predictors of the intention to continue volunteering. The sample consisted of 390 participants (199 men, 191 women) aged from 18 to 68 who volunteered for the Madeira Island Ultra Trail (MIUT) and completed a survey one week following the event. Seven motivational dimensions were assessed using a questionnaire: community participation, personal development, job opportunities, volunteering tradition, esteem, egoism, and personal experiences. The results show that community participation (4.00 ± 0.79) and personal experiences (3.62 ± 0.82) were the most valued motivations, while job opportunities were the least valued (2.04 ± 1.05). Gender differences were found in some dimensions, with women generally rating motivations higher, except for job opportunities. Age also influenced motivation, with younger participants (<35 years) showing higher ratings for most dimensions. A multiple linear regression analysis identified community participation (ß = 0.311; p < 0.001), personal experiences (ß = 0.289; p < 0.001), egoism (ß = −0.215; p = 0.006), volunteering tradition (ß = 0.126; p = 0.023), and age (ß = 0.133; p < 0.001) as significant predictors of the intention to repeat volunteering. The findings highlight the role of volunteers in promoting the event and the region as a sports tourism destination, emphasizing the importance of volunteer retention for event and destination success. Full article

Volunteering in sports for people with disabilities is a crucial element for social inclusion and development. Therefore, this systematic review aims to analyze the existing literature on the motivation, satisfaction, engagement, and commitment of volunteers in sports for people with disabilities. Following PRISMA guidelines, a comprehensive search was conducted across four databases, the Web of Science, Scopus, PsycInfo, and SportDiscus, resulting in the inclusion of 16 studies. The geographic distribution showed the existence of studies on all continents, particularly in Europe and Asia, and most studies were quantitative. The findings revealed that volunteer motivation was predominantly intrinsic, driven by values, understanding, and personal growth, with less emphasis on extrinsic factors such as career advancement. Satisfaction levels were generally high, particularly among student volunteers, who also showed strong future intentions to continue volunteering. As a conclusion, there was a limited number of studies exclusively focused on volunteers participating in sports for people with disabilities. This review highlights the need for more research on diverse types of disabilities and the development of inclusive policies and training programs to enhance volunteer experiences. The study underscores the importance of recognizing both personal and professional motivators to effectively recruit and retain volunteers in sports organizations supporting people with disabilities. Full article

Recreational running, both on roads and in mountains, is one of the most practiced physical activities worldwide, and so, the motivations behind participating have been quite extensively described in the literature. However, the cultural and environmental motivations behind these athletes traveling to other countries or destinations to compete have not been properly addressed yet. The aim of this research is to analyze the motivations of sport tourists and to compare the motivations that cause mountain runners and city runners to compete. A cross-sectional study with a total of 244 athletes, divided into a group of city marathon runners (N = 118) and a group of mountain ultra-marathon runners (N = 126), was conducted. Athletes completed the Sports Tourism Motivation Scale (STMS), composed of 37 items and nine dimensions, through an online survey. Participants were asked questions related to their age, running experience, distance to events, numbers of nights in hotels and volunteering. The results showed that there were statistically significant differences in four out of the nine dimensions of the STMS between city and mountain runners’ motivations and, likewise, statistical differences were found in some dimensions of the scale related to participants’ sex, age, running experience, numbers of nights in a hotel, travel distance and volunteering. In conclusion, the reasons why runners participate in mountain and city running events are different; likewise, some sociodemographic variables should be taken into account when organizing such sporting events in a sustainable way, in order to provide organizers with the most suitable information and attract the most participants. Full article

Nutrition plays a key role in maintaining health and physical condition, particularly for active individuals, including athletes. It can therefore be assumed that individuals performing physically demanding tasks during the organization of sporting events, such as volunteers, should also pay attention to their nutrition. While the importance of diet for athletes has been widely studied, the impact of nutrition on sports volunteers remains under-researched. Volunteers often have to cope with varying degrees of physical and mental exertion, which may affect their nutritional needs. A qualitative study was conducted using in-depth individual interviews (IDIs) with 17 sports volunteers who had experience in organizing various sporting events. Participants were purposefully selected based on specific inclusion criteria, which included active involvement in sports volunteering (with a minimum of two years of experience in volunteer activities) as well as volunteering experience at sports events of various scales. The interviews aimed to understand the eating habits, dietary awareness, and impact of nutrition on health and physical fitness. The data were transcribed and subjected to thematic analysis, focusing on coding responses and identifying recurring themes. Most participants did not place much importance on their diet, making random food choices due to a busy lifestyle and lack of time. Only a few volunteers consciously adjusted their diet when they had knowledge of the physically demanding tasks they were expected to perform during their volunteer work. The majority of volunteers relied on less reliable sources of nutritional information, such as blogs or social media, rather than credible sources of knowledge. This study revealed that many individuals involved in sports volunteering are unaware of the impact of diet on their fitness and health. There is a need for nutritional education for this group to improve their awareness of the importance of a balanced diet in the context of increased physical activity. It is also advisable to provide better nutritional conditions during sporting events and to promote the use of professional sources of information about healthy eating. Full article

This article reviews the impacts of the UK Conservative Party’s government policies on ‘open access youth work’ since 2010, giving particular attention to the period since 2018 and to impacts in England. After clarifying the practice’s distinctive features, it outlines the ‘austerity’ demolition of its local provision and—amid continuing wider financial pressures—changes in the role and contributions of the voluntary youth sector. It lists a range of ‘gesture’ funds for financing responses to young people’s needs and interests as the government has defined them and uses the Youth Investment Fund (YIF) as a case study of how this money has been made available and allocated. Initiatives taken by the Department of Digital, Media, Culture and Sport (DCMS) are then examined: its Youth Review, National Youth Guarantee, review of the statutory guidance to local authorities, and support for ‘youth volunteering’. Two key developments are then considered that, by early 2024, were diverting and inhibiting an even partial sustained reinstatement of the lost open access youth work facilities. One, at the policy level, is the redefinition of ‘youth work’ by governments and by some within the youth work sector itself as a wide range of out-of-school practices with young people; the other, at the point of delivery, is the on-going difficulties in recruiting youth workers, especially those with direct practice experience. Finally, two possible tentative suggestions for some reinstatement of open access youth work provisions are then discussed. Full article

Background: Primary dysmenorrhea (PD) is one of the most common diseases in women of reproductive age. Our aim was to examine whether a twice-weekly thirty-minute exercise intervention could result in a difference in the pulsatility index (PI) of the uterine arteries (UAs) and level of menstrual pain in patients with PD. Methods: In our prospective observational trial, the observation period included one spontaneous menstrual cycle and the consecutive time of the next menstruation of all participants, aged 18–44, with no extensive sports experience. In total, 73 volunteers were enrolled: 38 persons in the intervention group (IG) and 35 in the control group (CG). The intervention program was accompanied by music, performed in groups under the supervision of a qualified instructor in Hungary. The primary outcome was the difference between the IG and CG regarding the PI values of UAs at the 1st and the 2nd ultrasound (US) Doppler flowmetry. The secondary outcome was the difference between the IG and CG regarding the PI of UAs and menstrual pain measured by using the Numeric Rating Scale and adherence to the intervention. Statistical tests such as an independent-samples t-test, chi-square test, Mann–Whitney test and analysis of covariance (ANCOVA) were used during the analyses. Results: Examining the mean of the PI of UAs in the IG and the CG at the 1st and the 2nd US measurement, a significant difference was found in the change in the measured value (Z = −2.545; p = 0.011). The IG showed a significantly higher increase in the mean of the PI of UAs (Median = 0.825) than the CG (Median = 0.130). The difference in the PI of the UAs of the IG and the CG is not related to the level of pain in any group (p = 0.336) and not related to the whole sample (p = 0.354); furthermore, the level of pain did not significantly differ between the two groups. Conclusions: Our study is the first to document the significant effects of mild-to-moderate exercise training on the change in the PI of the UAs in individuals with PD. The IG had a reduced blood flow due to circulatory redistribution after exercise. The level of menstrual pain of primary dysmenorrhea patients is independent of the level of blood circulation regarding the PI of the UAs. Randomized controlled studies with more participants and a longer research period are needed to confirm our findings regarding the association between regular exercise and the PI of UAs. The study was registered at clinicaltrials.gov: NCT04618172. Full article

Involvement in sports volunteering is not only a way to improve mental health by increasing a sense of appreciation or respect, but it also allows participants to take on an individual challenge, meet new people, or gain specific knowledge. The aim of this study was to analyze selected motivations of students from the University of Physical Education in Krakow to get involved in sports volunteering during the 2023 European Games organized in their city and verifying them in terms of gender, age, previous volunteering experience, and pursuing a career. A total of 535 students took part in the survey, of whom 52.71% (282) were female, and 47.29% (253) were male. Selected motivation statements were indicated by respondents through a 5-point Likert scale. The results of the completed study confirmed that pursuing a professional career alongside studies and previous experience in sports volunteering had an impact on undertaking sports volunteering (F = 11.754; r = 0.674; p = 0.003 and F = 10.241; r = 0.611; p = 0.002). The obtained research results may be important for sports psychologists and organizers of sports events in the context of recruiting volunteers or improving the process of managing sports volunteering. Full article

Volunteers at major sporting events have become a key element for the success of these events. Therefore, the organiser should know exactly those aspects that strengthen the bond between the sports volunteer and the event. The aim of the present research was to assess the change in volunteers’ perception of community feeling at the China Open 500 tennis tournament. The sample was selected by using a purposive non-probability sampling procedure with a 99% confidence interval and a sampling error of 0.5% (n = 805). The data collection tool was the structured questionnaire applied through a face-to-face personal survey of volunteers before and after the event. The proposed structural model for the perceived community feeling of the China Open 500 volunteers was confirmed via a second-order factor analysis. The results confirmed the existence of the six proposed factors: Administrative Consideration, Common Interests, Equity in Administrative Decisions, Leadership Opportunity, Social Spaces, and Competitiveness. The change in the volunteers’ sense of community from the training phase to after the event shows that there is a direct link between a sense of community and the volunteer experience. Full article

Vouchers that reduce the cost of sport and active recreation participation have been shown to increase children’s and adolescent’s physical activity levels. Yet, the influence of government-led voucher programs on the capacity of sport and active recreation organisations is unclear. This qualitative study explored the experiences of stakeholders in the sport and recreation sector that were engaged in implementing the New South Wales (NSW) Government’s Active Kids voucher program in Australia. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 29 sport and active recreation providers. Interview transcriptions were analysed by a multidisciplinary team using the Framework method. Overall, participants reported that the Active Kids voucher program was an acceptable intervention to address the cost barrier to participation for children and adolescents. Three main steps influenced the capacity of organisations to deliver their sport and recreation programs and the voucher program: (1) Implementation priming—alignment of the intervention aims with stakeholder priorities and early information sharing, (2) Administrative ease—enhanced technology use and establishment of simple procedures, and (3) Innovation impacts—enablement of staff and volunteers to address barriers to participation for their participants. Future voucher programs should include strategies to enhance the capacity of sport and active recreation organisations to meet program guidelines and increase innovation. Full article

Brain-Derived Neurotropic Factor (BDNF) is one of the essential mediating factors of exercise-induced neuroplasticity, but the underlying molecular mechanisms of exercise-induced neuroplasticity are still largely unknown. Personality dimensions differentiate individuals and depend on genes and environmental factors. The dimensions of openness to experience, emotional stability, extraversion and conscientiousness have been reported to be positively related to performance; considering agreeableness, a negative relation with sports performance was emphasized. However, not enough effort has been put into investigating the relationship between genetic polymorphisms affecting psychological abilities and competitive power sports. The aim of this study was to investigate the association of the rs6265 polymorphism of BDNF with personality dimensions in martial arts athletes. The study was conducted among martial arts athletes. The study group included 258 volunteers (martial arts athletes (n = 106) and controls (n = 152). BDNF polymorphism testing was performed using the real-time PCR method; personality dimensions were assessed using standardized NEO-FFI questionnaires. All analyses were performed using STATISTICA 13. We observed that martial arts athletes’ G/G genotypes compared to the control group G/G genotypes presented significantly higher severity of personality dimension “conscientiousness”. In comparison with the controls, the case group subjects had significantly higher scores in the dimension extraversion (M 6.89 vs. M 6.43, p = 0.0405) and conscientiousness/scale (M 7.23 vs. M 5.89, p < 0.0001). The results of 2 × 3 factorial ANOVA noticed a statistically significant effect of combined factor BDNF rs6265 genotype of martial arts/control (F_2,252 = 3.11, p = 0.0465, η² = 0.024). Additionally, we observed that the results of 2 × 3 factorial ANOVA showed a statistically significant influence of combined factor BDNF rs6265 of genotype martial arts/ control (F_2,252 = 6.16, p = 0.0024, η² = 0.047). The combination of the analysis of personality dimensions with genetics—as in the case of the polymorphism of the BDNF gene related to neuroplasticity—indicates that neurobiology cannot be ignored in educating sports champions. We already know that this is related to genetics. However, little is still known about the influence of personality traits on sports performance. We observed that martial arts athletes’ G/G genotypes, in comparison to the control group’s G/G genotypes, presented significantly higher severity of personality dimension “conscientiousness”. This is worthy of further analysis and probably longitudinal studies on a more numerous group of athletes. Full article

Interpersonal relationships exist in many forms within the sport environment. Athlete performance and career direction, at times, depend on their formed sport relationships. Positive and negative interpersonal relationships among the coach, the athlete, and the parent affects many athletes’ behavioral outcomes, such as continued participation. Our research aimed to understand whether the positive and negative processes in the coach, athlete, and parent interpersonal relationships depend on athletes’ sex, age, family composition, sport experience, and the type of sport. To achieve our research purpose, 632 volunteer student-athletes (aged 11–19) completed our survey. Our survey included the Positive and Negative Processes in the Coach–Athlete–Parent (PNPCAP) relationship scale and demographics (i.e., sex, age, family composition, years in competitive sport, and sport type). The study results revealed that positive processes, as measured by the positive PNPCAP subscale, were invariant to our categorical variables. However, participants’ self-ratings of negative PNPCAP-measured processes depended upon sex, sport type, and family makeup. Significant (p < 0.05) two-way interactions revealed boys involved in individual sports and residing without their parents or with one self-reported a higher level of the negative processes. The calculated effect size values with the other groupings were mostly medium in magnitude. The third significant two-way interaction resulted for sport type by family makeup. This two-way interaction revealed individual sport participants without or residing with one parent reported higher levels of negative processes. The effect size values were a mix of small and medium in meaningfulness. In conclusion, while positive Coach–Athlete–Parent processes appear invariant to our measured categorical variables, sex, sport type, and family makeup moderated the negative processes. Further research, such as mixed methods, is required to best understand and provide direction for intervention research to reduce negative processes in youth sport. Full article

Sport-for-development programs claim to address key determinants of recreational physical activity participation and subsequent development outcomes in low-income settings. We conducted a natural experiment with pre–post measures taken from women in the 12 villages in Samoa, some of which voluntarily participated in the sport-for-development intervention. The intervention comprised a six-week netball league delivered by local volunteers who attended coaching workshops, received ongoing support from the national governing body and were provided with infrastructure and equipment to conduct local training sessions. Changes in netball participation, recreational physical activity, body composition, mental wellbeing and socio-ecological determinants of physical activity were compared between intervention and comparison villages using a univariate ANOVA. The intervention reached women who participated in little recreational physical activity and had poor physical and mental wellbeing. Program uptake was higher in villages with the strongest social support for netball participation. Local social support and capacity to independently organize netball activities increased. There were concurrent improvements in netball participation, physical activity levels, mental wellbeing and body weight in the intervention villages. Our findings support scaling-up of the intervention in similar settings but preceding this with formative evaluation to identify low active communities that are “primed” to participate in the proposed activity. Full article

The stress impact of COVID-19 restrictions has put the adapted sports community at an unprecedented level of emergency. The self-report Event Scale—Revised (IES-R) questionnaire was administered to assess the level of psychological distress and emotive reactions such as intrusion (INT), avoidance (AV) and hyperarousal (HYP) following training and competitions suspension within a sample of Italian disabled athletes. A total of 146 self-selected volunteers were included in this study: 73 disabled athletes (aged 42.11 ± 13.70) and 73 athletes (aged 40.23 ± 13.73) who served as the control group. Only 8.22% of the disabled participants vs. 30.14% of athletes were affected by subjective distress. MANOVA showed significant differences in IES-R subjective distress for age, where the emerging adults had a higher level of stress than adults (p = 0.031), and for the type of sport, where the individual sports group showed higher scores than the team sports group (p = 0.049). Regarding the IES-R subscales, significant differences were found in INT and AV for age, where the emerging adults showed higher scores than adults (p = 0.018 and p = 0.046, respectively). Significant differences were found in HYP for type of sport, where the individual sports group showed higher scores than the team sports group (p = 0.014). The results confirmed a lower distress level of disabled athletes to adverse events than that expressed by athletes. Both sports engagement and the experience of living with impairment, overcoming structural barriers, could act as a buffer effect against stress due to COVID-19 restrictions. Full article