Parental involvement in sport: the conceptual and methodological cornerstones

Abstract

This article reviews psychological theory and research critical to understanding parental involvement in sport. For over 30 years, studies of parental influences in sport focused primarily on the consequences of parents’ behaviours and attitudes to certain psychological and cognitive processes experienced by children in sport, such as anxiety, approaches to achieving goals or self-perceptions of competence and control. However, recently, there has been a tendency toward multidimensional ecological approaches to the study of parental involvement in sport. The presented model of parental involvement in sport contains the key variables for explaining why parents become involved in their children’s sport, the characteristics of their involvement, and how their involvement affects young athletes’ achievements in sport. Finally, some recommendations for research and practice are presented, taking into account relationships among parents, coaches and sports institutions.