Exercise and sports participation has been established as an important
factor in reducing the risk of many physical problems such as
cardiovascular disease, high blood pressure, and obesity (Schiffman,
1994). Current research suggests that sustained exercise may also
enhance psychological or emotional well-being as it is often called,
and therefore can be used as an additional therapy in the treatment of
some psychological disorders (Pelham, Campagna, Ritvo, & Birnie,
1993). The most consistent message derived from the adult literature is
that, kept within healthful limits, there is often a positive
relationship between exercise and emotional well-being, generally
confirming
The literature in the area of sport, exercise, and emotional
well-being has focused primarily on the relationship between exercise,
sports participation and anxiety, depression, self-esteem, and more
recently on psychosocial stress (Biddle, 1992). Since these are among
the most common problems brought to the attention of mental health
professionals, the idea that exercise and sports participation may
alleviate some emotionally related problems and improve self-concept is
appealing.
Exercise has been
found to improve mood in adults including alleviating many forms of
depression (Schiffman, 1994; Cox, 1994; North, McCullagh, & Tran,
1990; Weinberg & Gould, 1995). Generally, the literature also
supports a relationship between increased exercise and reduced anxiety
in adults (King et al., 1993; Petruzzello et al., 1991). While research
and meta-analytic findings of a beneficial relationship between anxiety
and exercise, the evidence is not as strong as those claiming the
benefits of exercise and sport on depression. It appears that aerobic
exercise is more beneficial if one is anxious but for depression both
aerobic and anaerobic exercise seems similarly effective. Psychological problems such as depression, anxiety, and stress of
course are not restricted to the domain of adults (Cantwell, 1982).
While not as extensive, some research has examined the links between
exercise and sports participation in children and adolescents and
reduced emotional and behavioral problems. Research suggests that the
sport environment can provide socialization opportunities and place
adaptive demands that are similar to those of other important life
settings (Smith & Smoll, 1991). Organized sport is believed to
influence the development of important behaviors such as cooperation,
unselfishness, positive attitudes toward achievement, stress
management, perseverance, appropriate risk-taking, and the ability to
tolerate frustration and delayed gratification (Smith & Smoll,
1991). Through playing with others, children and adolescents can build
cooperative relationships and meet their need to belong (Estrada,
Geltand, & Hartmann, 1988). Similarly, they learn key cooperation
skills as they work together and perform specific team roles. This need
to be accepted and successful in one's peer group can be very strong
especially as children enter adolescence. One way a young adolescent
can gain acceptance and status among peers is to be good at activities
valued by other youth. Sport provides an opportunity outside the
classroom to do this, since athletic ability is often considered by
their peers to be a strong social asset (Brustad, 1992).
The idea that youth who participate in sport exhibit fewer behavior
problems has been supported by empirical studies. For example, in a
large American study, Jeziorski (1994) found that participants in
sports earned better grades, behaved better in the classroom, had fewer
behavior problems outside the classroom, dropped out less frequently,
and attended school on a more regular basis with fewer unexcused
absences as compared to nonparticipants. Furthermore, Jeziorski found
what nonparticipants were more likely to drop out of school, more
likely to use drugs, more likely to become teen parents, more likely to
smoke cigarettes, and more likely to have been arrested than were sport
participants. Segrave & Hastad (1982) also found a negative
relationship between sport and delinquency in both early adolescents
and college students. Increased sports activity was associated with
lower levels of delinquency. Other studies support the view that sport
and exercise are associated with reduced problem behaviors (Brown &
Siegel, 1988).
The most
recent evidence in support of a positive association between sports
participation and emotional well-being is from a British cohort study
which assessed this association with over 4,000 adolescents aged 16
years (Steptoe & Butler, 1996). Emotional well-being was assessed
by the General Health Questionnaire (GHQ) and the Malaise Inventory.
Information was obtained for team and individual sports and vigorous
recreational activities. Findings showed that sport and vigorous
recreational activity were positively associated with emotional
well-being independently of sex, social class, or health status. In
contrast, participation in some activities (e.g., snooker) was
positively associated with psychological and somatic symptoms.
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