- Researchers report that team sports are more beneficial to children’s mental health than individual sports.
- In fact, they say that participating in individual sports can lead to greater mental health problems than not playing sports at all.
- However, other experts say there are good aspects as well as shortcomings of all youth sports.
- They note that children with attention problems and other problems sometimes progress in individual activities.
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In addition, researchers report that participating in individual sports such as tennis or wrestling is actually associated with greater mental health difficulties than not engaging in sports.
Their findings contradict some
Matt Hoffmann, Ph.D., an assistant professor of kinesiology at Fullerton State University in California, and his colleagues presented their research in the latest issue of the open access journal PLOS ONE.
Hoffman’s team analyzed data on sports and mental health of 11,235 children aged 9 to 13.
Parents and caregivers reported on several aspects of their children’s mental health. The researchers then looked for a link between data on mental health and children’s involvement in sports. Other factors were also considered, such as household income and total physical activity.
The researchers said that the analysis showed that children who play team sports have fewer signs of anxiety, depression, social problems, withdrawal and difficulty with attention.
However, contrary to the expectations of the researchers, the study also found that children who played only individual sports had greater difficulties in mental health than those who did not play sports.
They noted that female athletes in team and individual sports were less likely to break the rules than those who did not play at all.
The authors acknowledged that more detailed research is needed.
“There are many components of team sports that are good for children,” Dr. Julian Lagoy, a psychiatrist at Mindpath Health in San Jose, California, told Healthline.
“One benefit for children from participating in team sports is how to deal with other people, but it is also learning how to be a leader and be a part of something bigger than yourself,” she said. “Being in a team makes an individual responsible to everyone else in the team, even as children.
However, Lagoj said that the dynamics can go in both directions.
“In a way, it’s easier to lose when you’re on the team because you won’t bear all the blame,” Lagoj explained. “It can happen that if you make a mistake that costs your whole team to win, the pressure can be much worse. However, when you lose or win in a team, you will share it with others, which can make losses more bearable and victories much more enjoyable. ”
Jillian Amodio, a social worker and founder of Moms for Mental Health, told Healthline that she saw team and individual sports being used by children.
“Sport, in general, provides an opportunity to learn problem solving, build self-confidence, build strength and lead a healthy lifestyle,” said Amodio. “While team sports offer opportunities to learn how to work collectively and collaborate with teammates, it does not necessarily make them better or worse than individual sports.
“Individual sports such as horseback riding, skating, swimming or martial arts still have aspects of cooperation,” Amodio noted. “It also comes down to interests and preferences. Being good at something is not the same as loving. One of the main factors of involvement in any type of physical activity that should never be neglected is the factor of enjoying it all. Sport should be fun. It should be something that the participant views as a positive aspect of his life.
“The pressure comes in many forms,” she added. “The pressure of the team or the pressure to work well for the team is really no different from the pressure to work for one’s own sense of satisfaction. We are all motivated by different things and for them, and that again comes down to personal preferences and personality traits. ”
Stacy Haynes, a therapist at Little Hands Family Services in Turnersville, New Jersey, agrees that the benefits may depend on the individual child.
“As a therapist for autistic children and children with anxiety, individual sports are the best,” Haynes told Healthline. “Neurodiverse children often fight in team sports because of their own vision of the game, their teammates, social pressures, etc.”
“Therapists will actually recommend individual sports such as track, tennis, swimming and karate for young people who have neurodevelopmental differences that interfere with their ability to play sports,” he noted. “(For example) children who have a low tolerance for frustration with teammates (and) young people who have anxiety to perform in front of others or to betray their team. Even sensory problems in team sports can make it difficult for young people to participate in e.g. loud audience, shouting teammates. ”
“Not all sports are created equal, and neither are our children,” she noted.