Exploring the relationship between parent beliefs and athletes\u27 perceptions: A sport commitment approach

The purpose of this study was to explore the relationship between parents\u27 and gymnasts\u27 perceptions on sport commitment constructs. The sport commitment model developed by Scanlan et al. (1993) provides a theoretical framework in which to explain why athletes participate. Two constructs in the sport commitment model, social constraints and support, represent the social influence factors which can be perceived as supportive or pressuring and may come from a variety of sources such as: parents, coaches, teachers, and peers. Parents tend to play an important role in their child\u27s sport experiences (M.R. Weiss \u26 Ferrer-Caja, 2002), and may influence an athletes\u27 level of sport commitment. The majority of research exploring social influence and sport commitment has examined the athletes\u27 perceptions of social influence ( e.g., Carpenter \u26 Coleman, 1998; W. M. Weiss \u26 Weiss, 2007), with no studies examining both parent and athletes\u27 perceptions of sport commitment model constructs. A total of 283 female gymnasts and their parents participated in this study. Results indicated weak to moderately weak relationships between parents\u27 and gymnasts\u27 perceptions of sport commitment constructs. Multiple regression analyses revealed that parent perceptions of social constraints and benefits were significant predictors of the gymnasts\u27 level of sport commitment. Parent perceptions of different types of social support did not predict gymnasts\u27 level of sport commitment. Competitive level differences were also explored, with parents of gymnasts competing in levels 8 - 10 perceiving higher costs compared to parents of gymnasts competing in levels 4 - 5 and 6 - 7. Parents of gymnasts competing in higher levels ( 6 - 7 \u26 8 - I 0) perceived higher utility value than did parents of gymnasts competing in lower levels ( 4 - 5), and parents of gymnasts in lower levels perceived higher parent intimacy and companionship compared to parents of higher level gymnasts. Future research should continue to explore the influence of parental perceptions on athletes\u27 commitment in sport