Leisure, organised sport and antisocial behaviour an examination of youth’s involvement in leisure, organised sports and its effect on antisocial behaviour.

Over the last ten years national strategies and policies placed youth at the forefront of their developments. Particular attention has been placed on antisocial behaviour and the appropriate punishments and rehabilitation methods. Programmes have been developed with the objective to deter antisocial behaviours with little empirical support to justify them. This study aims to determine whether youth’s involvement in leisure and sport has any effect on their involvement in antisocial or delinquent behaviour. This is mainly achieved through the quantitative research method of a survey. Sixty-five people aged between 14-20 years old from two contrasting educational institutions in Dublin were surveyed. The survey was designed based on other surveys conducted in this field of study. The research found that males were more likely to be involved in antisocial and delinquent behaviour than females. The research also found that participant’s who were involvement in organised sports were less likely to be involved in antisocial behaviour compared to participant’s who were not involved in organised sports. Further research in this area of study is recommended in order to improve current programmes and to develop new programmes