An Analysis of Sports Specialization in NCAA Division I Collegiate Athletics

Swindell, Hasani W.; Marcille, Melanie L.; Trofa, David P.; Paulino, Franklin E.; Desai, Natasha; Lynch, T. Sean; Ahmad, Christopher S.; Popkin, Charles A.

doi:10.1177/2325967118821179

Cited by 28 publications

(18 citation statements)

References 24 publications

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“…20,21 Previous studies have found that it is relatively uncommon for National Collegiate Athletic Association Division I athletes to have specialized early in high school to compete at a college level. 22,23 In a retrospective study comparing current high school, college, and professional athletes, obtaining a college athletic scholarship was commonly mentioned as a driver for early sport participation and focus on a single sport when it came to factors that drive youth sport specialization. 6 Unfortunately, the likelihood of competing at an elite level is small, with a reported 3.3% to 6.8% of high school athletes competing at the college level and an even smaller percentage at the professional level.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Different Perceptions of Parents and Children on Factors Influencing Sport Specialization

Hernandez¹,

Biese²,

Schaefer³

et al. 2021

Journal of Sport Rehabilitation

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Context: Sport specialization among youth athletes has been associated with increased risk of overuse injuries. Previous research demonstrates that children perceive specialization to be beneficial in making their high school team and receiving athletic college scholarships. Previous research demonstrates that parents play a significant role in their child’s sport experience. However, it is unknown if parents and children answer questions related to specialization factors in a similar manner. Objective: To evaluate the beliefs of youth athletes and parents on factors related to sport specialization and evaluate the level of agreement between dyads on sports specialization. Design: Cross-sectional. Setting: Online and paper surveys. Patients or Other Participants: Aim 1: 1998 participants (993 children and 1005 parents). Aim 2: 77 paired parent–child dyads. Interventions: Self-administered survey. Main Outcome Measures: The responses were summarized via frequency and proportions (%). Chi-squares were calculated between parent and child responses. Kappa coefficients were calculated for dyads to determine level of agreement. Sport specialization was classified using a common 3-point scale. Results: The parents were more concerned about risk of injury in sports compared with children (P < .001, χ2 = 231.4; parent: extremely: 7.1%; child: extremely: 3.7%). However, children were more likely to believe that specialization was associated with their chances of obtaining an athletic college scholarship compared with parents (P < .001, χ2 = 201.6; parent: very/extremely likely: 13.7%; child: very/extremely likely: 15.8%). Dyad subanalysis indicated a moderate level of agreement for “quitting other sports to focus on one sport” (κ = .50) and a low level of agreement for “identifying a primary sport” (κ = .30) and “training >8 months per year in primary sport” (κ = .32). Conclusions: Parents and youth athletes had differing beliefs on the factors related to sport specialization. Dyad analysis shows that parents and children answer sport specialization classification questions differently. Health care providers should be aware of these differences, and messaging should be individualized to the audience.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Different Perceptions of Parents and Children on Factors Influencing Sport Specialization

Hernandez¹,

Biese²,

Schaefer³

et al. 2021

Journal of Sport Rehabilitation

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“…A recent study of collegiate athletes found that the primary drivers of specialization included personal interest, skill level, time constraints, and the prospect of potential scholarship opportunities. 18 This misunderstanding leads parents and coaches to encourage young athletes to play on multiple teams and dedicate more hours to developing their game. However, the athletes themselves seem to believe otherwise.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Early Sports Specialization Is Associated With Upper Extremity Injuries in Throwers and Fewer Games Played in Major League Baseball

Confino

Irvine

O’Connor

et al. 2019

Orthopaedic Journal of Sports Medicine

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Background: Single-sport athletes who specialize in baseball at a young age may have a greater predisposition to overuse injury, burnout, and decreased career longevity when compared with multiple-sport athletes. The effect of sport specialization has not been studied in professional baseball players. Hypothesis: Major League Baseball (MLB) players who played multiple sports in high school would experience fewer injuries, spend less time on the disabled list, play more games, and have a longer career than athletes who played only baseball in high school. Study Design: Descriptive epidemiology study. Methods: First- and second-round MLB draft picks from 2008 to 2016 who played in at least 1 professional game were included in this study. Athletes who participated in 1 or more sports in addition to baseball during high school were considered multisport athletes, and athletes who participated in only baseball were considered single-sport athletes. For each athlete, participation in high school sports, injuries sustained in MLB and Minor League Baseball, number of days on the disabled list for each injury, number of games played in both leagues, and whether the athlete was still active were collected from publicly available records. Results: A total of 746 athletes were included in this study: 240 (32%) multisport and 506 (68%) single sport. Multisport athletes played in significantly more mean total games (362.8 vs 300.8; P < .01) as well as more mean MLB games (95.9 vs 71.6; P = .04) than single-sport athletes. There was no difference in the mean number of seasons played in the major leagues (1.8 vs 1.6; P = .15) or minor league (5.25 vs 5.20; P = .23) between multisport and single-sport athletes. Single-sport athletes had a significantly higher prevalence of upper extremity injuries compared with multisport athletes (136 [63%] vs 55 [50%]; P = .009). Single-sport pitchers also had a higher prevalence of shoulder and elbow injuries (86 vs 27; P = .008) and were more likely to have recurrent elbow injuries (33% vs 17% recurrence; P = .002) compared with multisport pitchers. Conclusion: Professional baseball players who participated in multiple sports in high school played in more major league games and experienced lower rates of upper and lower extremity injuries than players who played only baseball in high school.

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“…Most cohort studies [5][6][7]15,16,18,19 of the relationship between early single-sport specialization and long-term sport performance have been conducted in non-US athletes. More recently, a growing number of studies of US athletes [20][21][22][23] have generated questions about the role of early single-sport specialization. However, few authors have explored the potential role of genetic influences on exceptional US athletes and compared such findings to a peer group whose participation did not advance beyond the youth level.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…We compared high-achieving US SAs at the NCAA DI level with their NA peers and found that the average age of single-sport specialization for the former occurred in middle adolescence and was 1 year older than for the latter (15.4 versus 14.3 years; P ¼ .002). A recent survey 20 of DI athletes that did not include a comparison group demonstrated an age of specialization of 14.9 years. In addition, 88% of the SAs in our study participated in more than 1 sport in youth, and the average was 3.9 sports.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Early Single Sport Specialization in a High-Achieving US Athlete Population: Comparing National Collegiate Athletic Association Student-Athletes and Undergraduate Students

DiFiori

Quitiquit

Gray

et al. 2019

Journal of Athletic Training

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Context Early single-sport specialization and the relative age effect are often cited as improving the chances of sport success. Both concepts suggest that genetics and the environment have little influence on sport success. Objective To compare National Collegiate Athletic Association Division I student-athletes (SAs) with their undergraduate nonathlete peers (NAs) in terms of birth month, age of sport initiation, and age of single-sport specialization. A family history of sport participation was examined as a potential marker for genetic and social influences. Design Cross-sectional survey. Setting Large urban university. Patients or Other Participants A total of 273 Division I SAs (138 women, 135 men) and 155 NAs (78 women, 77 men) participated. The NAs had been involved in competitive youth sports before entering the university. Main Outcome Measure(s) Participants were asked to complete a questionnaire that addressed the age of sport initiation, birth month, age of single-sport specialization, and parental and sibling sport achievement. Main Results Neither birth month nor the age of sport initiation differed between groups (age of sport initiation = 7.16 ± 2.6 years for the SAs versus 7.71 ± 3.5 for the NAs; P = .176). A larger proportion of SAs began participating before 10 years of age (80% versus 63%; P = .02). The parents of SAs were more likely to have participated in collegiate (32.4% versus 8.4%; P < .0001) and professional (10.9% versus 1.3%; P = .0005) sports. The SAs specialized in a single sport at an older age (15.38 ± 2.7 years versus 14.30 ± 2.6 years; P = .002). Both groups participated in multiple sports in childhood (SAs = 3.9 ± 1.8 sports, NAs = 3.2 ± 1.8 sports; P = .366). Conclusions The Division I SAs did not specialize in a single sport at a younger age than the NAs. No evidence of a relative age effect was present. Importantly, higher levels of sport achievement among the parents and siblings of SAs suggest that genetic endowment and family or other environmental dynamics play a large role in athletic performance. Overall, the results are not consistent with deliberate practice theory and point toward an alternative model that includes not only sport-specific skill development but also genetic and social factors as key elements of long-term sport achievement.

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An Analysis of Sports Specialization in NCAA Division I Collegiate Athletics

Cited by 28 publications

References 24 publications

Different Perceptions of Parents and Children on Factors Influencing Sport Specialization

Different Perceptions of Parents and Children on Factors Influencing Sport Specialization

Early Sports Specialization Is Associated With Upper Extremity Injuries in Throwers and Fewer Games Played in Major League Baseball

Early Single Sport Specialization in a High-Achieving US Athlete Population: Comparing National Collegiate Athletic Association Student-Athletes and Undergraduate Students

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