SUPER-P approach: design, development, and evaluation of an education program for sport parents

Abstract

After-school sport involvement is progressively becoming an integral part of childhood and sport specialisation, high level competitions, pressure and intense involvement are increasingly becoming part of the landscape of childhood. The optimal approach to supporting a child athlete is characterised by a balanced partnership between the coach and parent, both playing equally important roles in the athlete's development. It is widely established that the role that parents play can have a profound influence on their child’s experience of sport, influencing both enjoyment and chances of success. However, in terms of knowledge and development more emphasis has been placed on coach education and to date there is no widely available sport parent education program designed through sport psychology research. Thus, the purpose of this study was to review the role of sport parents, explore the needs of child athletes, build a sport parent education program using recommendations from literature and assess the program in terms of both athlete and parent experience. Reviewing the literature in terms of high-level child athlete sport involvement it became clear that there was a need to gain insights from the children themselves. Therefore, an initial study was conducted to assess the experiences, views and needs of children involved in high level sport. This mixed methods study demonstrated the importance of passion as well as giving insights into the challenges faced by the children and what they most needed from their parents. The results were integral to the construction of the education program. Termed the SUPER-P Approach, the sport parent education program was designed using learnings from previous programs. The content was developed using three role categories, provider, interpreter and role model (Fredricks & Eccles, 2004) with the additional category of protector. The SUPER-P Approach was tested in two stages. Firstly, an initial in-depth qualitative study was conducted aimed to both evaluate the content of the program and test suitability for parents with children involved in high level competitive sports. Both parents and children were interviewed; firstly, separately and then together (once the parent undertook the sixty-minute, online pre-recorded workshop). The results were analysed using Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis and helped to enhance the program's structure as well as analyse initial feedback which indicated a positive reception from both parents and children. A second larger online, mixed methods study was conducted with 107 parent/child dyads. The dyads were asked to fill out an initial online questionnaire, parents were then invited to watch the online workshop and where possible after the child had attended a competition, feedback was obtained using a second online questionnaire. Child anxiety (including worry, somatic and focus) levels were tested before and after and feedback regarding the workshop was obtained. The analysis demonstrated that the SUPER-P Approach both supported positive parenting and mitigated negative practice. Parents reported feeling more confident, relaxed, and reassured following the program and the online delivery style was viewed as successful. The children reported a reduction in anxiety with a significant reduction in worry levels as well as a general positive view of their parents’ changed behaviour. Child sport is on the increase and there are concerning messages from the media regarding the state of youth sport. It is hoped that the introduction of the SUPER-P Approach will work to strengthen the coach/athlete/child triangle and thereby improve children’s experience of sport.