Abstract
In this manuscript we argue for a broader use of the term ‘relative age effect’ due to the influence of varying development policies on the development of sport expertise. Two studies are presented on basis of data from Schorer, et al. [1]. The first showed clear ‘constant year effects’ in the German handball talent development system. A shift in year groupings for the female athletes resulted in a clear shift of birth year patterns. In the second study we investigated whether the constant year effect in the national talent development system carried over to professional handball. No patterns were observable. Together both studies show that a differentiation of varying effects that often happen simultaneously is necessary to understand the secondary mechanisms behind the development of sport expertise.
Highlights
Study 1 - Constant year effects in national team playersIn European handball, members of the German national teams are scouted in within one-year age bands each year, but two adjacent within one-year bands are taken together to form the national team [32]
The effect sizes generally show small to moderate effects for these birth year groupings [35]
Perhaps the more convincing evidence comes from the shift in birth year groupings in the female players born between 1985 and 1987
Summary
Study 1 - Constant year effects in national team playersIn European handball, members of the German national teams are scouted in within one-year age bands each year (cf. Figure 2), but two adjacent within one-year bands are taken together to form the national team [32]. Players who are selected for the national talent pathway remain with their club, receiving additional training and support from the national coaches The effects of such an age-structure for youth development have rarely been investigated [31]. A study of 1990 World Cup players found that 45% of players on competitive youth football (soccer) teams (under-17s) were born in the first three months of the selection year, a proportion that decreased to 28% among senior national teams [37] While these trends are not completely understood, they indicate the variable salience of an age grouping structure’s influence on talent development at different stages of athlete development.
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