Abstract
This study aims to assess program quality and developmental outcomes of a youth volleyball project in one of the regional states in Ethiopia, and further examine variations between groups across gender and project site zones. We applied a cross-sectional survey design, collecting quantitative data from youth volleyball players (n = 215) with a mean age of 16.18 years (SD = 0.69) through a self-reported questionnaire. The results indicated that young players’ perceptions did not vary significantly across gender, except for the mean score of the perceived experience variable for girls (M = 2.68, SD = 0.318) was significantly higher than the mean score of boys (M = 2.58, SD = 0.258). One-way (project site zone) analyses of variance (ANOVAs) identified that youth volleyball projects in the central zone were consistently rated higher than those in the western zone, except for the current practice rating. Moreover, correlation analysis results indicated the presence of a significant relationship, both within and between program quality and developmental outcome variables. Furthermore, the results of regression analysis indicated that the program quality variables together predicted each of the developmental outcomes, accounting for 18.9% to 31.7% of the variances. It is concluded that the quality of the youth volleyball program in Ethiopia varies considerably across the project site zones and the program quality variables significantly relate to the developmental outcomes measured with differential effects. The data from this study reveals several practical applications for Ethiopia and beyond in terms of guiding youth volleyball projects. Moreover, the findings of the study showed that youth sport and the manner in which it is structured and delivered to youth players influences the attainment of positive developmental outcomes. These results suggest that contextual differences really do have an effect on the quality of youth sport program processes and developmental outcomes.
Highlights
With the intent to comprehensively assess the state of quality youth volleyball, this study identified four domains of program quality that are associated with the developmental outcomes of participation in youth sports [7,38]
The results showed that the nature of the variables under examination, the existing group variations and which variables are significantly related to the quality of youth volleyball, and to what degree the program quality indicators relate to one another
Youth sport has been considered an important mechanism for the attainment of Positive youth development (PYD), it is considered a problematic area motivated by incentives associated with winning games rather than holistic youth development [7]
Summary
Sport for Development (SFD) is a growing research field that uses sports to achieve key outcomes for youth, such as learning, health, empowerment, and protection, among others [1,2]. Positive youth development (PYD) interventions are widely used to prevent youth substance use and violence [3]. Sports participation can have a significant positive effect on PYD as it enhances personal development in physical and psychosocial domains [4,5]. One of the most important benefits of using sports intervention is the ability to teach life skills that help individuals to be equipped with the tools for handling difficult life situations so they learn to develop more positive perspectives for their own futures [6]. Youth sports programs are essential mechanisms for PYD, as they offer multiple benefits [7]
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