To Sample or to Specialize? Five Postulates about Childhood Sport Activities that Lead to Continued Participation and Elite Performance

Abstract

The Developmental Model of Sport Participation (Cote & Fraser-Thomas, 2007) provides a framework that outlines different pathways of involvement in sport. In pathways one and two, the sampling years serve as the foundation to both elite and recreational sport participation. On the other hand, pathway three shows the path for elite performance through specialization in one sport from ages 6-12. This paper proposes five postulates regarding the role that sampling and deliberate play can have during childhood, as opposed to specialization and deliberate practice, in promoting continued participation and elite performance in sport. The five postulates are: 1) sampling during childhood does not hinder elite sport participation in sports where peak performance is reached after maturation (Baker, Cote, & Abernethy, 2003; Soberlak & Cote, 2003); 2) sampling during childhood is linked to a longer sport career and has positive implications for long-term sport involvement (Barynina & Vaitsekhovskii, 1992; Wall & Cote, 2007); 3) sampling during childhood allows participation in a range of contexts that most favorably affects positive youth development (Fredricks and Eccles, 2006; Wright & Cote, 2003); 4) high amounts of deliberate play during childhood builds a solid foundation of intrinsic motivation through involvement in activities that are enjoyable and promote intrinsic regulation (Gilbert, Cote, Harada, Marchbanks & Gilbert, 2002); and 5) high amounts of deliberate play during childhood establish a range of motor and cognitive experiences that the child can ultimately bring to their principal sport of interest (Soberlak & Cote, 2003).