Parental Involvement in Organised Youth Sport

Children's participation and long-term engagement in sport is dependent upon the opportunities available to them, as well as the quality of their experiences. There are numerous individuals who can affect these, not least parents who are, often, the most consistent and enduring influence in a child's sporting life. Through their involvement, parents have been shown to have both positive and negative impacts on children's sporting journeys, as well as influencing coaches and the coach-athlete relationship. Given the critical role parents have within youth sport, ensuring that coaches and parents work effectively and successfully together is key. The purpose of this chapter is to provide an overview of parental involvement in youth sport settings, with a specific focus upon strategies to enhance their involvement and the relationships between parents and coaches. The chapter will begin by providing a brief overview of the role's parents fulfil within youth sport settings. Subsequently, the consequences of parents’ involvement will be detailed, both in relation to athletes and coaches, as well as providing an insight into the experiences parents have within sport settings. Finally, suggestions regarding how to optimise parental involvement and strategies that coaches and clubs can employ to enhance parental involvement, and their relationships with parents, will be provided. The chapter will conclude with suggestions for future research and applied practice.