A systematic review of drop-out from organized soccer among children and adolescents

Abstract

Bronfenbrenner’s bioecological model of human development was used as a framework to systematically review factors associated with drop-out from soccer among children and adolescents. Keyword searches for the population (child or youth or adolescent), sport (soccer or football) and construct of interest (drop-out or attrition or discontinued or quit) identified scholarly peer-reviewed publications from the entire contents of seven databases to 31 December 2013. Publications with participants at any level of organized soccer were eligible for inclusion. The initial search identified 137 studies with 14 ultimately meeting the inclusion criteria, 11 from Europe and 3 from the United States, and 97% (n = 1125,001) of study participants were male. The proportion of children and adolescents who dropped out from one season to the next ranged from 18 to 36%, except for one study of high-level players where the rate of drop-out was 60%. These players felt the time demands of soccer, especially ‘travelling to compete’, were onerous. Prominent person-level factors associated with drop-out were lower perceptions of competence and the lack of fulfilment of basic psychological needs. Contextual factors associated with drop-out were poor relationships with teammates or coaches, lack of enjoyment, lack of opportunity to play, competing time demands, and later birthdate in relation to competitive year. Interactions between the individual and their environment were rarely examined. Future research on drop-out from soccer would benefit from expanding the demographics of those being studied and by concurrently examining interactions between the individual and the environment.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Notes

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2. Gould et al., ‘Motives for Participating’; Sirard et al., ‘Motivational Factors Associated with Sports’; Stern et al., ‘Young Children in Recreational Sports’; Wankel and Kreisel, ‘Factors Underlying Enjoyment’ and Whitehead and Biddle, ‘Adolescent Girls' Perceptions’.

3. Gould et al., 'Motives for Participating'; Sirard et al., ‘Motivational Factors Associated with Sports’; Stern et al., ‘Young Children in Recreational Sports’ and Wankel and Kreisel, ‘Factors Underlying Enjoyment’.

4. Whitehead and Biddle, ‘Adolescent Girls' Perceptions’.

5. Allen, ‘Social Motivation in Youth Sport’.

6. Gould et al., ‘Motives for Participating’; Longhurst and Spink, ‘Participation Motivation of Australian Children’; Stern et al., ‘Young Children in Recreational Sports’; Wankel and Kreisel, ‘Factors Underlying Enjoyment’ and Yan and McCullagh. ‘Cultural Influence on Youth's Motivation’.

7. Gould et al., ‘Motives for Participating’; Longhurst and Spink, ‘Participation Motivation of Australian Children’; Sirard et al., ‘Motivational Factors Associated with Sports’; Sit, ‘Participation Motivation in Sport’; Stern et al., ‘Young Children in Recreational Sports’ and Yan and McCullagh. ‘Cultural Influence on Youth's Motivation’.

8. Perry, ‘Factors Contributing to Youth and Adult Dropout’; and Rottensteiner et al., ‘Personal Reasons for Withdrawal’.

9. Bronfenbrenner and Morris. ‘The Bioecological Model of Human Development’.

10. Fraser-Thomas et al., ‘Examining Adolescent Sport Dropout’ and Wheeler, ‘The Significance of Family Culture’.

11. Patriksson, ‘Theoretical and Empirical Analyses’.

12. Sabo and Veliz, ‘Go Out and Play’.

13. Delgado and Schwartz, ‘SFIA Participation Report’.

14. Cote et al., ‘The Benefits of Sampling Sports’ and Strachan et al., ‘Specializers Versus Samplers’.

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17. Kunz, ‘265 Million Playing Football’.

18. Balish et al., ‘Correlates of Youth Sport Attrition’.

19. Balish et al., ‘Correlates of Youth Sport Attrition’ and Vella et al., ‘Socio-ecological Predictors’.

20. Ibid.

21. Bronfenbrenner and Morris, ‘The Bioecological Model of Human Development’.

22. Ibid.

23. Ibid.

24. Ibid.

25. Ibid.

26. Ibid.

27. Ibid, 798.

28. Bronfenbrenner, ‘Ecological Models of Human Development’.

29. Johns et al., ‘Understanding Attrition in Female’.

30. Rosa and Tudge, ‘Urie Bronfenbrenner's Theory of Human Development’.

31. Bronfenbrenner and Morris. ‘The Bioecological Model of Human Development’.

32. Balish et al., ‘Correlates of Youth Sport Attrition’ and Vella et al., ‘Socio-ecological Predictors’.

33. Molinero et al., ‘Dropout Reasons in Young Spanish Athletes’ and Rottensteiner et al., ‘Personal Reasons for Withdrawal’.

34. Nache et al., ‘Predicting Dropout in Male Youth’.

35. Quested et al., ‘Intentions to Drop-out’ and Van Yperen., ‘Inequity and Vulnerability to Dropout’.

36. Van Yperen, ‘Inequity and Vulnerability to Dropout’.

37. Delorme et al., ‘Relative Age and Dropout in French Male Soccer’ Idem, ‘Relative Age Effect in Female Sport’.

38. Figueiredo et al., ‘Characteristics of Youth Soccer Players’.

39. Delorme et al., ‘Relative Age and Dropout in French Male Soccer’ Idem, ‘Relative Age Effect in Female Sport’.

40. Keathley et al., ‘Gender Similarities and Differences’.

41. Nache et al., ‘Predicting Dropout in Male Youth’.

42. Van Yperen, ‘Inequity and Vulnerability to Dropout’.

43. Keathley et al., ‘Gender Similarities and Differences’.

44. Ferreira and Armstrong, ‘Parents' Casual Attributions of Youth Soccer Dropout’.

45. Calvo et al., ‘Using Self-determination Theory to Explain Sport Persistence’.

46. Keathley et al., ‘Gender Similarities and Differences’.

47. Ibid, 171.

48. Delorme et al., ‘Relative Age and Dropout in French Male Soccer’ Idem, ‘Relative Age Effect in Female Sport’.

49. Figueiredo et al., ‘Characteristics of Youth Soccer Players’; Ommundsen and Vaglum, ‘Low Perceived Soccer and Social Competence’ and Ommundsen and Vaglum, ‘Competence, Perceived Importance’.

50. Ferreira and Armstrong, ‘Parents' Casual Attributions of Youth Soccer Dropout’.

51. Bronfenbrenner and Morris. ‘The Bioecological Model of Human Development’.

52. Figueiredo et al., ‘Characteristics of Youth Soccer Players’ and Skard and Vaglum, ‘Psychosocial and Sport Factors’.

53. Van Yperen, ‘Inequity and Vulnerability to Dropout’.

54. Bronfenbrenner and Morris. ‘The Bioecological Model of Human Development’.

55. Figueiredo et al., ‘Characteristics of Youth Soccer Players’.

56. Figueiredo et al., ‘Characteristics of Youth Soccer Players’ and Ommundsen and Vaglum, ‘Low Perceived Soccer and Social Competence’.

57. Figueiredo et al., ‘Characteristics of Youth Soccer Players’ and Keathley et al., ‘Gender Similarities and Differences’.

58. Ommundsen and Vaglum, ‘Competence, Perceived Importance’ and Skard and Vaglum, ‘Psychosocial and Sport Factors’.

59. Bronfenbrenner and Morris. ‘The Bioecological Model of Human Development’.

60. Figueiredo et al., ‘Characteristics of Youth Soccer Players’ and Ommundsen and Vaglum, ‘Low Perceived Soccer and Social Competence’.

61. Keathley et al., ‘Gender Similarities and Differences’.

62. Molinero et al., ‘Dropout Reasons in Young Spanish Athletes’ and Rottensteiner et al., ‘Personal Reasons for Withdrawal’.

63. Ommundsen et al., ‘Parental and Coach Support’.

64. Delorme et al., ‘Relative Age and Dropout in French Male Soccer’ Idem, ‘Relative Age Effect in Female Sport’.

65. Musch and Grondin, ‘Unequal Competition as an Impediment’.

66. Malina, ‘Physical Growth and Biological Maturation’.

67. Bisanz et al., ‘Effects of Age and Schooling’.

68. Balyi and Way, ‘Monitoring Growth in Long-term Athlete Development’.

69. Figueiredo et al., ‘Characteristics of Youth Soccer Players’; and Helsen et al., ‘The Relative Age Effect’.

70. Figueiredo et al., ‘Characteristics of Youth Soccer Players’.

71. Keathley et al., ‘Gender Similarities and Differences’.

72. Ibid, 180.

73. Figueiredo et al., ‘Characteristics of Youth Soccer Players’ and Van Yperen, ‘Inequity and Vulnerability to Dropout’.

74. Kunz, ‘265 Million Playing Football’.

75. Sterdt et al., ‘Correlates of Physical Activity’.

76. Keathley et al., ‘Gender Similarities and Differences’.

77. Kunz, ‘265 Million Playing Football’, 12.

78. Sterdt et al., ‘Correlates of Physical Activity’.

79. Ibid.

80. Kunz, ‘265 Million Playing Football’.

81. Ommundsen and Vaglum, ‘Low Perceived Soccer and Social Competence’.

82. Bronfenbrenner and Morris. ‘The Bioecological Model of Human Development’.

83. Keathley et al., ‘Gender Similarities and Differences’.

84. Bronfenbrenner and Morris. ‘The Bioecological Model of Human Development’.

85. Keathley et al., ‘Gender Similarities and Differences’.

86. Ibid; and Skard and Vaglum, ‘Psychosocial and Sport Factors’.

87. Smith and Smoll, ‘Coach-mediated team building’.

88. Ames, ‘Achievement Goals, Motivational Climate’.

89. Calvo et al., ‘Using Self-determination Theory to Explain Sport Persistence’; Ommundsen and Vaglum, ‘Low Perceived Soccer and Social Competence’; Ommundsen and Vaglum, ‘Competence, Perceived Importance’ and Quested et al., ‘Intentions to Drop-out’.

90. Riewald, ‘Strategies to Prevent Dropout’; Smith and Smoll, ‘Coach-mediated Team Building’ and Smith et al., ‘Effects of a Motivational Climate’.

91. Smith et al., ‘Development and Validation’; and Vazou et al., ‘Peer Motivational Climate in Youth Sport’.

92. Vazou et al., ‘Peer Motivational Climate in Youth Sport’.

93. Fry and Gano-Overway, ‘Exploring the Contribution of the Caring Climate’.

94. Gould et al., 'Motives for Participating'; Sirard et al., ‘Motivational Factors Associated with Sports’; Sit, ‘Participation Motivation in Sport’; Stern et al., ‘Young Children in Recreational Sports’; Wankel and Kreisel, ‘Factors Underlying Enjoyment’; Whitehead and Biddle, ‘Adolescent Girls' Perceptions’ and Yan and McCullagh. ‘Cultural Influence on Youth's Motivation’.

95. Visek et al., ‘The Fun Integration Theory’.

96. Ibid.

97. Musch and Grondin, ‘Unequal Competition as an Impediment’.

98. Balyi and Way, ‘Monitoring Growth in Long-term Athlete Development’.

99. Delorme et al., ‘Relative Age and Dropout in French Male Soccer’.

100. Ibid.

101. Quested et al., ‘Intentions to Drop-out’.

102. Keathley et al., ‘Gender Similarities and Differences’.