Abstract For more than a century, the contention that sport builds character has been popular among educators. The more cautious perspective of researchers is that sport might build character, but only under the right conditions. In this paper, Brenda Light Bredemeier, Ph.D., and David Light Shields, Ph.D., report on three aspects of character that...
Read more →True Competition is a more than a catch-phrase, it is a provocative theory about the very nature of competition–how and when it works, its limitations, and its pitfalls. Our lives in a democratic, capitalist country are encompassed by competition, suffused by it, but it is something we rarely discuss without resorting to anecdotes and...
Read more →Are They Good for Kids To sport or not to sport? That is the question that many parents of school-age children are asking. Perhaps you’ve heard stories of tunnel-vision coaches who push children under the guise of making them champions or of narcissistic parents who try to relive their childhood (real or imagined) through...
Read more →I’ve been working with athletes and coaches for many years and over that time, I’ve become convinced that most people fall far short of their full potential – and, frankly, do not win or succeed as often as they might. So why is that? There are many reasons, of course. There’s performance anxiety; stresses...
Read more →Winning is good. Winning is fun. Yet we may often find that winning by itself does not bring lasting satisfaction. Why? Why are there so many sore winners? Before offering an answer to that question, I'd suggest taking a look at Rick Reilly's recent article on Michael Jordan's controversial Basketball Hall of Fame acceptance speech.
Read more →Let’s face it. There are a great many terrific coaches. There are also a lot of idiots. I don’t mean to be derogatory; simply accurate. By “idiot,” however, I don’t mean what the word typically connotes today. Rather, I’m returning to its original usage. In ancient Greece, an...
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