Sports Participation and Social Capital Formation During Adolescence
Journal
Social Science Quarterly
ISSN
0038-4941
ISSN-Digital
1540-6237
Type
journal article
Date Issued
2018-06
Author(s)
Abstract
Objective National and international policies claim that young people's sports participation improves their social capital. This article is the first to examine if sports participation has a causal effect on social capital formation during adolescence and whether such effects depend on the organizational format or the type of sports practiced. Methods Propensity score matching is employed in the analysis with possible endogeneity removed by exploiting the information in, and the structure of, the German Socio†Economic Panel. Results Regular sports participation positively impacts adolescents’ social capital through volunteering, helping friends, and civic involvement. Furthermore, these effects seem to develop predominantly in sports clubs (in contrast to other organizational formats). Conclusion The empirical evidence of this study is suggestive of the relevant societal role of nonprofit clubs as institutions for practicing sport.
Language
English
HSG Classification
contribution to scientific community
Refereed
Yes
Publisher
Wiley
Volume
99
Number
2
Start page
683
End page
698
Pages
16
Subject(s)
Eprints ID
250603