Paper Summary:

This research examines the influence of social norms on the participation of females in athletic activity. The research examines studies showing how strongly social expectations and socially determined sex roles limit participation of adolescent and adult females in physical activity and then discusses ways in which cultural pressures are reflected in female-student behavior in elementary school physical-education classes and school-recess activities. Based on this research and on observations of behavior at an elementary school, this study suggests possible changes in the physical education curriculum that can encourage activity for girls and help them connect it to positive social experience.

From the Paper:

"A 1997 government report on research into female participation in sports concluded that regular physical activity could decrease the risk of adult obesity, coronary heart disease, and osteoporosis and increase mental health and self-esteem. Even though today's experts in physical education and children's health urge young people of both sexes to get exercise and participate in sports, statistics show that many children and adolescents are overweight and inactive and that the condition continues into adulthood. An important part of that problem is the declining physical activity of adolescent women. Reasons that females drop out of sports activities as they enter adolescence adulthood may be social pressures rather than a simple loss of interest in exercise. It is important to understand the reasons behind the decrease in females' physical activity because of the need to bring those who are not active back into a program of more healthy exercise. Another factor of importance where this issue is concerned is that physical inactivity in the modern world seems to be starting with children at a very young age. Thus there is a sense of urgency in the background of understanding the phenomenon."

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