One step forward, two steps back : the struggle for child protection in Canadian sport
Kerr, Gretchen
One step forward, two steps back : the struggle for child protection in Canadian sport Gretchen Kerr, Bruce Kidd and Peter Donnelly - MDPI, 2020 - Social Sciences .
Social Sciences, 2020, 9(5): 68
Millions of children and adolescents around the world participate in organized sport for holistic health and developmental benefits. However, for some, sport participation is characterized by experiences of maltreatment, including forms of abuse and neglect. In Canada, efforts to address and prevent maltreatment in sport have been characterized by recurring cycles of crisis, public attention, policy response, sluggish implementation, and active resistance, with very little observable change. These cycles continue to this day. Achieving progress in child protection in Canadian sport has been hindered by the self-regulating nature of sport, funding models that prioritize performance outcomes, structures that deter athletes from reporting experiences of maltreatment, and inadequate attention to athletes’ recommendations and preventative initiatives. The culture of control that characterizes organized sport underpins these challenges to advancing child protection in sport. We propose that the establishment of a national independent body to provide safeguards against maltreatment in Canadian sport and to address this culture of control. (Authors' abstract). Record #8290
ADOLESCENTS
CHILD SEXUAL ABUSE
CHILDREN
EMOTIONAL ABUSE
INTERPERSONAL VIOLENCE
PREVENTION
PSYCHOLOGICAL ABUSE
SPORT
YOUNG PEOPLE
INTERNATIONAL
CANADA
One step forward, two steps back : the struggle for child protection in Canadian sport Gretchen Kerr, Bruce Kidd and Peter Donnelly - MDPI, 2020 - Social Sciences .
Social Sciences, 2020, 9(5): 68
Millions of children and adolescents around the world participate in organized sport for holistic health and developmental benefits. However, for some, sport participation is characterized by experiences of maltreatment, including forms of abuse and neglect. In Canada, efforts to address and prevent maltreatment in sport have been characterized by recurring cycles of crisis, public attention, policy response, sluggish implementation, and active resistance, with very little observable change. These cycles continue to this day. Achieving progress in child protection in Canadian sport has been hindered by the self-regulating nature of sport, funding models that prioritize performance outcomes, structures that deter athletes from reporting experiences of maltreatment, and inadequate attention to athletes’ recommendations and preventative initiatives. The culture of control that characterizes organized sport underpins these challenges to advancing child protection in sport. We propose that the establishment of a national independent body to provide safeguards against maltreatment in Canadian sport and to address this culture of control. (Authors' abstract). Record #8290
ADOLESCENTS
CHILD SEXUAL ABUSE
CHILDREN
EMOTIONAL ABUSE
INTERPERSONAL VIOLENCE
PREVENTION
PSYCHOLOGICAL ABUSE
SPORT
YOUNG PEOPLE
INTERNATIONAL
CANADA