Table of Contents
1 Introduction to Youth Sports 1
What Motivates Youth Sports Participation? 8
Do Youth Sports Develop Character? 13
2 Youth Sports for Adults 23
The Adult Takeover of Children's Sports 23
The Youth Sports Coach, for Better or Worse 32
The Commercialization of Youth Sports 40
3 The Child Athlete's Family 47
The Youth Sports Family 47
The Sports Parent: Soccer Moms and Dugout Dads 53
Are Youth Sports Overpriced? 61
Youth Sports as College Prep 64
4 The Child Athlete as Miniature Adult 69
The Hurried Child Athlete 69
Toddler Sports 79
The Child Athlete as Specialist 82
The Overscheduled Child Athlete 85
Sports Camps and Academies 90
5 Youth Sports May Be Hazardous to Your Child's Physical Health 93
Unnecessary Roughness: Youth Sports Injuries 93
Violence in Youth Sports 110
Do Youth Sports Promote Unhealthy Eating? 115
Do Youth Sports Promote Fitness? 120
6 Youth Sports May Be Hazardous to Your Child's Emotional Health 127
The Youth Sports Athlete under Stress 127
Youth Sports and the Shaping of Masculinity 132
Youth Sports as Child Abuse 137
Quitters Never Win: Burnouts and Dropouts 147
7 The Toxic Elements in Youth Sports 151
Youth Sports as Drudgery 151
Youth Sports as Child Labor 154
Winning Is Everything: Competition Out of Control 157
Youth Sports as Elitism 167
8 So You Want Your Son to Play Football 175
A Portrait of Youth Football and Its Downside 175
Youth Football Coaches: Amateurs and Abusers 179
Bigger Is Better: Overweight Players 182
No Pain, No Gain: A Plague of Injuries 184
Does Playing Football Promote Bad Behavior? 192
Do You Want Your Son to Play Football? 194
9 Concluding Thoughts: Reform or Re-Form 197
Notes 205
Index 241
