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Interpersonal violence against children in sport in Belgium and the Netherlands
Abstract
Notwithstanding the difference in prevention policy on child protection in sport between Belgium and the Netherlands, both regions suffer under the lack of reliable prevalence rates on interpersonal violence against children in sport. This presentation reports the first large scaled prevalence study in both countries. In accordance with the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, this study defines interpersonal violence against children as “all forms of physical or mental violence, injury and abuse, neglect or negligent treatment, maltreatment or exploitation”.
A cross-sectional, retrospective design, using an online survey, provides a quantitative assessment of psychological, physical and sexual violence in a representative sample of adults, prescreened on having participated in organized sport before the age of 18 (N=4043). Because of the broad definition of violence, experiences are classified into severity categories, based on the intensity and frequency. Hypotheses of increased risk of victimization related to sex, sport type and level, sexual orientation or disability are tested using chi square tests and binary logistic regression.
37% of the total sample reported at least one experience with psychological violence in sport. Physical violence is reported by 11% of respondents, sexual violence by 14%. When only considering the most severe category, psychological violence is reported in 9% of respondents, physical in 9% and sexual violence in 6%. Competing at international level, LGB (lesbian, gay, bisexual) and disability proved to be risk-increasing factors for all types of violence.
These results are in conformity with international prevalence rates on sexual violence in sport. We suggest that Dutch and Flemish safeguarding policy should focus on all forms of interpersonal violence against children, with particular attention to peer-to-peer violence, elite level athletes and minority groups. The development of a uniform methodology to measure and internationally compare the prevalence of interpersonal violence is now required, to legitimize continuing efforts in child protection in sport.
... First, in Flanders, as well as in many other European countries, most of the youth coaches are volunteers rather than paid employees (Breuer et al. 2017). Second, during the past decade, after different sexual harassment scandals, there is an increased government focus on creating an ethically responsible sport environment, which is now a prerequisite to be recognised as an NGB (Flemish Government 2016, Vertommen 2017. Third, from the 1960s onwards, Flanders has been one of the pioneering countries in 'sport for all' campaigns, focused on making sport accessible for everyone, and is still heavily committed to the organised sport sector (Vos et al. 2011). ...
Regular involvement in organised youth sport boosts the likelihood of lifelong sport participation. However, increasing dropout rates in sport clubs and alarming levels of young people not meeting physical activity guidelines may suggest that the organised sport sector’s efforts have been insufficient to date. This situation calls for evaluation of the applicable youth sport policy to determine how organised youth sport is intended to operate and to articulate whether and how the policy achieves its stated goals. Accordingly, this paper identifies and analyses initiatives of national governing bodies (NGBs) to increase participation rates and improve the quality of youth sport in their affiliated sport clubs, using Flanders as a case study. A theory-based evaluation was applied working with qualitative data derived from extensive document analysis and five focus groups with representatives of 19 Flemish NGBs. The results reveal that the focus of NGBs is narrowed to increasing participation rates of youth members and building a sound organisational structure in sport clubs, rather than investing in the quality of provision to maximise enjoyment. Furthermore, most of the initiatives lack a clearly articulated strategy and are based on assumed mechanisms, rather than on prior understanding of effective processes. This study adds to the scarce literature on sport policy evaluation research by mapping out NGBs’ youth sport initiatives and using a theoretical lens through which to evaluate them. For practitioners, the results demonstrate the usefulness of a logic model to evaluate youth sport policy and to optimise the effectiveness of the initiatives employed.
Despite over 30 years of scholarly attention devoted to bullying and cyberbullying behaviors in school settings, research related to these experiences in the sport context remains limited. Yet, numerous anecdotal examples and preliminary evidence suggests cyberbullying exists in the sport domain and must be addressed given the potential adverse psychosocial outcomes for athletes. This commentary reviews research related to bullying and cyberbullying in the sport literature. To advance our understanding of cyberbullying in sport, recommendations are made to clarify conceptual issues around the central defining features (i.e., power, repetition, intent) commonly used to operationalize these experiences. Further, methodological issues to be addressed are discussed, including, the use of more diverse methods; adoption of an intersectional lens to all research; and the development, implementation, and evaluation of interdisciplinary evidence-based prevention and intervention strategies. Only through a research base that addresses these conceptual and methodological challenges, will empirically-informed prevention and intervention strategies be developed to advance safe, healthy, and inclusive sport environments.
Ongeveer 250.000 kinderen en volwassen doen in Nederland
aan gymsport. Naast het sportplezier komen er ook incidenten
voor, zoals blijkt uit diverse mediaberichten. Dit onderzoek
beschrijft in welke mate grensoverschrijdend gedrag voorkomt
in alle gymdisciplines en – niveaus. Ook is nagegaan wat de
aard van die misdragingen is en wat ermee is gebeurd als
slachtoffers dit hebben gemeld. In dit grootschalige onderzoek
zijn online vragenlijsten afgenomen onder oud-gymsporters
en huidige gymsporters, zijn tal van interviews gehouden
met gymsporters, ouders, bestuurders, trainers, experts en
documenten bestudeerd die gaan over de opvolging van
meldingen, het beleid en de (tucht)rechtspraak ten aanzien
van grensoverschrijdend gedrag. In dit voor Nederland unieke
sportspecifieke onderzoek worden aanbevelingen gedaan om
de gymsport veiliger en gezonder te maken.
Football (soccer) is believed to be facing an ongoing moral crisis, illustrated by a diverse set of ethical issues, ranging from financial fraud and match-fixing to sexual abuse and hooliganism. While the policy support of (inter)national authorities and football federations is important to tackle this moral crisis, ethics management in football clubs is also believed to be part of the desired response to this crisis. However, very little is known about the meaning, perception, and influence of ethics management in football clubs. Drawing on the insights of four distinct empirical studies, this doctoral dissertation reports on the influence of two important tools of ethics management in football clubs, namely ethical codes and ethical leadership. Among other findings, this dissertation indicates that ethical leadership by both board and coaches is needed to translate the content and spirit of the ethical code into practice in football clubs. The influence of ethics management is assessed by examining the ethical climate in football clubs. An ethical climate contributes to the promotion of ethical behaviour, as well as to the discouragement of unethical behaviour. In the end, the reported results have important practical implications for football clubs in their quest to restore football as what is claimed to be: a beautiful game.
Recent prevalentieonderzoek bij een steekproef van 4.000 Nederlandse en Vlaamse volwassenen toont aan dat 1 op de 7 volwassenen die in kindertijd of jeugd sportten, op z'n minst eenmalig seksueel grensoverschrijdend gedrag heeft ervaren in de sport. Sinds 2012 maakt de Vlaamse sportwereld werk van de preventie van seksueel grensoverschrijdend gedrag in de sport. Dit artikel beschrijft een stand van zaken van het preventiebeleid en licht een veelbelovend instrument 'Sport met grenzen' toe. De auteurs doen tevens een oproep aan de sportarts om een actieve rol op te nemen bij het ontwikkelen, installeren en uitdragen van een preventief en curatief beleid in de sportvereniging.
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