Why do people participate in sport?
1. Enjoyment - sport helps people look good, feel good and gives them a sense of achievement.
2. Health - sport contributes to a persons health and helps recoevery from illness. It can also relieve stress and tension.
3. Social - sport encourages the development of friendship and social mixing.
4. Competitive satisfaction - sport can satisfay the competitive element that is inherent in most people, though more strongly in some than in others.
What affects participation in sport?
1. Age - influences the amount of time that people spend on sport. People up to the age of 16 spend a lot of time on sports activities with a steady decline in participation rates from 18 years old onwards. This increases again from the age of 30 onwards up until 50 years which shows another decline.
2. Attitude - this is often closely related to traditions that have developed in specific geographical areas. For example football being the most dominant sport or coastal areas having a strong traditions in water sports. Friends may also influence an individuals attitudes toward sport whereby they may start or quit playing depending on whether their friends start or quit.
3. Access - access to facilities can limit the amount of time that people spend on sport although today leisure centres and sport clubs etc. are relativiely easily accessible to all due to car parks, public transport routes etc.