Parental Rage and Violence in Youth Sports - Research Paper Example

? Rage and Violence in Youth Sports Parental rage and violence is defined as the situation where “parents…lose control [during their children’s games] and take their rage out on other adults” (Fiore 113). The results of these acts of violence do not only include the physical injury to the children but especially include a host of mental and emotional effects directed against the child’s development and transition into adolescence and adulthood. Rage and violence in youth sports are very hard to eliminate and its effects on the child are primarily on the mental and emotional levels. According to Abrams, youth sports rage and violence is one big challenge that many parents and coaches fail miserably at. Such type of violence is often seen through brawls and fistfights involving parents, children and coaches. These incidents have disrupted youth leagues. Moreover, these brawls and similar incidents end up being controlled by the police and forced into settlement and exchange of apologies among the opposing parties. However, other incidents end up with criminal prosecution. Nevertheless, regardless of how these brawls and other acts of sports rage and violence end up, what is sad is that they often disrupt schoolchildren especially preschoolers. There was even one incident where the umpire’s decision has left more than twenty parents and coaches swinging punches at each other in the field, much to the curiosity and amazement of the preschoolers who were watching and who thought that “the adults were [merely] entertaining them by staging a wrestling match” (Abrams 259). What is harmful about this is that children exposed to parental rage and violence will somehow tend to learn that such fights are normal and that it is perfectly all right that people fight if they believe that they are right. What children should learn at an early age is humility and diplomacy in order for them to grow up into individuals who will foster peace. However, sports rage is teaching them otherwise. People who are involved in sports rage and violence usually end up with hurt feelings as well as physical problems like cuts, bruises, and other forms of physical injuries including split lips. However, some would end up in something much worse like the forty-year-old father of four who was beaten by another father of the opponent team in a hockey game. The attacker simply thought that the victim’s son had played against the former’s son too roughly during the game. After a series of punches, kicks and wrestles, the victim lapsed into a coma and immediately expired after removing life support (260). Moreover, what is even worse is that the victim’s child was subpoenaed in order to testify in his father’s behalf (Fiore 114). One could therefore only imagine the amount of pressure that the child has to undergo after being exposed to testify against or in favor of his own violent father. The mental and emotional trauma that the child experiences will most likely remain with him for a long time, or even for the rest of his life. One can therefore only imagine its negative consequences on the child’s personality as he grows up. Another negative effect of parental rage is the consequent unavailability of good coaches. In fact, it is interesting to note that many youth sports programs do not have qualified referees and umpires because they cannot find any adult who is “willing to endure abuse from parents and coaches” (Abrams 261). This lack will most likely further the negative consequences of youth sports and violence as assigned coaches will not have the skill to handle conflicts that may arise. Ultimately, it is the children again who would be on the receiving end of the negative consequences of such problems. According to Abrams, a dozen states have already enacted laws against assaulting coaches and officials of youth sports groups and the purpose of this is to enforce the law in order to restrain parents and coaches from creating an outrage and from physically hurting each other during their children’s games (261). Nevertheless, although such legislation may prove to be effective, it does not eliminate the possibility that children are still able to witness the fights and brawls that their parents engage in, whether or not their parents will be prosecuted by the law afterwards. There have also been changes in policies of youth sports programs such as diverting their attention to the parents and not to the children, thus they spend money and figure out ways to prevent parents and coaches from hurting each other on the field, whether verbally or physically (261). Nevertheless, the money that these youth sports programs should be spending on children are being rather wasted on the parents and coaches, thus the children’s welfare is not prioritized by a program which is supposed to be for their own benefit. Other youth sports programs have modified their own rules like not benching youngsters who are not as talented as the rest, as well as not giving the first-place awards to those with the youngest age. Other programs and events also put up and enforce parent-free zones during games for the purpose of preventing fights, brawls and arguments. There are some parents who simply choose to stay at home instead of choosing to watch their children’s game live for they believe that this could at least prevent any possible act of conflict or violence against a fellow parent in case something undesirable comes up during the game. Some youth programs, however, have instituted regulations to control foul-mouthed parents. For example, the Cleveland youth soccer program has instituted the “silent Saturdays” program where adults may watch their children’s game but they are not allowed to cheer, jeer, or taunt referees (262-263). The problem with this is that things will tend to be unfair towards those who are young and towards the good parents who simply want to cheer for their children and not engage in violence with other parents and with the coaches. In fact, in one instance, there was a hockey game where the parent spectators where directing a steady stream of insults and outbursts at the referees while making children cover their mouths and giggle when they hear such things. Abrams believes that this is not that serious since child athletes now begin to see how stupid some grown-ups are (263). Nevertheless, as children unconsciously learn by imitation, such insults hurled at coaches will sooner or later translate as defiance of authority in these children’s psyche. They will then most likely adopt these behaviors as they grow up. “Sports involve a serious risk of physical injury” because of the degree of violence “at all levels,” which include not only the violence during the game itself but also the violence that could ensue from arguments among parents or between parents and coaches (Fiore 111). Sports rage or parental rage, as it is often called, results in “the number of violent incidents in youth sports [increasing] at an alarming rate in the past five years,” while at the same time youth sports programs are earning the reputation for having “unhappy child athletes” (113). Thus, the exposure of the child to physical and emotional violence will simply turn them into unhappy people in the long run. The continual outrage and conflicts among parents and between parents and coaches actually advocate and instill in children’s minds and hearts the idea that “winning isn’t everything, it’s the only thing” (114-115). Thus, what the enraged parents are teaching their children is the idea that losing is a shame, and that victory is certainly much more important than participation. Their example will therefore serve to make their children the same kind of parents someday, and thus pressure and rage is perpetuated in the American culture. One of the causes of parental rage is the parents’ own excessive reactions and competitive spirit as well as the instinct to protect their children when the latter are hurt during the game (116-117). Nevertheless, such reactions are often unreasonable. Thus, these parents are teaching their children to fight for what they feel no matter how unreasonable their arguments are and no matter how many people they hurt in the process. Coaches and umpires themselves may also fight with each other during the game, such as the incident between Orlando Lago, an assistant baseball coach in Florida who punched an umpire because of a dispute over a call made by the latter during the game (120). Coaches fighting each other may give children the impression that games and our lives in general are actually dirty and unfair since even those assigned to enforce the rules of the game are the ones who break these rules first. The child athletes themselves, although they strive to be professionals, sometimes feel that they cannot anymore rely on their skills and talents. The result is “panic over the possibility of losing, and consequently [resorting] to aggressive, intimidating, and ‘unsportsmanlike’ conduct” (121). Nevertheless, the bottom line, as echoed by Abrams, is that “the wrongdoers are the adults, not the children [for] children generally understand how to play fair, act with sportsmanship when it is explained to them, and take defeat in stride” (Abrams 263-264). Moreover, perhaps the most significant and most negative effect of parental rage is that children developing “a number of clinical and adjustment problems, most notably posttraumatic stress disorder or PTSD, depression and aggression” plus a range of other disorders and the unconscious development of other maladaptive behaviors (Jenkins and Bell 142). If the child is therefore exposed to such violence in the schools and if a similar thing happens in the community where he lives, then it is clear that parental rage and violence harm children at the mental and emotional levels. Harm at these levels is more harmful than the physical level because it is not easily forgotten and it may transform the child into someone with undesirable personal qualities later on in life. Moreover, emotional and mental harm may also encourage the child to grow up as a violent adult and one who is defiant even of decisions made by authorities every time he or she feels that it is unfair or that it is hurting him or a loved one. Thus, exposure to parental rage and violence in sports may make the child turn into someone who is overly sensitive and someone who thinks he can even challenge rules as long as he thinks they are unfair. The law and the rules are actually something that cannot be challenged, changed nor defied by any ordinary individual but enraged and violent parents are teaching their children the opposite. Parental rage and violence is more serious than it actually is. Its negative consequences on children cannot be emphasized too heavily. Aside from the physical injury it may cause some children, sports violence usually influence them emotionally and mentally, and may even make serious changes in their own personality permanently. One solution to parental rage and violence is that parents “should be proactive and set an appropriate example” (Fiore 122). Nevertheless, it is a fact that it is hard to teach parents what to do. Besides, many of them are too old to change. The law also provides that coaches should undergo a thorough criminal background check and those with a history of violence at any point in their lives should not be chosen as coach (126). Nevertheless, sometimes violent acts and behaviors are triggered only by circumstances and not necessarily by one’s character or propensity for violence. Anyone can become enraged at any moment, and so the true solution to the problem of parental rage and violence in sports is very hard to find. Top of Form Bottom of Form Works Cited Abrams, Douglas E. “The Challenge Facing Parents and Coaches in Youth Sports: Assuring Children Fun and Equal Opportunity.” 2002. Jeffrey S. Moorad Sports Law Journal, 8:2 (254-292). Fiore, Dianna K. “Parental Rage and Violence in Youth Sports: How Can We Prevent Soccer Moms and Hockey Dads from Interfering in Youth Sports and Causing Games to End in Fistfights Rather Than Handshakes.” 2003. Jeffrey S. Moorad Sports Law Journal, 10:1 (103-130). Jenkins, Esther J. & Bell, Carl C. “Community Violence, Effects on Children and Youth.” Encyclopedia of Interpersonal Violence. Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE Publications, 2008. Print. Read More