Gender segregation in sport participation among children and adolescents: the influence of parental education and physical activity.

Autor/inn/en	Canzio, Leandro Iván; Wäsche, Hagen; Hinz, Thomas
Titel	Gender segregation in sport participation among children and adolescents: the influence of parental education and physical activity. Gefälligkeitsübersetzung: Geschlechtertrennung bei der sportlichen Betätigung von Kindern und Jugendlichen: Der Einfluss von elterlicher Bildung und körperlicher Aktivität.
Quelle	In: European journal for sport and society, (2026) online first, 14 May 2026, [20 S.] PDF als Volltext Link als defekt meldenVerfügbarkeit
Sprache	englisch
Dokumenttyp	online; gedruckt; Zeitschriftenaufsatz
ISSN	1613-8171; 2380-5919
DOI	10.1080/16138171.2026.2665908
Schlagwörter	Erziehung; Rollenbild; Beeinflussung; Elternverhalten; Soziale Norm; Soziale Rolle; Kindheit; Mutter; Vater; Getrenntgeschlechtliche Erziehung; Eltern; Kind; Geschlechtsdifferenzierung; Körperliche Aktivität; Soziale Schicht; Bewegungsaktivität; Bewegungserziehung; Bewegungsverhalten; Sportpädagogik; Sportsoziologie; Empirische Untersuchung; Determination; Lebensführung; Statistische Analyse; Jugendlicher; Deutschland
Abstract	Participation in sports during childhood and adolescence is typically segregated by gender, with girls and boys frequently engaging in different types of sports. This segregation has broad negative consequences, particularly for children who participate in sports that are not predominant within their gender. Qualitative studies indicate that parents play a crucial role by either supporting or hindering their children's engagement in gender-typical and gender-atypical sports; however, little is known about the influence of specific parental attributes. We argue that parental physical activity (PA) exerts a gendered influence on children's participation in gender-(a)typical sports, and that parents with high education promote children's engagement in gender-atypical sports. We test these hypotheses using a large dataset of children and adolescents in Germany (N = 9,226). Overall, we find that parental PA exhibits the expected gendered association: boys are more likely to practise (only) male-dominated sports when only their father does PA, and girls are more likely to practise (only) female-dominated sports when only their mother does PA. Regarding parental education, we find limited support: boys with highly educated parents are less likely to participate (exclusively) in gender-typical sports, whereas no such pattern is observed for girls. We discuss the broader implications and limitations of our findings. (Autor).
Erfasst von	Bundesinstitut für Sportwissenschaft, Bonn
Update	2026/4