The purpose of this article was to introduce the case of the Aspen Institute Project Play and to consider a few current topics in Japanese youth sports. In 2013 this project was launched by the Aspen Institute Sports and Society Program in the U.S. Subsequently, it has produced multiple reports regarding issues surrounding youth sports in the U.S and has held annual summits to address these issues (2016, 2017). Additionally, it has succeeded in obtaining various stakeholders’ support (e.g. MLB, NBA, NBC Sports Network and NIKE) through implementation of its nationwide projects. The primary issues around childhood play/movement that Project Play has highlighted are the impact of childhood obesity and inactive lifestyles. To address these concerns, they developed eight strategies, including the “Sport for All, Play for Life Model”. This model aims to encourage all young people in the U.S to participate in competitive and/or recreational sports throughout their lives. In summary, the strengths of this project can be described as improving the cycle “research → strategy → evaluation” based on the above-referenced model. Furthermore, the vast network of stakeholders has enhanced the impact of its resources. Therefore, in the Japanese youth sports setting, it might be useful to consider the development of a similar model which encompasses both competitive and lifelong sports. Two key steps, as demonstrated by Project Play, are development of an effective network and utilizing the existing data related to youth sports in Japan.

抄録全体を表示

  Prior to the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, the purpose of this research is to investigate Japanese olympians’ causes of career termination depending on the differences between Summer/Winter and male/female olympians. The olympians registered in the Olympians Association of Japan (OAJ) were asked: 1) the lengths of the sport career until first participation in their Olympic games, 2) their ages and the causes of career termination, and 3) the cost of continuing their sport.
  Questionnaires were distributed to 965 present, retiring, and retired olympians and 472 retired olympians answered the questions regarding their career termination. The data collected was analyzed using descriptive statistics, analysis of variance and the chi-square test.
  Some of the most significant findings were: 1) the average lengths of the sport careers until the first participation in their Olympic games were about 10 years, 2) the causes of career termination showed variation such as: a) Female Summer Olympians (FSOs) tended to retire for psychological reasons—namely, either they had satisfied their objectives or they no longer enjoyed participating in their sport, b) Female Winter Olympians (FWOs) retired because they lacked the money needed to continue, and c) Male Summer & Winter Olympians (MSOs & MWOs) retired because of searching for paid employment, and 3) FWOs required approximately twice the amount of money to continue their sports, compared to the other three categories.
  These research findings may provide valuable basic information to develop Japanese career assistance prior to the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. Future research directions are also discussed.

抄録全体を表示

  The purpose of this study was to implement and evaluate a Stress Management Program (SMP) based on the “Stress-Adjustment Model in extracurricular sports activities”. We executed a four-week SMP with 14 first-year high school athletes (11 male, 3 female) and then evaluated the effects of that program, including its influence on the psychological stress process in high school athletes, its effectiveness in helping high school athletes adapt to extracurricular sports activities, and whether it appropriately facilitated the cycle of “experience stress → conquer the issue → grow → find meaning in the experience”. Results from a paper-based questionnaire indicated that the SMP showed a positive shift in terms of stress management from baseline to post-intervention. The four variables in which this positive shift was observed were “stressors” , “cognitive appraisal” , “coping” , and “stress response”. Athletes also demonstrated improved feelings of adjustment toward extracurricular sports activities. Furthermore, athletes’ responses on a worksheet suggested that the program facilitated the cycle of “experience stress → conquer the issue → grow → find meaning in the experience.” These results suggest the effectiveness of the SMP as an intervention program for promoting stress management among athletes. Our report concludes with a discussion regarding feasibility of the SMP for real-world use and recommendations for future studies to further the field of life skills research.

抄録全体を表示

  Although a causal relationship has been suggested between Team Identification and Place Attachment, it may be necessary to verify the existence of the parameters between them. In this research, "The rise of Team Identification is accompanied by the rise in the evaluation of the social environment of the community, and leads to the rise of Place Attachment," was aimed at the hypothesis to be verified.
   As a result of the two-way analysis of variance based on data from three longitudinal surveys, we determined that Team Identification ascending group significantly increased both Place Attachment and the bonds of the community as compared to the non-ascending group, and it was suggested that the evaluation of the social environment of the community rose in the ascending group. It can be said that the hypothesis was supported, considering the fact that "regional attachment influence structure" was confirmed in Imabari-City, the area of survey on this study.

抄録全体を表示

  The purpose of this study was to examine how 3 psychological problems facing Japanese runners,; “aim in running,” “running techniques,” and “benefit from running” influence runner’ s attitudes and actions, based on the research conducted by Adidas on 1,000 runners from all over Japan.
  Logistic regression analysis revealed that the psychological problems were connected to the runner’s attitudes and actions. The results indicated that solutions for psychological problems would increase the frequency of running and lead to continuity of running. And as for the solutions, “development of a program designed for purpose” was found to be a common solution for 3 psychological problems. Moreover, it was found that different solutions would be required for each runner’s psychological problem, based on the results in which 3 psychological problems showed different trends of runner’ s feelings and actions.
  It is suggested that the question of how to develop a “program designed for purpose” will be an upcoming challenge for the future, and it was indicated that the key to providing the purpose-designed program and incorporating other solutions would be in helping runners to access the appropriate information.

抄録全体を表示

  The purpose of this study was to examine the business model of sports tourism utilized by the South Korean walking trail "Jeju Olle", leading to social change not only domestically but also internationally. Jeju Olle was opened in 2007 and currently it offers 26 courses (totaling 425 km). From 2011 to 2014, over a million Korean walkers rushed to Jeju, causing a walking tour boom. Jeju Olle has changed the leisure-time activities, regional economy, and policies of Korea and it is spreading to Kyushu Olle and Mongol Olle. Ms. Myung-sook Suh, the founder of Jeju Olle, serves as the president of the Jeju Olle Foundation, a non-profit organization (NPO) that operates without dependence on administrational subsidies. The NPO succeeded in transforming an old country road into a fashionable trail decorated with a gentle feminine sensibility that has become known as the "Olle" brand. The NPO’s business operates on revenue from membership fees, company sponsorships, and sales of original brand products and it is supported by a large number of volunteers. Thus, it is a sustainable business model made possible by its financial independence, enthusiastic followers, and brand image, based on female sensibilities and flexibility, and it represents a new global approach to health promotion.

抄録全体を表示

  The purpose of this study was to clarify contents of social supports provided by elite athletes to collegiate athletes, and to investigate the intentions of sport commitment for collegiate athletes focusing on the influence of elite athletes’ social support. Participants were 350 Japanese collegiate athletes (male: 270, female: 80, Age M=19.43±1.14). First, we developed a scale for assessing Japanese elite athletes’ social support behavior. The scale employed 2 factors (instrumental support and emotional support) and 10 items, and validity and reliability of the scale was confirmed. Secondly, we examined the relationship among elite athletes’ social support and intention of sports commitment in collegiate athletes, and the results indicated that both instrumental support and emotional support affected athletic identity, and athletic identity formed sport commitment for collegiate athletes. In addition, the results demonstrated that instrument support from elite athletes had a greater effect on collegiate athlete’ s athletic identity than emotional support. From the results, this study has clarified the features of social supports provided by elite athletes, and has shown the effectiveness of the intention of collegiate athlete’ s sport commitment.

抄録全体を表示