Female relative age effects and the second-quartile phenomenon in young female ice hockey players
(Weibliche relative Alterseffekte und das Phänomen des zweiten Quartils bei jungen Eishockeyspielerinnen)
Objectives: Relative age effects exist across sports and cultures (Cobley, Baker, Wattie, & McKenna, 2009), though a recent, unusual trend is females born in the second quartile of the selection year are most over-represented on elite teams. The first purpose of this study was to test the hypothesis that the second-quartile phenomenon was the result of first-quartile female athletes registering to play male sport. Due to the nature of the collected data, a secondary purpose was to examine relative age effects across female age divisions.
Design: Cross-sectional, with multiple chi-square analyses.
Method: Players included 29,924 female ice hockey players (ages 7-17 years) from the Ontario Hockey Federation. Birthdates were converted into quartiles following the Hockey Canada selection year.
Results: Relative age effects (with the second quartile most over-represented) existed for the entire sample , those registered for female ice hockey and those registered for male ice hockeyThe strength of the effect lessened as athletes aged.
Conclusion: It appears the second-quartile phenomenon cannot be explained by athletes` choice to play male sport. Further, female relative age effects appear strongest at younger ages. The discussion includes integration of results with previous literature, along with plausible explanations.
© Copyright 2017 Psychology of Sport and Exercise. Elsevier. Alle Rechte vorbehalten.
Schlagworte: | Eishockey Leistungssport weiblich Kanada Auswahl Alter Relativer Alterseffekt |
---|---|
Notationen: | Sozial- und Geisteswissenschaften |
DOI: | 10.1016/j.psychsport.2017.05.002 |
Veröffentlicht in: | Psychology of Sport and Exercise |
Veröffentlicht: |
2017
|
Jahrgang: | 32 |
Seiten: | 12-16 |
Dokumentenarten: | Artikel |
Sprache: | Englisch |
Level: | hoch |