Improving Young Athletes' Life Skills Through An Integrated Early Age Football Competition Model In The Framework Of Positive Youth Development

Abstract

The background of this research is based on the importance of developing young

athletes, emphasizing not only technical sports skills but also character

development, social skills, and readiness to face life's challenges. This study aims

to analyze the effectiveness of an integrated competition model in improving the life

skills of young athletes as part of Positive Youth Development (PYD) efforts. The

research method used was a quasi-experimental design with a pretest-posttest

control group. The research subjects consisted of young athletes aged 12?16 years

with a total sample of 48 athletes (24 experimental; 24 control). The

average -pretest score of the experimental group was 142.8 9.4 and increased in

the posttest to 147.1 8.7 (? = +4.33). The control group increased from 141.9

9.1 to 142.1 8.5 (? = +0.17). The treatment effect showed a significant difference

(t = 8.29; p < 0.001) with a Cohen's d effect size of 1.69. The integrated competition

model resulted in the largest improvements in teamwork (20%) and communication

(18%). These findings confirm that combining competitive elements with life skills

learning structures is an effective strategy in supporting Positive Youth

Development.

Keywords: life skills, young athletes, integrated competition model, positive youth development