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Abstract
The purpose of this study is to analyze the possible long-term effects the "trophy culture" have had on today's youth. Through a survey of 193 current college students, this study aims to examine if the ethos at the center of the "trophy culture" impacts three traits among millennials: narcissism, entitlement and competitiveness. Findings revealed that former junior high and high school athletes accepted the "trophy culture" less than their counterparts, and that higher acceptance of the "trophy culture" did have a direct effect on participants' sense of entitlement and inverse effect on their sense of competitiveness.
Introduction
Sports occupy a prominent place in American culture both from a participatory and business perspective. Consultants at Price Waterhouse Coopers estimated that sports generated $50 billion in North America in 2010 and $121 billion worldwide that same year (Billings, Butterworth, & Turman, 2015). The terms "sportsugese" and "sportspeak" even describe and acknowledge the impact sports language holds in American culture (Billings et al., 2015).
In America, it is estimated that 75% of boys and 69% of girls participate in youth sports (Sabo & Veliz, 2008; in Billings et al., 2015). Youth participation in sports has been encouraged for decades because of the perceived long-term benefits participants gain from their participation. Sports teach children how to work towards a goal, socialize with others, handle adversity and deal with success. These benefits have long been believed to stay with youth sports participants into their adult lives. For example, the majority of Fortune 500 executives participated in sports during their adolescent years (Billings et al., 2015).
However, a potentially negative trend emerged in American youth sports over the course of the last several years. Many youth sports have moved away from keeping score during games, rules have been instituted that make it mandatory for all participants to get to play, and punishments have been established for coaches who are perceived to have deliberately run up the score on their opponents; fundamentally, organizations are attempting to legislate competition out of youth sports (Thornton, Champion Jr., & Ruddell, 2012). Also, many sports leagues have instituted mandatory participation trophies for participants in sports camps and leagues (Goldberg, 2015). During an interview with Bemie Goldberg on HBO's Real Sports, some youth baseball participants...