Social Exclusion, Juvenile Delinquency and Sport Participation

Sport is considered as a social inclusion mechanism against social exclusion mechanisms. Socialization via sport has been a factor to internalize a sense of social belonging in endangered groups which is manifested in juvenile delinquency. Using data from interviews with 183 high school students of deprived urban regions, the role of sport in socially accepted beliefs and attitudes was investigated. Using regression analysis, those factors changing behavior with sport participation were analyzed and the effect of sport on the lower juvenile delinquency was positive. Although this study supported the effect of sport on decreased crimes, it warns against the optimistic conclusions of the effect of sport on tackling social problems.