Research and Articles
Research & Articles: Competition: Is
it Healty for Children?
Marilyn Lopes
Extension Specialist, Family Life Education
Cape Cod Cooperative Extension
University of Massachusetts
Common knowledge suggests that competition is generally good for children,
but research findings from as far back as the 1930's suggest otherwise. It
is commonly believed that children are instinctively competitive and always
feel good about competing and that competition creates conditions in which
children and adults will do their best. These common beliefs are more myth
than fact.
Competition is a learned behavior. Humans are not born competitive. What we
are born with is an instinct to survive, but the desire to win and competitiveness
are learned through social interactions.
Competitions are not always fun. Competition is nearly always set up as a win-lose
situation and is more likely to be fun for those who win, not those who lose.
Sometimes even those who win do not have fun because they focus on the goal
of winning, not the joy of the process. Sports are designed for pastime fun
and development of physical skills. Team sports are designed for learning teamwork
in which all members have something of worth to contribute. However, sitting
on a bench and experiencing intense pressure, high degrees of anxiety, or fear
of failure are not fun. When competitors place the greatest value on winning
and the least value on performing or learning a task well, the educational
purpose of competition is lost.
Competition may or may not make us do our best. Competition may set up conditions
that favor reliance on external rewards rather than a balance of external and
internal rewards. Relying on external rewards for self- esteem, i.e. rewards
that come from outside rather than inside individuals, may become problematic
in adult life when "winning" in sports, clubs, and classrooms is
no longer a part of daily life.
Competition can also be positive. Competitions can offer ways to gain insights
about one's capacity to develop physical and intellectual skills. When rewards
are minimized, competitions can be fun. They can accentuate skill-building
and strategy building, teach teamwork, teach ways to identify personal goals,
and provide ways to develop criteria for success. Competitions can easily
call for maximum effort and may motivate some individuals to increase efforts
toward completion of some tasks.
Competitions can provide changes of pace and releases for energy and are thought
to be most positive when all participants believe from the start they have
equal chances of winning.
DOCUMENT USE/COPYRIGHT
National Network
for Child Care - NNCC. Part of CYFERNET,
the National Extension Service Children Youth and Family Educational
Research Network. Permission is granted to reproduce these materials
in whole or in part for educational purposes only (not for profit
beyond the cost of reproduction) provided that the author and
Network receive acknowledgment and this notice is included:
Reprinted with permission from the National Network for Child Care -
NNCC. (1994). Competition: Is it healthy for children? In M. Lopes (Ed.) CareGiver
News (August, p. 4). Amherst, MA: University of Massachusetts Cooperative
Extension.
Any additions or changes to these materials must be preapproved by the
author.
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