Examining Participation in Sports Among High Achieving Female Middle School Students: A Quantitative Correlational Stud

The Big Fish Little Pond Effect (BFLPE) influences an individual's opinion of themselves as they compare themselves to others in a particular group setting. Middle school students who are attending honors classes are most vulnerable to comparing themselves to other classmates and therefore, their self-concept can be negatively affected. According to the reciprocal effect, when an individual's academic self-concept is negatively affected, their academic performance decreases. Since academic performance is important to maintain, it was imperative that a method be found to counteract the effects of the BFLPE. The purpose of this study was to determine whether academic self-concept among high achieving middle school female students can be sustained when attending homogeneous honors classes by using competitive group athletics to counteract the effects proposed by the BFLPE. This quantitative correlational study was conducted to compare the academic self-concept of 82 8th grade middle school honors female students who have been participating in competitive group sports for three years prior to this study to those female honors students who do not participate in any competitive team sports. The Piers-Harris Children's Self-concept Scale: 2 (PHSCS:2), specifically the intellectual and school status subscale, was used to assess each student's academic self-concept and the Children's Multidimensional Self-Efficacy Scales: Self-Efficacy for Academic Achievement Scale to measure their self-efficacy. The first null hypothesis failed to be rejected; the results of the multivariate multiple linear regression analysis in this study supported that academic self-concept was statistically significant for the honors/athletic group. Conversely, self-efficacy did not present with a significant difference between groups, nor did it have any significant correlation with a student's academic self-concept. This research provided valuable information for vulnerable female middle school students who may potentially suffer from a decreased academic self-concept. The results indicated that being a participant on a team sport counteracts the BFLPE and therefore, the students reap the benefits of attending an honors program without sacrificing their academic performance. Future recommendations for research include: exploring whether intramural sports or music programs influence a student's academic self-concept conducting a longitudinal study, and including males.