A Experimental Evaluation of the L.E.A.P. Program (Life Enhancement through Athletic and Academic Participation)
A Experimental Evaluation of the L.E.A.P. Program (Life Enhancement through Athletic and Academic Participation)
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Issue Date
2000
Authors
Bilgi, Sandesh
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Abstract
This study evaluated a program teaching Life Enhancement through Athletic and Academic Participation (L.E.A.P.) to students-athletes from three high schools in Northern California. The 154 participants were members of basketball, wrestling, volleyball, and lacrosse teams. Eighty-two females and 72 males were studied. One hundred and twelve student-athletes were the experimental group who were taught sport psychology techniques as a means for teaching life skills and performance enhancement. Forty-two student-athletes comprised the control group. Each student-athlete was administered three questionnaires before the team's season began and again after the season was over, the Aggression Inventory, the Index of Self-esteem, and the Sport Competitive Anxiety Test. It was hypothesized that the L.E.A.P. student-athletes would have a significantly greater increase in self-esteem, and a decrease in aggression and anxiety than the control group. Results supported these hypotheses. A quasi-experimental design was used with essentially pre-treatment equivalence for the L.E.A.P. and control groups on all three variables. Additionally, no significant differences between the L.E.A.P. group and control group were found for age, gender, ethnicity, sport played, and the season of the year. These variables were eliminated as possible confounding factors. Thus the L.E.A.P. program was considered the probable causative factor in the significant differences between the L.E.A.P. group and the control group. Results were related to prior studies and implications of the findings were discussed.