Girls Say Fun Matters More Than Winning in Sports, While Parents Think They Play to Win, According to New Girl Scouts of the USA Research

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The nationwide research examined how women and oldsters expertise youth sports activities and extracurricular actions, together with the consequences of parental expectations and price limitations. The findings level to a rising stress: women need connection, pleasure and friendship, whereas grownup stress and rising prices threat pushing them out.

The findings construct on GSUSA’s broader State of the Girl 2026 report, reinforcing the significance of accessible, supportive areas the place women can join face-to-face with friends and trusted adults.

Key Findings:

• Fun First: For 83% of women ages 5–13, having enjoyable is extra vital than making an attempt to This holds true whilst women become old and sports activities might change into extra aggressive.
• Parent-Daughter Disconnect: Parents have not picked up on this sentiment, with 77% believing that successful or doing properly is a key issue of their kid’s enjoyment of sports activities and different This expectation is much more frequent when describing a daughter aged 8–10 (81%) or 11–13 (80%).
• Families Priced Out: 58% of fogeys agree that though collaborating in these actions is useful, the time and monetary dedication required feels unsustainable for his or her household. This is especially true for folks with a family revenue beneath $50,000.
• Adult Pressure: Just 19% of fogeys say their little one has requested to stop a sport or exercise as a result of an grownup made her really feel like she wasn’t adequate. But women report a special expertise: Nearly one-third of women concerned in sports activities or actions (32%) say they’ve a minimum of typically wished to stop because of this. That rises to 42% amongst 11–13-year-olds. Black women are much less prone to report feeling this manner, with simply 16% saying they’ve wished to stop as a result of an grownup made them really feel they weren’t adequate.

“Girls thrive when they have the freedom to try, learn and grow without feeling that success is measured only by winning,” stated Bonnie Barczykowski, CEO of Girl Scouts of the USA. “When supportive peers and trusted adults encourage girls to take on challenges at their own pace, they gain the confidence to keep going and discover what they’re capable of.”

Sports have been a part of the Girl Scout expertise for the reason that starting. The first Girl Scout handbook in 1913 included Athletics and Swimmer badges. Today, Girl Scouts continues that custom via its Athlete badge line, which helps women at each program degree apply truthful play, construct expertise, develop sportsmanship, strengthen their health and study to educate others.

Beginning in April 2027, Girl Scouts will launch a modernized Sports and Recreation theme, with new badges for ladies at each program degree rolling out over the following a number of years. Planned choices embrace staff sports activities, climbing, swimming, winter sports activities, tabletop and video video games, camp and outside actions and extra.

Informed by Girl Scouts’ analysis, the brand new method will focus not solely on studying a sport but additionally on creating supportive areas the place women can strive completely different actions with trusted pals and adults, construct self-confidence, strengthen teamwork and belief, remedy issues and maintain going when one thing is difficult. By centering enjoyable, exploration and well-being quite than successful alone, the badges will deliver the Girl Scout distinction to sports activities and recreation.

For extra info on this report, go to girlscouts.org.

We are Girl Scouts of the USA, a nonprofit group devoted to constructing women of braveness, confidence, and character.

Girl Scouts uncover who they’re, faucet into the ability inside them, and construct the arrogance to let it shine. Through applications from coast to coast and abroad, women of all backgrounds and skills come as they’re to discover their passions, meet new challenges, and develop hands-on expertise.

They discover their strengths in science labs and on mountain climbing trails, at cookie cubicles and in entrance of metropolis councils. Backed by tens of millions of alums and a community of devoted grownup volunteers and mentors, Girl Scouts drive change to make the world a greater place. Along the way in which, they uncover the instruments they should lead with pleasure, on their very own phrases. Join us, volunteer, reconnect, or donate.

About the Research
The Girl Scouts Parents Survey was performed by Wakefield Research amongst 1,000 U.S. dad and mom of women ages 5–13, and the Girl Scouts Girls Survey amongst 1,000 U.S. women ages 5–13, with oversamples to achieve a complete variety of 500 Black/African-American women and 500 Hispanic women ages 5–13. Surveys had been fielded between March 5 and March 19, 2026, utilizing electronic mail invites and on-line questionnaires. Data has been weighted to make sure nationwide illustration.

For the Girls Survey, dad and mom had been required to offer consent for youngsters ages 5–12 to take part. As a part of the consent course of, dad and mom had been requested to oversee their little one as they participated within the survey, together with studying the query and responses to the kid for these not but in a position to learn properly on their very own. Parents had been suggested to permit their little one to reply independently and never affect their kid’s response.

SOURCE GIRL SCOUTS OF THE U.S.A.

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