Perception and Application of Olympic Values in Ghana: Comparison of College Athlete and Non-athlete Students

Abstract

The Olympic Value education reflects the core essence of Olympism which interweaves sport and education as an integral component of the holistic development of humankind. The popularity and positive claims about the Olympic Values education are globally commended and applied by governments, educators, NGOs and youth sport leaders.

The purpose of this study was aim to examine the perception and application of the Olympic Values among the youth of Ghana by drawing comparisons between college athlete and non-athlete students of Ghana who have been beneficiaries of the Olympic Values education taught as part of the Physical Education curriculum in Senior High Schools of Ghana.

The research sample included 440 college students (200 athletes and 240 non-athletes) between the ages of 19 and 30. Using the Cross-sectional Design, perception and application of the Olympic Values were determined by using the Olympic Questionnaire developed by Talema et. al. (2002).

With regards to perception of Olympic Values (i.e. four extracted values using Factor Analysis), the results showed that athletes scored significantly higher than non-athletes in Social Virtues of Olympism (Youth togetherness, Better world, Purity, and Gentlemens behavior), Human Values of Olympism (Strength of will, Tolerance towards other nations and Moral principles), Personal Profit of Professionalism (Strength of will, Tolerance towards other nations and Moral principles) and Striving Towards Growth/Development (Focus on maximum effort, Joy of effort, Physical capacity and Cooperation).

The research result also showed that, at the significant point value (p < 0.05), athletes are more likely to integrate or apply the Olympic Values in their daily life activities than non-athletes.

The significant difference in both perception and application of the Olympic Values were established by comparing the Means (scores) of both athletes and non-athletes through the independent t-test method.

Keywords : Olympic Values Education, Perception, Application, Ghana, College Athlete and Non-athlete Students