Université du Québec à Trois-Rivières
BEAUDOIN, C., University of Ottawa
LAJOIE, C., LAURENCELLE, L., Université du Québec à Trois-Rivières
SRG 2009
Français
The Long-term Athlete Development (LTAD) approach was adopted by Sport Canada as a reference framework for developing sport expertise. This reference framework takes into account the stages of growth, physical maturation and individual development rather than just chronological age. LTAD plans athletic development based on the stages characterized by the athlete’s physical, mental, cognitive and emotional development. LTAD is also paired with the “Sport for Life” model to identify the athlete’s needs based on the stages they have reached, in terms of coaches, training, equipment, infrastructure and competition. LTAD represents a significant social innovation since it directs the Canadian sport system toward the athletes’ needs and incorporates participating in physical activity into its mission statement. It also aims to meet Canadian society’s desire for increasing participation in physical activity and fighting chronic illness. It is a major paradigm shift in the sport sector that seeks to engage all partners involved in the progress of Canadian athletes. The implementation of LTAD has been supported by the federal and provincial governments since 2004. All Canadian national sport organizations (NSOs) had to present an LTAD implementation plan. However, LTAD is not being implemented at the same rate in all sport disciplines. Our project’s goal is to study the factors influencing implementation of the LTAD model for coaches and parents, who are the closest partners to the athletes/participants. The project’s purpose is not to compare the adoption process between NSOs.
The analytical framework for this project is Rogers’ Diffusion of Innovations (2003), adapted to social innovations such as LTAD. First, we will distribute a questionnaire to parents and coaches. The investigation will focus on the factors associated with whether the LTAD is being totally or partially adopted, or not at all. Our project will use a mixed quantitative-qualitative approach. The questionnaire will benchmark predictive adoption factors by multiple regression analyses, and the approach will be complemented by interviews. This framework will structure our research project to correctly identify the implementation phenomenon and come up with recommendations to be put into place. Note that interviews will be held with various stakeholders.
Our project may enlighten the government authorities and NSOs involved in LTAD implementation. This will allow us to identify the factors promoting or hindering LTAD implementation and make recommendations to ensure its effectiveness. The project recommendations will also guide managers from sports or government organizations to reinforce the helpful elements and eliminate LTAD implementation barriers.
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