The Sport Psych Show #328 Dr Ellie Gennings - Well-Being and Well-Becoming in Children's Sport
Sep 15, 2025
In this engaging conversation, Dr. Ellie Gennings, a Senior Lecturer in Sport Coaching at Bournemouth University, shares her insights on children's well-being in sports. She discusses her journey from athlete to coach, emphasizing the foundational role of sports like gymnastics in youth development. Dr. Gennings highlights the need to prioritize children's unique identities and voices, advocating for a supportive environment in youth sports. The conversation also critiques the commercialization of young athletes, urging a balance between ambition and well-being.
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Well-Being Versus Well-Becoming
- Well-being and well-becoming are distinct: well-being concerns present experience while well-becoming focuses on supporting future development.
- Applying both lenses helps practitioners reflect on balancing a child's current needs with their future potential.
Metaphors Shape Childhood Policy
- How we metaphorically view childhood (sapling vs caterpillar) shapes how we treat and organise children's sport.
- Viewing children as unique beings (caterpillars) calls for protecting childhood goods like free play and peer relationships.
Sport Should Serve Children
- Sport can serve children or children can serve sport; prioritising children's well-being makes sport serve them.
- High-performance settings must balance performance aims with duty-of-care and children's rights.