The Benefits of Team Sports in Children with Autism

Our Study

Using team sports as a behavioral intervention allowed us to provide instruction beyond physical exercise.

  • To assess the effects of team sports participation on symptoms of social communication in autism among children with mild autism spectrum disorder (ASD)

  • A cohort of 4 children with mild ASD and 6 children without ASD were recruited to participate in a spring and summer 2016 basketball league in San Diego. Mild ASD was defined as children who are mainstreamed in a typical classroom (with or without aide support) > 75% of the time. Our children were aged 8 to 9 years. The study participants participated in up to 6 hours of basketball play per week.

  • Significant improvement was subjectively reported in social communication skills, perspective taking and social skills as a result of team sports participation was noted, especially in school. Although null-hypothesis was established for motor skills data, there was a significant improvement in cardiorespiratory performance.

  • Children with mid-high functioning ASD may benefit from participation in team sports to improve key domains of communication and social skills.

While competition provides:

  • an innovative way to introduce skills of recognizing potential hazards and learn safety skills for the participants.

Team sports improve

  • communication
  • confidence
  • listening skills

Keywords: autism, team sports, development

Introduction

Autism spectrum disorder ( ASD ), the fastest-growing developmental disorder in the U.S. , affects 1 in every 44 children (https://www.cdc.gov/ncbddd/autism/data.html), predominantly boys. Prevalence of ASD has dramatically increased in the last decade, and the yearly cost to the United States is estimated at $236 billion. It is a chronic condition with an unclear pathogenesis that is improved with Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA).

    ASD is a biologically based range of complex neurodevelopment disorders, characterized by:
    • social impairments
    • communication difficulties
    • restricted, repetitive, and stereotyped patterns of behavior

It has been long known that cerebellum is a part of the brain that dictates movement coordination necessary in sports, and also, as recent studies have shown, has an active role in cognition. 🏀⚽🎽 Neuroanatomical, neuroimaging and clinical studies have extended the role of the cerebellum to the modulation of cognitive and affective processing. Therefore, participation in sports may improve cognitive development.

Team sports, in particular, should have a positive effect on social skills development, as participants are required to:

  • interact with one another
  • accept responsibility
  • show respect and cooperation
Furthermore, physical activity is an important “happiness factor,” 😃 as exercise drives the production of endorphins that help reduce tension, anxiety and improve sleep. Thus, participation in team sports is likely beneficial for children with ASD and improvement of multiple neurocognitive processes. Current treatment modalities focus on behavioral interventions such as Applied Behavioral Analysis targeting clinical manifestations of ASD, whereas this study is seeking to evaluate efficacy of team sports participation as a potential effective and low cost treatment modality easily accessible to families with children with ASD diagnosis.

Recruitment & Coaching Methods

Children were required to understand hand gestures and utilize eye-contact to complete the drills and emphasized teamwork. Every player was also assigned a position and was expected to carry out certain task and communicate accordingly. The offense and defense sets relied on the players’ understanding of the team’s function and everyone’s role.

The overall skills necessary for success centered on:

  • collaboration
  • encouragement
  • focus

With time, the language used by the team mates was expected to become more sophisticated. For example, at first, if one was on the ball, he was expected to yell “ball, ball”, but with time would substitute with “there’s a screen coming” or “cutter coming.”

Having a set defense was meant to create a sense of:

  • responsibility
  • ownership of the team
  • promote teamwork
  • improve an ability to communicate
Successful cases of teamwork were praised by coaches, researchers, parents, and the teammates. After every session, self and team-reflection was implemented, where each player was able to reflect and verbalize one’s opinions.

A professional basketball coach (Sterling Jones) was recruited to lead the team through 2 seasons of basketball 🏀 lasting 5 months. To advertise and recruit participants, flyers detailing the project were posted at the local recreation centers. The first 10 athletes were recruited, thus the participants were not randomized.

The pre-season testing to establish the
initial skills level of ASD children focused on:

  • physical fitness
  • balance
  • speed

The early goals were to encourage participants to:

  • greet each other 👋🏾
  • remain focused on the progression of the game
  • complement each other on the job well done 🤩
  • provide comfort to the team mates that needed improvement
Perspective taking skills to understand others’ thoughts and feelings were encouraged during the drills in order to promote social thinking. Verbal and non-verbal commands were given to players by a team member who was chosen to lead that day.

Want to Join?
See the 'Family Registration' link below or contact us at

EveryPlayerPlays@gmail.com