In More Than Just a Game, the authors present compelling first-person stories, original research, and much-needed perspective about the billion-dollar youth-sports industry.

This book will explore parental attitudes and struggles and show parents how to navigate the profit-driven system of youth sports that frequently ignores the needs of kids. Dr. Bjork and Dr. Hoynes examine the most pressing issues in the world of youth sports, including:

How taxing athletics can be developmentally for children.

The financial impact the ever-popular travel teams have on families.

Excessive time commitments and expectations.

The conundrums and challenging decisions the families of young athletes' face.

Inherent disadvantages of being an underprivileged young athlete.

They connect the patterns in the behavior of the adults they observed to broader trends in our society. They also provide parents with the information they need to understand the contemporary youth-sports industry--to see the bigger picture--and help them make conscious and more informed decisions for their children that are consistent with their core values. Concrete suggestions are highlighted, such as how to identify the appropriate team for a child, how to select activities that will help young athletes develop emotional and physical resilience, and ways that parents can create balance in their children's lives.

Ultimately, the authors' eye-opening research gives youth-sports parents a grounded perspective that will help their kids find success on and off the field.