Date of Award

8-1-1980

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Science (MS)

Department

Kinesiology & Public Health Education

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to determine the. interests and levels of competition preferred by University of North Dakota students. One hundred and forty students, 58 females and 82 males, were asked to express their interest in 34 sports listed in a questionnaire which was completed by students enrolled in physical education classes at the University of North Dakota. Students were asked to indicate whether or not they enjoyed the sport as a spectator or participant. If the student indicated an interest at the participant level., he/she was then asked to indicate the level of competition preferred at the intramural, club or intercollegiate level.

Upon the return of questionnaire information, all the data was analysed and organised into rankings and percentages. Graphs and tables were used to depict the over-all picture of athletic interests. The heirarchy of sports preferences, the nature of student interests, the levels of competition preferred by students and the differences in sports preferences by men and women were determined by the results of the survey.

The following conclusions were drawn from the results of the study: 1, University of North Dakota students are mainly sports participants, not spectators. 2. There was more participant interest shown by males than by females. 3.Female general Interest exceeded male interest in 76 percent of the 34 sports listed in the survey. 4. The highest ranked sports of basketball, volleyball, soft- ball, tennis, racketball and football received the general interest of more, than three-fourths of the students.

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