ABSTRACT
This study was conducted to investigate the factors militating against female sports participation in the University of Benin. The study focus on the female students of the University of Benin, examining factors that limit their involvement in sports activities. The study considered a variety of sports within the university’s sports program.
This study adopted the descriptive survey research design. The population of the study consisted of the female students in the University of Benin totaling 20,889. The multi-stage sampling procedure was used to select the sample size of 337.The instrument for data collection was a self-constructed questionnaire. Data obtained from the study were analysed using frequency and percentages for bio-data analysis, while mean statistics was used in analysing the research questions. The questionnaire was subjected to Cronbach alpha reliability test which resulted in a coefficient of .805.
The findings of the study showed that cultural and societal forms, inadequate sports infrastructure, academic pressure, lack of encouragement, gender stereotypes, among others militate against female sports participation, while strategies like awareness programs, facilities and equipment, flexible sports schedules, scholarships and incentives increase female sports participation in the university. It was concluded that social norms, inadequate facilities, and so on militate against sport’s participation, while gender- friendly facilities, university support help in promoting and/or encouraging their sports participation. It was chiefly recommended that families, religious groups, community leaders should be engaged to create a more supportive environment for female athletes sports participation.
