Beyond Moving the Ball in Youth Sports: Making the Case for Mental Health for Black Youth

Abstract

Data on youth in sports has been limited in scope and collection. Based on the statistics available, a significant number of youth play organized or team sports. Youth sports are seen as the opportunity for children to build life skills they can take into adulthood. Positive Youth Development (PYD) is a framework used to consider ways to promote positive youth development beyond previous efforts that focused on deficits and preventing single issues or challenges. In discussing ways to promote positive youth development, the challenges and risk encountered by Black male youth athletes is higher and more urgent than most other youth athletes as a result of the trauma of racism. Integrating an assessment and support system into youth sports can serve to assist young Black athletes with navigating adolescence and the challenges of dealing with racism. This chapter will introduce you to an assessment and support system called “ARMM.”.