As a kid in any sport or any activity, all you have to do is show up to be a “winner”. In today’s politically correct, hurt no feelings society, anyone who shows up gets a prize and gets glory. However if everyone’s a winner, then is anyone really a winner? Recently the participation trophy has come under scrutiny because ever since James Harrison, the linebacker for the Pittsburg Steelers, posted about throwing out his children’s participation trophies. Since I was once a child who knew the pain of the participation trophy, this has caused me to wonder if there is actually something behind the participation trophy, or the whole idea is purely anecdotal.
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Alternative Hypothesis: The rise in participation trophies has directly caused a decline in inhibitions and leading to a rise in narcissism among children.
Null Hypothesis: The rise in participation trophies is not has no relation to a decline in inhibitions and leading to a rise in narcissism among children.
The idea behind the participation trophy stems from the notion that no child should be left out or feel like a failure at a young age. In theory this would appear to be well thought out, because no child should be discouraged from trying something new. However it has recently morphed into a society where people put up less effort, because they know they don’t need to try in order to “win”. According to a study done in 2014, the participation trophy may be causing narcissism and lowered inhibitions in children.The study was composed of 565 children from the Netherlands who were ages 7-11. The children were given a questionnaire to test for narcissism, and subsequently their parents were given a test on the amount of “blind praise” they give their children. The results were that “parental overvaluation predicted child narcissism over time, but not vice versa.” Parental over evaluation has often been linked with participation trophies, but it is also important to note that reverse causation has been ruled out in the study.
Conclusion: There seems to be enough evidence to reject the null hypothesis, and subsequently conclude that participation trophies are lowering inhibitions and leading to a rise in narcissism.
So what does this all mean? According to a recent Time article, the effects last way longer than on the playing field as kids. The problem with these trophies, is that 40% of millennials now believe that “they should be promoted every two years, regardless of performance.” This phenomenon has been evident in the rention rate of millennials entering the workforce. In addition, those who are entering the workforce are no longer striving towards being in charge. They are settling for assistant type positions because they already know of their own “greatness.”
I would agree that participation trophies are a bit overdone now a days but can we directly link these trophies with narcissism? This article explains that narcissism is increasing over time and although it is unknown, the author thinks that it may be because people are being more honest with themselves when it comes to admitting being a little selfish. Definitely a very interesting topic.
This sounds very much like a sociological issue. It is interesting to consider what motivates people. I agree that if everyone knows they will receive the same reward regardless of their efforts, there is nothing left to encourage their best work. I know very little about sports but its seems that this can apply to many things in life. I don’t see how participation trophies could do any harm but I agree that they would not provide incentive to be at their best.
I HATE participation trophies. I would want my kids to learn what they can excel in and what they need to give up. It’s OK to fail and I wonder if these trophies are leading to all the suicides in young adults in college or if there is a correlation; let me explain that statement. I wonder if when young adults finally start to fail at college, since they were protected from failing as a kid, they can’t handle it and get overwhelmed and can’t face their failure. This is a very sad thought, but a great direction for a new blog! I would love to hear about this I couldn’t find any studies, but I hope to see some in the future! If I were a kid I wouldn’t just want a trophy for “trying” that wouldn’t help my self esteem it would just make me feel worse and not properly prepare me for failure and let down. My kids will never be ok with participation trophies that is for sure.