Speakers
Description
Although numbers of European youth who are neither in employment nor in education or training (NEET) have decreased in recent years, a considerable group of about 9 million young people remains in this situation of potential disengagement. In this context, sport has been regarded as a suitable tool to develop these NEET’s level of employability. This belief originates from (a) the centrality of soft skills within the concept of employability and (b) claims regarding sports’ ability to develop soft skills among participants. Despite these beliefs, there is limited information on how and when sport for employability (SfE) initiatives can be a promising vehicle in developing people’s employability. The purpose of the present study was, therefore, to gain more insight into this process and develop a programme theory that clarifies key programme mechanisms through which sport may enhance employability. To this end, in-depth interviews were conducted with 24 (ex)-participants of six different SfE programmes (which are considered as good practices), complemented with document analysis and field visits. During these interviews, participants were asked about the elements of the programme they believe to have led to soft skill development. Particular attention was paid to (a) the social climate and trust-based social relationships and (b) what aspects of the programme were most useful for their development and why. Data were analysed using thematic analysis and build on a recent study that constructed a generalisable programme theory for SfE programmes for NEETs. The findings will be presented during the presentation at the EASS conference.
