To assist readers who have specific interests, the WSF has created a series of Research Briefs from Her Life Depends On It III.

Her Life Depends On It III is the Women’s Sports Foundation’s comprehensive report that reviews existing and emerging research on the links between participation in sport and physical activity and the health and wellbeing of American girls and women. As with the previous editions in 2004 and 2009, this study also confirms that physical activity and sport provides the critical foundation, in no small part, that allows girls and women to lead healthy, strong, and fulfilled lives. Ten years since its first publication, the updated Her Life Depends On It provides an even more comprehensive review of the ever-expanding body of research that demonstrates how important it is for girls and women to participate in sport and physical activity. The report’s contents reflect the review of 1,500 studies, nearly 400 covered since the previous edition.

In anticipation of the 45th Anniversary of Title IX, the Women’s Sports Foundation commissioned a national poll about Title IX awareness and support and attitudes and behaviors about girls’ sports participation.

Read the Press Release >>

Her Life Depends On It III is the Women’s Sports Foundation’s comprehensive report that reviews existing and emerging research on the links between participation in sport and physical activity and the health and wellbeing of American girls and women. As with the previous editions in 2004 and 2009, this study also confirms that physical activity and sport provides the critical foundation, in no small part, that allows girls and women to lead healthy, strong, and fulfilled lives. Ten years since its first publication, the updated Her Life Depends On It provides an even more comprehensive review of the ever-expanding body of research that demonstrates how important it is for girls and women to participate in sport and physical activity. The report’s contents reflect the review of 1,500 studies, nearly 400 covered since the previous edition.

Read the Her Life Depends On It III Executive Summary here.
Read the Her Life Depends On It III Official Press Release here.

To assist readers who have specific interests, the WSF has created a series of Research Briefs from Her Life Depends On It III on the following topics:

Academic Progress and Sports and Physical Activity
Collegiate Coaching and Athletic Administration
Concussions
Female Athletes and Knee Injuries
Female Athlete Triad
Girls and Women of Color in Sports and Physical Activity
Health Factors Impacted by Sports and Physical Activity
Women in Sports Leadership

Concussion Articles, Positions and Resources

Football not only sport concussion risk for teens

Girls’ Soccer Second to Football for High School Sports Concussion

Concussion Rates Rising in Younger Athletes

AAN: Put Concussion Experts on the Front Line of Sports

Female Athletes’ Concussion Symptoms May Be Overlooked

Concussion Symptoms May Differ in Girls and Boys

Concussion Position Statements

American Academy of Neurology Position Statement on Sports Concussion

National Athletic Trainers’ Association Position Statement on Management of Sport-Related Concussion

Concussion Resources

NFHS Free Course: Concussion in Sports – What You Need To Know

Suggested Guidelines for Concussion Management in Sport – a publication from the NFHS

Questions vital to diagnosing concussions – Q& A and a video from an ESPN special on concussions

Fact Sheets for Parents, Coaches and Athletes – OHSSA

Recognizing Sports Concussions – Video from the Washington Interscholastic Activities Association

Resources to Prevent and Recognize Concussions – Centers for Disease Control

CDC “Heads Up” Youth Sports Campaign – a wealth of information on sports-related concussions for athletes, parents, coaches, athletic administrators, and athletic trainers

SportsConcussions.org – Information for parents, coaches, and schools on sports-related concussions

UB Specialized Exercise Regimen Shown to Relieve Prolonged Concussion Symptoms – University of Buffalo

Sports Legacy Institute – The mission of the Sports Legacy Institute is to advance the study, treatment and prevention of the effects of brain trauma in athletes and other at-risk groups

*This list is for reference only. The Women’s Sports Foundation does not endorse any specific companies, products, or training programs.

In December 2009 the Women’s Sports Foundation released a new and expanded comprehensive review of its essential “Her Life Depends On It” report, first released in 2004. The benchmark 2009 review draws critical conclusions that further emphasize the vital roles that sports play in the physical and social health of girls and women. The report is compiled from more than 2,000 studies examining women’s athletics and health, including hundreds of new studies conducted in the five years since the last report was released.

Go Out and Play: Youth Sports in America is a comprehensive research report that covers a range of topics including sports access for children with disabilities. Significant numbers of children from immigrant families are involved with sports and exercise. Their interest is palpable, but for reasons we do not understand, girls lag behind boys in participation.

To assist readers who have specific interests, the WSF has created a series of research briefs from Go Out & Play: Youth Sports in America.

Go Out and Play: Youth Sports in America is a comprehensive research report that covers a range of topics including how athletic participation impacts children’s health. The report explored a variety of ways that sports involvement intersects with the overall development of girls and boys. Here “health and well-being” are broadly defined to include physical health, emotional health and successful social adaptation in school. The results show that for many U.S. children, athletic participation contributes to general health and body esteem, healthy weight, social relationships, higher quality of life, and educational achievement.

This study measures the nationwide participation rates of girls and boys in exercise and organized team sports. The central focus is on how the intersections among families, schools and communities are related to children’s involvement and interest in athletics and physical activity. Some of the personal and social benefits associated with children’s athletic participation are also identified and discussed. The athletic interests and involvements of girls and boys are examined from childhood through late adolescence, including entry into sport as well as drop-out patterns.

Read the Executive Summary here.

To assist readers who have specific interests, the WSF has created a series of Research Briefs from Go Out and Play on the following topics:

Go Out and Play – Athletic Participation and Children’s Well-Being
Go Out and Play – Entry Into Sports, Dropping Out of Sports
Go Out and Play – Gender Equity in Sports
Go Out and Play – Interest in Sports and Physical Activity
Go Out and Play – Participation in Sports and Exercise Activities
Go Out and Play – Participation in Team or Organized Sport
Go Out and Play – Physical Education
Go Out and Play – Sports, Exercise and Family Life
Go Out and Play – Understudied Populations
Go Out and Play – Conclusion and Policy Recommendations
Go Out and Play – Youth Sports in America – Full Report One Pager

“Her Life Depends On It,” is the most comprehensive compilation of research to date about the impact of physical activity on the physical, psychological and cultural health of girls. The report points to physical activity and sport as fundamental solutions for many of the serious health and social problems faced by girls. These include obesity, heart disease, substance abuse, teen pregnancy and depression – which accounts for much of the more than $1 trillion spent on healthcare for treating these issues.

Download the complete research report below. Educate yourself–and then take action.

In 1996, the Women’s Sports Foundation paired with Evian Natural Spring Water to closely investigate the comparative earnings, exclusive of endorsements, of male and female professional athletes in the first Women’s Sports Foundation/Evian Athletes’ Earnings Gap Index.

In the past 30 years, Title IX has afforded millions of girls the opportunity to participate in athletics.  In 1972, 1 in 28 girls participated in high school athletics.  The idea of a college scholarship to continue playing sports was unheard of, and the possibility of having a professional career was perhaps only dreamed about.  Today, 1 in 2.5 girls participate in high school athletics, $180 million is awarded to female athletes to play at the collegiate level, and there are a variety of established professional women’s leagues.  Girls and women can now more than dream of making a career of playing sports.  During the 30^th anniversary year of Title IX, the Women’s Sports Foundation celebrates the achievements of countless female athletes but also examines the inequalities that remain.

In 1996, the Women’s Sports Foundation paired with Evian Natural Spring Water to closely investigate the comparative earnings, exclusive of endorsements, of male and female professional athletes in the first Women’s Sports Foundation/Evian Athletes’ Earnings Gap Index.  The chief finding was that significant inequality exists in prize money available to male and female athletes across many sports  (See Tables 1 and 2).

In the first study, we compared the total prize purses available to men and women as well as the average earnings of the top 10 male and female athletes in five sports – beach volleyball, bowling, downhill skiing, golf and tennis.  The average prize earnings of the top 10 male athletes were double that of females in tennis, meaning that for every $1.00 a man earned, a woman earned $.49 (1:.49), followed by bowling (1:.46), skiing (1:.30), and beach volleyball (1:.20) (See Figure 1).   The study also found that the 1995-1996 average salary of male NBA players, $1.7 million, was 24 times greater than the average salary of female players, $70,000 in the newly formed American Basketball League (1996-1997 season).

The second study, conducted from 1996-2000, revealed continuing inequities but significant declines in the earnings gaps in tennis, bowling, golf and skiing.  Over the five-year period, the average prize earnings of the top 10 male and female athletes were closest in bowling (1:.70), followed by tennis (1:.67), and golf (1:36).   The 1999-2000 average NBA salary rose to $3.17 million per player, while the average WNBA salary for the same season was $55,000, making the NBA average 58 times higher than the WNBA.  Beach volleyball was not repeated in the 1996-2000 study because both the men’s and women’s tours experienced interruptions in play and prize money during that period.  For basketball, only the average salaries for all players were available.

Tracking the total purses, average salaries and total earnings of athletes is essential in the analysis of equality.  As women’s professional leagues grow in both sponsorship and interest, the Women’s Sports Foundation will continue to monitor the data, educate the media and public, and work with professional leagues to increase sponsorship and fan development.  What can you do as a fan?  You can help us help them.  Become a member of the Women’s Sports Foundation.  Write a letter to thank a sponsor of one of the many women’s professional leagues. Take your family to women’s professional games or buy season tickets to your favorite teams.  Write a letter to Congress through our new Web content area, www.GeenaTakesAim.com, and tell them how important it is to support women’s athletics.  Learn about the history of Title IX, about how far women have come and how far women still have to go.  For complete results of both studies, please visit the Foundation’s Web site at www.WomensSportsFoundation.org or AOL Keyword: WSF.

Jennifer Arndt was the Education Intern at the Women’s Sports Foundation in Fall 2001. This article first appeared in the Spring 2002 issue of the Women’s Sports Experience. Data for the 1996-2000 study was collected and complied by Helene Sisti, Temple University doctoral student and former Foundation intern.