Youth sport administrators' perceptions and knowledge of organizational policies on child maltreatment

•Participant safety from abuse is a growing concern for youth sport administrators.•Perceptions of youth sport administrators of child maltreatment were examined.•Administrators don't believe child abuse is an issue within their organizations.•Administrators believe they should be mandated to report suspected maltreatment.•Results were mixed regarding their training in identifying suspected maltreatment.

As one of the largest segments of the sport industry, youth sport provides programs for tens of millions of children throughout the United States. With the growth of youth sports programs, issues concerning the safety of participants have increased. One issue that has garnered considerable attention involves the society-wide problem of maltreatment and abuse of children, and how administrators of youth sport programs address potential incidents of maltreatment within their programs. The purpose of this research is to examine youth sport administrators' perceptions of their organizational policies regarding child maltreatment. Results from an online survey administered throughout a central region of the United States indicated that youth sport programmers view child abuse as a problem in society, but it is not a significant issue within their own organizations. They agree that youth sport administrators have an obligation to report suspicions of child abuse. There were mixed results regarding how sport organizations train their employees to deal with child abuse, though many respondents agreed their organizations have policies toward child abuse. Limitations and recommendations for further research are also discussed.