Gaelic football and hurling Talent Academies (TAs) and senior teams cater for high performing players, however only two previous studies have quantified the relative age effect (RAE) in these cohorts. Additionally, no studies to date have explored key stakeholder understanding of the RAE using qualitative methods. This study aimed to: (a) quantify the RAE in TAs and senior teams, and (b) investigate stakeholder perspectives of the talent development environment, providing practical insight into the RAE. A mixed methods sequential explanatory study design was employed. Phase one involved a retrospective analysis of longitudinal data for the frequency and distribution of births using TA (n=12,445) and senior (n=8,752) players. Phase two consisted of two focus groups of key stakeholders [coaches (n=4) and Talent Development Leaders (n=4)] in talent development in hurling and Gaelic football at TA and senior level. Analysis revealed a significant difference between TA birth quarter (BQ) distributions compared with expected distributions across all age groups (P<0.001; BQ1= 30.4% vs. BQ4=17.6%), while at senior level, there were no significant differences between the observed and expected BQ distributions (χ 2 (df = 3) = 3.812, P = 0.282). In phase two, inductive analysis explored key stakeholder perceptions revealing three higher order themes: (a) understanding of the RAE, (b) selection criteria, and (c) player characteristics. The GAA are encouraged to reflect on the practice of chronological age band grouping of players, investigate possible solutions to limit its effects, and offer support programmes to educate key stakeholders on the potential impact of the RAE on talent development.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.
hi@scite.ai
10624 S. Eastern Ave., Ste. A-614
Henderson, NV 89052, USA
Copyright © 2024 scite LLC. All rights reserved.
Made with 💙 for researchers
Part of the Research Solutions Family.