POSITIVE YOUTH SPORTS CULTURE INDEX!
This innovative tool provides a clear depiction of the traits that define a positive youth sports environment and evaluates the effectiveness of youth sports programs in fostering positive youth development. The Index helps organizations and schools assess their current status, set goals, implement strategies, and track their progress toward improvement.
View The IndexOrganizations and schools that achieve a “high quality” rating on this Index can anticipate the following outcomes:
Participating youth develop positive character traits and Social Emotional Learning (SEL) skills
Individual athletes and teams make the most of their athletic abilities.
All participants (youth, parents, fans, coaches, officials, leaders) have fun, with benefits such as:
Greater likelihood of continued participation
Less coaching turnover
Fewer athletes dropping out due to not having fun
Fewer infractions during competitions
Less parent/coach conflict
HOW IT WORKS
The Positive Youth Sports Culture Index is a tool where an administrator observes a youth sports program in action and
scores it based on the established framework. This scoring process evaluates key elements of the youth sports culture,
highlighting strengths and areas for improvement.
PCA partner organizations and schools submit their final PYSC Index scores using an electronic form provided by their PCA
representative. Once the results are received, PCA collaborates with these organizations and schools to set goals and
enhance the identied aspects of their culture. Specifically, PCA offers:
Resources & Tools
Access to a curated list of resources
and tools for your organization’s
positive culture journey.
Expert Guidance
Guidance in selecting and
hosting the most effective
workshops for coaches,
parents, and athletes.
Ongoing Support
Continued support in tracking
cultural improvements and
progress.
The Positive Youth Sports Culture Index has a companion workshop for administrators: CULTURE SHAPING FOR LEADERS
In this interactive Zoom session, we’ll:
Cover the importance of culture shaping
Introduce and provide an orientation to PCA’s PYSC Index
Review how to complete the PYSC Index form and define next steps
TESTIMONIALS
"It's a very comprehensive framework for assessing practice/YSO culture. It helps you zoom in on where you need to set goals and
areas to improve - I could really see using this across different coaches/sites and evaluating trends and seeing where we need to improve."
- Youth Sports Organization Leader
"I like the fact that he gave me an opportunity to reflect on the impactful work that needs to be done, and what we’re currently doing as an organization."
- Boys and Girls Club