Gender Differences in Sports-Related Child Maltreatment: A Systematic Review

Sports-related child maltreatment (CM) has emerged as a global issue in the past few decades. Despite evidence pointing to gender differences in how children experience and report CM, this literature remains fragmented and limited to sexual abuse in sports. This systematic review identified and synthesized available evidence on the prevalence, perpetrators, outcomes, and disclosures of various sports-related CM subtypes to determine whether these experiences differ across genders. Systematic searches were conducted using three databases (i.e., PsycInfo, MedLine, Scopus) for studies published between the earliest date of each database to May 2024. A total of 509 unique articles were returned, from which 22 met the inclusion criteria. The included studies examined children or adults who participated in organized sports before age 18 and compared a quantitative measure of sports-related CM across genders. Findings revealed higher rates of sports-related neglect, psychological, and sexual abuse reported by girls, and higher rates of sports-related physical abuse reported by boys. Gender differences were also observed in the common perpetrators and disclosure recipients, with boys reporting more peer-perpetrated violence and disclosures made to coaches, and girls reporting more coach-perpetrated violence and disclosures made to parents. Regardless, severe outcomes of sports-related CM and concerns of underreporting were shared across genders. Future research is needed to establish consistent measurement tools and to explore gender differences in the perceptions and barriers to disclosing all forms of sports-related CM. The need to develop formal reporting structures in sports is also highlighted for policymakers and practitioners.