WHILE RESEARCH HAS REPEATEDLY shown the benefits of participation in extracurricular activities for adolescents, few studies have focused on very young children. Extracurricular activities afford children opportunities for development and can also influence their behaviour. Children's behaviour is an important predictor of their future successes or failures. This study investigated the relationship between behaviour and participation in extracurricular activities in children aged between five and eight years. Mothers of children (n = 906) in Prep to Year 3 from seven schools in middle- to high-SES areas from a regional city participated in the study. Mothers gave details of their child's extracurricular activities and used the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ) (Goodman, 1997) to measure their child's behaviour. Low scores on the SDQ indicate normal behaviour while high scores indicate borderline or abnormal behaviour. Participation, number of activities, and duration of activities were all associated with children's behaviour. Children who participated in extracurricular activities had lower behaviour scores than those who did not. The results suggest that children benefit from participating in two or more activities for 80–90 minutes per week.
AchenbachT. M. (1991). Manual for the Child Behaviour Checklist/4-18 and 1991 Profile.Burlington, VT: University of Vermont Department of Psychiatry.
3.
AlexanderK. L., EntwisleD. R., & HorseyC. S. (1997). From first grade forward: Early foundations of high school dropout. Sociology of Education, 70(2), 87–107.
4.
AllenP., & BennettK. (2008). SPSS for the Health & Behavioural Sciences. South Melbourne: Thomson.
5.
BarberB. L., EcclesJ. S., & StoneM. R. (2001). Whatever happened to the jock, the brain, and the princess? Young adult pathways linked to adolescent activity involvement and social identity. Journal of Adolescent Research, 16(5), 429–455.
6.
BartkoT. W., & EcclesJ. S. (2003). Adolescent participation in structured and unstructured activities: A person-oriented analysis. Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 32(4), 233–241.
7.
BennettK. J., LipmanE. L., RacineY., & OffordD. R. (1998). Annotation: Do measures of externalising behaviour in normal populations predict later outcome?: Implications for targeted interventions to prevent conduct disorder. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry39(8), 1059–1070.
8.
BrohB. A. (2002). Linking extracurricular programming to academic achievement: Who benefits and why?Sociology of Education, 75(1), 69–95.
9.
BroidyL. M., NaginD. S., TremblayR. E., BatesJ. E., BrameB., DodgeK. A., (2003). Developmental trajectories of childhood disruptive behaviors and adolescent delinquency: A six-site, cross-national study. Developmental Psychology39(2), 222–245.
10.
CatterallJ. (1985). On the social costs of dropping out of school.Stanford, CA: Stanford University Press.
11.
ColmanI., MurrayJ., AbbottR. A., MaughanB., KuhD., CroudaceT. J., (2009). Outcomes of conduct problems in adolescence: 40 year follow-up of national cohort. British Medical Journal (338), 2981.
12.
CooperH., ValentineJ. C., NyeB., & LindsayJ. J. (1999). Relationships between five afterschool activities and academic achievement. Journal of Educational Psychology, 91(2), 369–378.
13.
CovayE., & CarbonaroW. (2010). After the bell: Participation in extracurricular activities, classroom behavior, and academic achievement. Sociology of Education, 83(1), 20–45.
14.
DumaisS. (2006). Elementary school students' extracurricular activities: The effects of participation on achievement and teachers' evaluations. Sociological Spectrum26(2), 117–147.
15.
EcclesJ. S., & BarberB. L. (1999). Student council, volunteering, basketball, or marching band: What kind of extracurricular involvement matters?Journal of Adolescent Research, 14(1), 10–43.
16.
EnsmingerM. E., LamkinR. P., & JacobsonN. (1996). School leaving: A longitudinal perspective including neighborhood effects. Child Development, 67, 2400–2416.
17.
FergussonD. M., HorwoodL. J., & RidderE. M. (2007). Conduct and attentional problems in childhood and adolescence and later substance use, abuse and dependence: Results of a 25-year longitudinal study. Drug and Alcohol Dependence, 88(1), S14–S26.
18.
FletcherA. C., NickersonP., & WrightK. L. (2003). Structured leisure activities in middle childhood: Links to wellbeing. Journal of Community Psychology, 31(3), 641–659.
19.
FredricksJ. A., & EcclesJ. S. (2006a). Extracurricular involvement and adolescent adjustment: Impact of duration, number of activities, and breadth of participation. Applied Developmental Science, 10(3), 132–146.
20.
FredricksJ. A., & EcclesJ. S. (2006b). Is extracurricular participation associated with beneficial outcomes? Concurrent and longitudinal relations. Developmental Psychology, 42(4), 698–713.
21.
GoodmanR. (1997). The Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire: A research note. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 38(5), 581–586.
22.
GoodmanR., & ScottS. (1999). Comparing the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire and the Child Behavior Checklist: Is small beautiful?Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology, 27(1), 17–24.
23.
LambS., DwyerP., & WynJ. (2000). Non-completion of school in Australia: The changing patterns of participation and outcomes (LSAY Research Report Number 16). Retrieved 27 February, 2009, from http://www.acer.edu.au/documents/LSAY_execsum16.pdf.
24.
LarsonR. W., & VermaS. (1999). How children and adolescents spend time across the world: Work, play, and developmental opportunities. Psychological Bulletin, 125(6), 701–736.
25.
LernerR. M. (2005). Promoting positive youth development through community and afterschool programs. In MahoneyJ. L., LarsonR. & EcclesJ. S. (Eds), Organized activities as contexts of development: extracurricular activities, afterschool, and community programs (pp. ix-xii). Mahwah, NJ: Erlbaum.
26.
LevinH. (1972). The Costs to the Nation of Inadequate Education (study prepared for the Select Committee on Equality of Educational Opportunity, U.S. Senate)Washington, DC: US Government Printing Office.
27.
MahoneyJ. L., HarrisA. L., & EcclesJ. S. (2006). Organized activity participation, youth development, and the over-scheduling hypothesis. SRCD Social Policy Report, 20(4), 1–31.
28.
MahoneyJ. L., LarsonR. W., EcclesJ. S., & LordH. (2005). Organized activities as developmental contexts for children and adolescents. In MahoneyJ. L., LarsonR. & EcclesJ. S. (Eds), Organized activities as contexts of development: extracurricular activities, afterschool, and community programs.Mahwah, NJ: Erlbaum.
29.
MahoneyJ. L., LordH., & CarrylE. (2005). An Ecological Analysis of After-School Program Participation and the Development of Academic Performance and Motivational Attributes for Disadvantaged Children. Child Development, 76, 4.
30.
MahoneyJ. L., SchwederA. E., & StattinH. (2002). Structured afterschool activities as a moderator of depressed mood for adolescents with detached relations to their parents. Journal of Community Psychology, 30(1), 69–86.
31.
MarshH. W. (1992). Extracurricular activities: Beneficial extension of the traditional curriculum or subversion of academic goals. Journal of Educational Psychology, 84(4), 553–562.
32.
MarshH. W., & KleitmanS. (2002). Extracurricular school activities: The good, the bad, and the non-linear. Harvard Educational Review, 72(4), 464–514.
33.
McHaleS. M., CrouterA. C., & TuckerC. J. (2001). Free-Time Activities in Middle Childhood: Links with Adjustment in Early Adolescence. Child Development, 72(6), 1764–1778.
34.
MorrisP., & KalilA. (2006). Out of school time use during middle childhood in a low-income sample: Do combinations of activities affect achievement and behavior? In HustonA. & RipkeM. (Eds), Middle childhood: Contexts of development (pp. 237–259). New York: Cambridge University Press.
35.
NICHD Early Child Care Research Network (2004). Are Child Development Outcomes Related to Before- and After-School Care Arrangements? Results from the NICHD Study of Early Child Care. Child Development, 75(1), 280–295.
36.
PallantJ. (2005). SPSS Survival Manual: A step by step guide to data analysis using SPSS for Windows.Crows Nest: Allen & Unwin.
37.
PettitG. S., LairdR. D., BatesJ. E., & DodgeK. A. (1997). Patterns of After-School Care in Middle Childhood: Risk Factors and Developmental Outcomes. Merrill-Palmer Quarterly, 43(3), 515–538.
38.
PosnerJ. K., & VandellD. L. (1999). After school activities and the development of low-income children: A longitudinal study. Developmental Psychology, 35.
39.
PykeJ. E. (1985). Australian Health and Fitness Survey 1985.South Australia: The Australian Council for Health, Physical Education and Recreation.
40.
RumbergerR. W. (1987). High school dropouts: A review of issues and evidence. Review of Educational Research, 57(2), 101–121.
41.
RumbergerR. W. (1995). Dropping out of middle school: A multilevel analysis of students and schools. American Educational Research Journal, 32, 583–625.
42.
RutterM. (1967). A children's behaviour questionnaire for completion by teachers: Preliminary findings. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 8, 1–11.
43.
ShanahanM. J., & FlahertyB. R. (2001). Dynamic Patterns of Time Use in Adolescence. Child Development, 72(2), 385–401.
44.
ThornberrryT. P., MooreM., & ChristensenR. L. (1985). The effect of dropping out of school on subsequent criminal behavior. Criminology 23, 3–18.
45.
VandellD. L., & PosnerJ. K. (1999). Conceptualization and measurement of children's afterschool environments. In FriedmanS. L. & WachsT. D., (Eds), Measuring environment across the lifespan: Emerging methods and concepts (pp. 167–196). Washington D.C.: American Psychological Association.
46.
VandellD. L., & ShumowL., (1999). After-school childcare programs. The Future of Children, 9(2), 64–80.
47.
VitaroF., BrendgenM., LaroseS., & TremblayR. E. (2005). Kindergarten disruptive behaviors, protective factors, and educational achievement by early adulthood. Journal of Educational Psychology, 97(4), 617–629.
48.
VitaroF., LarocqueD., JanoszM., & TremblayR. E. (2001). Negative social experiences and dropping out of school.21(4), 401–415.
