Are professional athletes role models?

It is not uncommon to cite the importance of adults in adolescent’s lives. Specifically, singling out role models whom adolescents can look up to as they are in their identity formation. Despite the Role Model’s definition of being varied, role models have always been traditionally defined as adults to whom youth look up to and desire to be like. Although many have doubted and inferred on the importance of role models in adolescent’ development, there are quite a few researchers who have examined their potential to influence adolescent’s outcomes in life.

It’s a fact that in an adolescent’s life, an adult plays a pivotal and major role in their development. While an adult can be many things in an adolescent’s life, being a role model is one of its influential role that adults can play. In the past or in the previous decades, the typical role models will fall right between adults holding distinguished positions and professions in the society such as members of the academe, policymakers, politicians, physicians, and lawyers. These role models of the past were considerably expected to positively influence youth outcomes, however, this has received a surprisingly limited amount of research on the subject. Furthermore, every researcher has their own definition of a role model.

As a matter of fact, several studies would liberally interchange the usage of role model and mentor. A role model is a person who is perceived by others as worthy of imitation and who may or may not have personal contact with the people who perceive him/her as a role model, according to Pleiss and Feldhusen (1995). In contrast, as explained by Zimmerman, Bingheimer & Norato in 2002, a mentor is someone who guides, encourages, supports and interacts closely with his or her mentee. Thus, mentors may often be role models, but role models are not necessarily mentors.

But, what happens when the question of being a role model is thrown at athletes? Are we to consider athletes as role models? Is it good or bad to consider athletes as role models?

Young adults and children idolize athletes. That’s a fact. It has always been that way in the social norms every country. They’re considered role models because of their media presence and ability to help or change lives. People, both young and old, have no problem identifying one or two favorite athletes that have caught their attention as well as their admiration.

For a while now, there’s been a hefty amount of debate on whether we should treat athletes as role models and try to copy their behaviors as a roadmap for our own lives. Children, especially those playing sports, in their very young age, are very impressionable to these athletic superstars as they learn themselves, how to contribute to a team or their family.

In the present era, athletes have never been more scrutinized than any other time since the inception of a motion picture. With their near impossible-to-matchabilities, worldwide platform to voice opinions and ridiculously high salaries, athletes are, whether or not they choose to take on the responsibility, and whether they are good or bad role models, role models. The mere fact that they have a million-dollar salary supports this statement. We mere mortals aspire to reach even a piece of their level of achievement. Regardless of what everyone else thinks, a professional athlete is at the zenith of his or her profession.

To further articulate the pros and cons of plastering professional athletes as role models, here are some of the examples of that positive and negative societal influences.

Positive

Motivate Confidence

A professional athlete is a poster-boy of sheer confidence. They use confidence as a strategy not only to outwit their opponents but also influence the drive of their team members. Believing in your own strength. That is what athletes are conveying every time they play.

Good Physique, Health, and Fitness

In the world of sports, being fit and healthy is a must. It’s not always necessary to have an outstandingly good physique, however, deviating from your normal BMI or Body Mass Index is not acceptable in sports. That is the reason why you could seldom find professional athletes with weight issues. Athletes are the perfect endorser of the advantages of rigorous exercise and how it keeps you on top of your game. With better fitness and health come perfect stamina, resilience, and endurance.

Encourage Positive Change in the Community

Professional Athletes use their fame and celebrity status to deal with problems and veer positive changes in a particular community.

Not-so-positive Accountability Ignored

All professional athletes, no matter how incredibly talented they are, are still humans. And human beings are flawed. We commit mistakes, demonstrate poor judgment including violating rules and laws enforced. In the same way, not all professional athletes display virtuous examples. While these crimes committed by pedestrians, the celebrity status of professional athletes will always drag their slightest run-in with the law or immoral behaviors to national headlines.

Admirers will often ignore this immoral behavior in order to continue their unwavering admiration and think it’s acceptable conduct for a person with such athletic skill. This is teaching children not be held accountable for their actions when in reality they are held accountable. A bigger problem is when fans, even children, come to associate this immoral behavior as ordinary and adopt these negative habits themselves as a way to copy their heroes.

Each of us has our own talent whether it is playing basketball, baseball or another sport, and we present our craft differently to one another. These athletes are not perfect, so they shouldn’t be put on a pedestal because we all have flaws want to imitate it, good or bad.

Athletes should be applauded and celebrated for their athletic prowess and achievements. But it’s up to us to be role models and teach our children about morals, values, and goals through meaningful, in-person relationships. Don’t rely on athletes to do that job for you. (