Department of Physical Therapy Student Theses, Dissertations and Capstones

Document Type

Dissertation - NSU Access Only

Degree Name

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) in Physical Therapy

Copyright Statement

All rights reserved. This publication is intended for use solely by faculty, students, and staff of Nova Southeastern University. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, now known or later developed, including but not limited to photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the author or the publisher.

First Advisor

M. Samuel Cheng

Date of original Performance / Presentation

January 2025

Publication Date / Copyright Date

1-1-2025

Abstract

Purpose: Early sport specialization has become increasingly common among adolescent athletes, particularly in soccer, despite limited evidence supporting its role in achieving elite performance. Specialization has been associated with increased risk for overuse and acute injuries, altered motor development, and psychological burnout. Limited information is available regarding the influence of specialization in soccer on neuromuscular control, lower extremity strength symmetry, or athlete burnout in healthy adolescent soccer players. The purpose of this study was to examine differences in strength, neuromuscular control, and burnout between adolescent soccer specialists and multisport athletes, with further subgroup analyses by gender. Methods: A cross-sectional study design was utilized assessing sixty junior varsity and varsity soccer players. Participants were classified as specialists by previously established criterion. Hop tests were utilized to assess lower extremity strength and the Y-Balance Test evaluated neuromuscular control. Limb dominance was utilized to establish limb symmetry indices. Psychological burnout was measured using the Athlete Burnout Questionnaire (ABQ). Group comparisons were conducted using Mann-Whitney U analyses. Results: Female multisport athletes demonstrated significantly greater posteromedial reach limb symmetry than female specialists (p < .05), and male multisport athletes outperformed male specialists on single limb hop symmetry (p < .05). No significant differences between specialists and multisport athletes across the remaining hop and Y-Balance measures. Burnout scores did not significantly differ between groups or by gender across any ABQ domains. Power analysis indicated sufficient sensitivity to detect large effects but not small or moderate differences. Conclusions: Findings suggest that early sport specialization was not broadly associated with deficits in neuromuscular control, strength symmetry, or burnout, however, multisport athletes exhibited targeted neuromuscular advantages. Enhanced control with the posteromedial reach control among females indicates improve eccentric control compared to specialist athletes and improved hop symmetry among males multisport athletes highlight potential benefits of diversified participation in developing balanced motor control strategies. Clinical Relevance: These results support encouraging multisport involvement in adolescent athletes to mitigate injury risk factors and promote long-term participation in sport.

Disciplines

Physical Therapy

Keywords

Adolescent Athlete; Limb Symmetry; Soccer; Sport Specialization

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