Skip to main content

ORIGINAL RESEARCH article

Front. Sports Act. Living, 03 November 2023
Sec. The History, Culture and Sociology of Sports
This article is part of the Research Topic Coaching Female Athletes View all 7 articles

A leadership-based framework for improving Saudi Arabian female participation in sports

  • Department of Sports Science & Physical Education, College of Arts, Jouf University, Sakakah, Saudi Arabia

Study purpose: To analyze the relationship between the leadership styles and sports engagement among female sport persons in Saudi Arabia and proposes a framework model for improving Saudi Arabian female participation in sports.

Methods: This study adopted an online cross-sectional survey design for achieving the research aim. Survey instruments included multi-factor leadership questionnaire (MLQ) and Utrecht Work Engagement Scale (UWES). The study participants included adult female sports persons from various sports clubs in Saudi Arabia. A total of 329 responses were received, out of which 35 were incomplete; therefore, a total of 294 responses were considered for the data analysis.

Results: Transformational leadership style was identified to be the most preferred style compared to transactional and laissez-fare leadership styles. Older participants (>25 years) perceived transformational leadership scales including inspirational motivation, intellectual stimulation, and individual consideration to be more effective (p < 0.05) compared to younger participants. Transformational leadership has strong positive correlation with all engagement scales (as correlation coefficient “r” was greater than 0.7, p < 0.01).

Conclusion: Inspirational motivation could be an effective approach in increasing the female participation in Saudi Arabia, as they are mentally unprepared due to the experience of socio-cultural restrictions for decades.

Introduction

As part of the Vision 2030 program, Saudi Arabia is transitioning away from an economy that is dependent on oil and toward one that is focused on information (1). During this procedure, numerous issues were taken into consideration, one of which was the promotion of women's empowerment, particularly through the encouragement of female participation in sports. Participation in sports enhances physical activity among the individuals. The concept of “physical activity” encompasses all forms of body motions generated by skeletal muscles that necessitate energy expenditure surpassing the baseline level (2). There is a growing body of literature that suggests a strong correlation between frequent participation in physical activity and its positive impact on an individual's overall health and well-being (3, 4). Moreover, it is worth noting that several governmental investigations and consensus statements have underscored the fundamental significance of physical activity in both individual and communal contexts (57). Physical inactivity and sedentary behavior have been recognized as significant contributors to various chronic non-communicable diseases, including diabetes mellitus, obesity, cardiovascular disorders, some types of cancer, osteoporosis, and mental impairments (8, 9). Moreover, it has been established that insufficient engagement in physical exercise is associated with untimely death (10). As a result, the monitoring of physical activity or sports engagement among the individuals has progressively emerged as a matter of public health significance. It has been observed that the focus on women environment was mainly on their involvement, improvement, and achieving their rights, which needs a change in socio-cultural, political, legal, economic, and environmental systems (11). However, there are a variety of barriers that prevent Saudi women from participating in sports. These obstacles include socio-cultural, family, and institutional aspects (12, 13).

One of the most significant characteristics of cultures that has been the topic of debate for millennia everywhere in the world is the way in which women are treated unfairly in those communities. Even though gender inequality has been somewhat addressed in many countries because of policy and regulations, prejudice remains deeply ingrained in the society and culture of a select number of nations. It is a factor of societal and cultural norms reflecting the subservient roles of women in the society (14). For example, in a few countries such as Pakistan, Afghanistan, and Saudi Arabia, the practice of patriarchal conjugal relationships reflects the incorrect perception of linking women's discrimination to religion. In these countries, the practice of patriarchal conjugal relationships reflects the ill perception of linking women discrimination to religion. According to OECD (15), Saudi Arabia is one of the nations in which several problems have been highlighted about women. These problems include discrimination in the family, threats to physical integrity, a lack of productive and financial resources, restrictions on civil freedoms, and more. In addition, discrimination in fundamental rights such as work, healthcare, and personal development were just a few parts of the concerns that were harming the empowerment of women in Saudi Arabia (16, 17). In most cases, the influence of these variables prevents women from accessing a variety of possibilities that can help them achieve their goals and slows down the process of their growth. One of these areas in the country that women are not allowed to participate in, which has been the case for quite some time now, is sports.

According to a recent study conducted by Al-Dubayan (17), inequalities in organizations are still prevalent in Saudi Arabia. These inequalities are particularly prevalent in the adoption of customs such as wasta and asabiyyah, in which advantages were given to family members or those belonging to the same status. In Saudi Arabia, sports organizations are the same as any other kind of organization, just like any other kind of organization, they involve a variety of tasks such as training, management of sports activities, and so on. On the other hand, as part of its Vision 2030 program, the Saudi government has undertaken several measures at the national level to improve the quality of life and health of women and girls, and at the international level, it has increased the visibility of Saudi female athletes (18). Because of this, the number of women who manage sports clubs and teams as well as the number of women who participate in sports has increased by 56%, which is a promising indicator for the expansion of options available to women who are interested in participating in sports (19). On the other hand, there are still obstacles that make it difficult for women to participate in sports. To allow women to participate in a variety of sports, for instance, it was necessary to consider numerous socio-cultural elements, such as gender segregation and Islam (20, 21). In addition, the attitudes of family members, the location of the home (whether it be urban or rural), and the degree of education were shown to be the primary obstacles for female engagement in sports (21). In a similar vein, in educational settings, physical fitness, social experience, and formal competition all have a beneficial effect on physiological experience, which in turn has a positive effect on the attitude of female students towards sports (22). Therefore, there may be a variety of areas in which the obstacles that prevent women from participating in sports can be recognized based on the research that is done, and these areas need to have competent leadership handled.

Although, there is issues with gender equality in sports participation globally, its impact was mainly observed in the Middle East till the past decade (23). Furthermore, it was observed that when compared to other Arab or Muslim women, Saudi women are subject to a greater number of limitations since they are prohibited (legally or culturally) from doing many things by themselves and are required to have a male guardian present to participate in some activities (24). Young Arabic Muslim women who participate in sports are perceived as taking on a challenge to the limits of their ethnic identities when compared to their peers who do not (24). Young Arabic Muslim women who firmly position themselves within the context of their ethnic identities are not interested in sports since participating in athletics is not viewed as respectable femininity among Arabic Muslim culture (25). Even though the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia places a strong emphasis on the importance of protecting the female population, the lack of physical education for girls in schools, which only stopped very recently, the limited number of fitness centers and gyms for women, a particular body image, and the prevalence of women staying at home and leading rather passive or static lives have all contributed to a somewhat unhealthy lifestyle among women (26). In the past, Saudi women have not had access to physical education or sports, which is evidenced by the poor health status they currently suffer from (44% obesity rate), which is significantly higher than the national average (35.4%) and nearly three times as high as the worldwide average (13%) (13). Although, significant changes have been introduced in the past few years in kingdom for promoting female physical activity and health, there is a change being observed in women participation in sports and physical activity, but they still face issues in different contexts (27, 28). A recent study (29) suggested an ambitious policy that was well-founded, as well as the achievement of several goals in Saudi Arabia. It was discovered that the most obvious results have thus far been the rapid, albeit modest cultural change in terms of physical activity, allowing women to participate in sports and raising the level of physical activity among Saudis. This transformation was one of the most evident achievements. Despite this, there are still some objectives that have not been met, most notably those associated with the participation of women in sports. In conclusion, there has been some movement toward the actualization of the policy regarding the promotion of physical activity; however, there are several factors that exist that have hampered achievement in particular domains, revealing a lack of effective leadership practices in motivating female participation in sports (29).

With the change being observed, it is essential that there is a need to increase research in this area to better analyze the policies, and the impact of various factors on women participation in sports in Saudi Arabia. Such research studies can have various benefits, as it can aid in promoting gender equality, promoting women's empowerment, improving health outcomes, and reaping economic and social benefits. It enables policymakers, sports organizations, and leaders to identify strategies that encourage female participation and create a more inclusive and equitable sports landscape. However, the number of studies focusing on the women and sports participation is very low as observed in a recent systematic review (30). Therefore, to address such gaps, this study aims to analyze the relationship between the leadership styles and sports engagement among female sport persons in Saudi Arabia and proposes a framework model for improving Saudi Arabian female participation in sports.

Hypothesis development

The relationship between transformational leadership style (a leadership style that focuses on inspiring and motivating followers to achieve their full potential and exceed their own expectations) and engagement was studied in various contexts such as manager and employee relations. Studies (3133) have identified that transformational leadership contributed to various aspects such as needs satisfaction, less job strain, increased autonomy, and support, leading to a positive correlation between transformational leadership and employee engagement. In the context of sports, transformational leadership was related with athletes well-being and satisfaction (34), leading to a positive correlation with sports/physical activity engagement (35, 36). In this context, this study considers following hypothesis.

H1: Transformational leadership exhibits strong positive correlation with engagement in sports.Similarly, studies (3742) have identified that transactional leadership (a leadership style that emphasizes the exchange of rewards and punishments between the leader and their followers based on the completion of tasks and meeting performance expectations) reflect moderate positive correlations with engagement in physical activity as it promotes non-autonomous motivation; but laissez-faire leadership (characterized by leaders who give their team members a high degree of autonomy and decision-making authority) reflected negative correlations with engagement in physical activities. In this context, the following hypotheses are formulated.

H2: Transactional leadership exhibits moderate positive correlation with engagement in sports.

H3: Laissez-faire leadership exhibits negative correlation with engagement in sports.

Methods

This study adopted an online cross-sectional survey design for achieving the research aim.

Questionnaire design

The first part of the questionnaire focuses on collecting the demographic information of the participants, which includes age, education, and sports experience. The second and third parts of questionnaires includes two pre-validated and academically recognized survey questionnaires respectively, which include: multi-factor leadership questionnaire (MLQ) (43) and Utrecht Work Engagement Scale (UWES) (44). MLQ is one of the prominent questionnaires that is used for identifying leadership styles in different settings (45); and UWES, although developed for assessing work engagement in organization, it is adopted in sports environment for assessing sports engagement (44). Using these questionnaires, individual leadership scales and sports engagement scales can be correlated to test the hypothesis. The MLQ consists of 21 questions, each of which must be scored on a Likert scale ranging from 0 (never) to 4 (very often), with 1 denoting never and 5 denoting never more than once in a while. The focus of items 1–12 is on several forms of transformational leadership, which can be further subdivided into idealized influence (items 1–3), inspiring motivation (items 4–6), intellectual simulation (items 7–9), and individual attention (items 10–12). Items 13–18 are associated with transactional leadership styles, which can be subdivided into management by exception (items 16–18) and contingent reward (items 13–15). Items 19–21 are associated with a leadership style known as laissez-faire. UWES-9 has 15 items which are grouped under vigor, dedication, and absorption categories. The participants' degrees of agreement or disagreement with each question on the UWES-9 are reflected by their placement on a scale with five points, ranging from 1 (Never) to 5 (Always). The UWES-9 consists of 15 items, five of which are categorized as belonging to the vigor category, five to the dedication category, and five to the absorption category, respectively.

Two Arabic translators were employed to translate the questionnaire from English to Arabic. The individual translated versions are compared and a final version is developed by the authors. The final version is reviewed by the academic professors from Language and cultural studies department and minor changes related to grammar were suggested, which were implemented. After having the questionnaire translated into Arabic, a pilot study was carried out with 21 participants. The results, which showed a Cronbach's alpha of better than 0.70 for all items, suggested good internal reliability and consistency (38). Using Google Survey, an online version of the survey questionnaire was created, and a link to that online version is being established for the purpose of data collection.

Participants, recruitment, and sampling

As the study is focused on female sportspersons, the participants in this study included female sportspersons in Saudi Arabia aged more than 18 years. The participants from the study were recruited from the five sports clubs in Saudi Arabia. Five sports clubs were contacted for participation in this study, to whom an invitation email with survey link was sent. The email was then forwarded to the members of respective female sports clubs. In addition, snow-ball sampling (45) was used, where a request was placed in the email to forward the link to their colleagues who are female sports persons.

Considering the 14 million Saudi female population (46), estimated sample was calculated using Cochran's formula (47), at 95% CI and 5% of Margin of error, giving an estimated sample of 384 participants.

Data collection and analysis

The data was collected online using an online-administered survey questionnaire. The invitation email was sent to 594 female sports persons, from five sports clubs. A total of 329 responses were received, out of which 35 were incomplete; therefore, a total of 294 responses were considered for the data analysis.

The data was analyzed with SPSS version 20.0, and a variety of statistical methods, such as t-tests and Pearson's correlation, were utilized. To remove any potential sources of bias from the analysis of the results, missing data were eliminated. The key finding of the investigation is a correlation between leadership style and the level of participation displayed by sportspeople.

Results

As the study is focused on analyzing female sports persons perceptions of leadership styles and sports engagement, only 294 female sports persons are included (See Table 1). Considering the education attributes of the participants, majority of them were diploma holders (44.9%), followed by bachelor's degree holders (40.1%), master's degree holders (10.2%, and 4.8% participants with primary/secondary school education. Considering the age factor, most of the participants were distributed across three age groups including 22–25 years (31.3%), 18–21 years (29.3%), and 26–29 years (22.8%). About 9.5% were aged between 30 and 33 years, and 7.1% were aged more than 33 years. In relation to experience in sports, 43.2% participants had three to five years of experience, followed by 40.5% having six to ten years of experience, and 16.3% having more than ten years of experience.

TABLE 1
www.frontiersin.org

Table 1. Participants demographics.

Considering the perceptions on different leadership styles, transformational leadership was most preferred by the participants, as it can be observed from mean rating or average scores for sub-scales including idealized influence (3.11 out of 5), inspirational motivation (3.16), intellectual stimulation (3.04), individual consideration (3.11). Transactional leadership styles are less preferred as the mean ratings of sub-scales reflected low to medium preferences: contingent rewards (2.66) and management by exception (2.65). Laissez-faire leadership was least preferred by the participants as it achieved lower ratings (2.47) compared to other leadership styles. All engagement sub-scales vigor (2.71), dedication (2.72), and absorption (2.72) indicated low to medium levels of engagement in sports activities.

To further analyze the results by participants groups (see Table 2), t-tests were conducted. Statistically significant differences (p < 0.05) were observed between younger and older participants in relation to transformational leadership scales including inspirational motivation (p = 0.03, p, 0.05), intellectual stimulation (p = 0.02, p < 0.05), and individual consideration (p = 0.03, p < 0.05). Older participants preferred transactional leadership styles more than the younger participants. However, no statistically significant differences were observed among the participants with different levels of sports experience in relation to transformational and laissez-faire leadership styles. Statistically significant difference (p < 0.05) was observed with respect to transactional leadership sub-scale: management by exception (p = 0.03, p < 0.05) among the participants with different experience levels. Participants with experience over five years preferred management by exception factor more than the participants with lower experience levels.

TABLE 2
www.frontiersin.org

Table 2. Perceptions about leadership styles grouped by age and sports experience variables.

Interestingly, no statistically significant differences were observed between the participants groups with respect to sports engagement (see Table 3).

TABLE 3
www.frontiersin.org

Table 3. Perceptions about sports engagement grouped by age and sports experience variables.

Table 4 presents correlations between the leadership styles and sports engagement sub-scales. It is evident that transformational leadership has strong positive correlation with all engagement scales (as correlation coefficient “r” was greater than 0.7, p < 0.01). Furthermore, correlations between transactional leadership and laissez-faire leadership styles were identified to be having moderate relationship (as correlations ranged between 0.5 and 0.6) with all sub-scales of engagement levels including vigor, dedication, and absorption.

TABLE 4
www.frontiersin.org

Table 4. Correlations between MLQ and UWES sub-scales.

Discussion

The findings in this study indicated that sports managers exhibited transformational leadership styles far better than transactional and laissez-faire leadership styles. Furthermore, transactional leadership styles and laissez-faire leadership styles were also adopted, but to a lower extent. Although, all the three leadership styles were exhibited, sports managers were more inclined towards transformational leadership styles. It may be possible that managers exhibit different leadership styles according to the working conditions (4851), because of which different styles can be observed by the sports persons. However, previous studies (52, 53) observed that Saudi women unknowingly act in accordance with male ideals, as they are culturally nourished with the thinking of male superiority over females; and as such, they tend to prefer masculine leadership, which is characterized by assertiveness and competitiveness. However, the sports managers for female sports persons include female managers (54, 55), who may adopt transformational leadership styles which are characterized by support, motivation, and cooperation rather than masculine leadership styles, which is evident from the high mean scores for transformational leadership sub-scales in this study.

Among the transformational leadership sub-scales, inspirational motivation was observed to be the most frequently displayed sub-scale. Given the various socio-cultural barriers for females in Saudi Arabia (2328) from entering sports, motivational approach could be an effective strategy to boost the morale and engagement of the female sports persons in Saudi Arabia. Accordingly, inspirational motivation exhibited strong correlation with sports engagement sub-scales including vigor, dedication, and absorption; compared to other transactional leadership sub-scales. Intrinsic motivation is one of the benefits of adopting transformational leadership. Studies (5659) have observed that motivation related intervention such as gamification can enhance positive attitudes and emotions of the individuals to engage in physical activities. These findings suggest that transformational leadership style could be more favorable in increasing sports engagement compared to other styles as it fosters motivation among the sportspersons through enhanced support from the leaders. In addition, skills and sports literacy/awareness were also identified to be significant factors influencing the sports engagement (60, 61), which require transformative approach which focuses on support, change management, continuous improvement, and skills development through an inspirational motivation. Supporting these outcomes, the hypotheses H1 was proved to be true. Similarly, hypotheses H2, indicating moderate positive correlation of transactional leadership on engagement in sports was observed to be true supporting the findings from (3740). However, in contrast to the findings in (3742), laissez-faire leadership exhibited moderate positive correlation with engagement in sports, resulting in hypotheses H3 to be determined as false. These contrasting results may be due to the prevalence of laissez-faire and paternalistic leadership styles in Saudi Arabia since early childhood in different contexts (62, 63).

However, several barriers including lack of time, safety, parental support, policies, access to sport and PA facilities, and transportation, as well as climate were observed for participation in physical activities among females in Saudi Arabia (64). Furthermore, the weekly physical activity levels of Saudi citizens aged above 15 years was identified to be 13% in 2015, 19% in 2019, which is very low compared to the target of 40% set by the country, indicating poor physical activity levels among citizens (65). Therefore, there is a need for strong support, effective and efficient policies from the government to foster the change in attitudes of the people in society towards the participation of females in physical activities and sports. The initiatives led by Vision 2030 has contributed to the increase in female participation in physical activities and sports in Saudi Arabi. For instance, establishment of female sports clubs, easing regulations for female participation in sports, deploying an operational process for sustainable and inclusive sports ecosystems launched by HRH Princess Reema bint Bandar Al Saud, have greatly contributed to the female participation in sports in the last few years (66). The changes being introduced recently could be the factor affecting the differences in the younger groups perceptions about transformational leadership styles as observed from the findings. Studies (30, 67) have also highlighted the importance and the need for workshops, training and support, motivation in educational institutions such as schools and universities to foster the change in attitudes of the people ad increase the participation in sports and physical activities. As a result, younger students may increase their participation, and the need for motivation may be slightly replaced with the need for stimulation, influence, and consideration.

In Saudi Arabia, only 17.4% of the population are practicing sports or physical activity for more than 150 min a week (67), which is less compared to 32% in European Union (68) and 22% in the USA (69). Few individuals participate in sports such as football (20.5%), swimming (5.3%), running (3.7%), and Swedish exercises (a system of active and passive exercises that use different muscles and joints of the body) (8.5%) in Saudi Arabia (70), indicating low engagement levels. Therefore, there is an urgent need to improve sports engagement in the Kingdom.

Based on the discussion, a framework model is presented in Figure 1 to promote the participation and engagement of females in sports in Saudi Arabia.

FIGURE 1
www.frontiersin.org

Figure 1. Framework model for promoting participation and engagement of Saudi females in sports.

The framework has seven main components, which are explained below:

1. Inspirational Vision:The first step in the transformational leadership model is to establish an inspiring vision that emphasizes the value and benefits of female participation in sports. This vision should be communicated effectively to various stakeholders, including government officials, sports organizations, community leaders, and families. By illustrating the positive impact of women's involvement in sports on individual well-being, health, personal growth, and national development, the model aims to generate enthusiasm and support.

2. Leadership Development:To drive the transformation, it is crucial to develop a strong cohort of transformational leaders who are passionate about promoting female participation in sports. These leaders should be selected from diverse backgrounds, including sports, academia, government, and community organizations. Specialized leadership development programs can be designed to enhance their knowledge, skills, and understanding of gender issues in sports. The training should focus on empowering leaders to challenge societal norms, advocate for change, and create opportunities for female athletes.

3. Inclusive Infrastructure:Creating a supportive and inclusive infrastructure is essential for increasing female participation in sports. This includes building sports facilities that cater to the specific needs of women, such as women-only gyms, swimming pools, and sports clubs. Additionally, promoting accessible and safe transportation options for female athletes will help overcome logistical barriers. Collaboration with sports organizations and private sector entities can be encouraged to invest in infrastructure development, ensuring it aligns with the specific requirements of female athletes.

4. Skill Development and Education:To encourage women to engage in sports, it is vital to provide comprehensive skill development and educational opportunities. Establishing sports academies and training programs exclusively for women, facilitated by experienced coaches and mentors, will foster talent, and empower aspiring athletes. Furthermore, incorporating physical education programs in schools and universities that prioritize gender equality in sports can help shape positive attitudes towards female participation from a young age.

5. Cultural Change and Awareness:Addressing deep-rooted cultural barriers is crucial for long-term success. The transformational leadership model aims to initiate a cultural shift by promoting awareness campaigns and engaging influential figures, such as religious leaders, celebrities, and media personalities. These campaigns should highlight the accomplishments and success stories of female athletes, challenge gender stereotypes, and emphasize the importance of equal opportunities in sports. Collaborations with media outlets can be established to ensure widespread coverage of women's sports events and achievements.

6. Supportive Policies and Regulations:To ensure sustainability, supportive policies and regulations need to be implemented. Government entities and sports organizations should work together to formulate policies that eliminate gender-based discrimination, provide equal funding and resources for female sports programs, and enforce strict measures against gender-based harassment and violence in sports settings. These policies should also mandate gender diversity on decision-making bodies to ensure female voices are heard.

7. Evaluation and Continuous Improvement:Regular evaluation and feedback mechanisms are essential to assess the effectiveness of the transformational leadership model. By collecting data on female participation rates, athlete satisfaction, infrastructure utilization, and public perception, areas of improvement can be identified and adjustments made accordingly. This ongoing assessment will ensure the model remains adaptable and responsive to evolving needs and challenges.

Implications and limitations

There are few limitations which can be identified in this study. Firstly, the study population only focuses on the female sports persons, and does not include female students from school or universities, as a result, the findings in this study should be generalized with care. Secondly, it is important that the results of this study be viewed and generalized with care as there may be inevitable and unaccountable self-selection bias in the data.

There are various implications of the findings derived from this study. The findings in this study can be used by the decision-makers in developing strategies for attracting the female population in engaging physical activity by deploying leaders with transformational leadership, especially those who can motivate effectively. Secondly, these findings can be used to improve the quality of life of Saudi residents by increasing sports engagement, as studies have observed various health benefits such as improved physical and mental health (71, 72) and reduced risk of chronic illnesses (73, 74). Thirdly, this study contributes to the lack of female sports research study in Saudi Arabia by providing significance of the relationship between leadership styles and sports engagement among females in Saudi Arabia.

Conclusion

Understanding the relationship between leadership styles and sports engagement among females in Saudi Arabia is important because of the achievement of Vision 2030 goals to increase female participation in all activities and to achieve sustainable sports system. However, the existence of various barriers for female participation highlighted the need for adopting inspirational motivation approach reflecting the transformational leadership practice by the sports managers. Thus, the findings indicated that transformational leadership is an effective approach to increase female participation and engagement in sports in Saudi Arabia.

Data availability statement

The raw data supporting the conclusions of this article will be made available by the author, without undue reservation.

Author contributions

The author confirms being the sole contributor of this work and has approved it for publication.

Funding

The author declares that no financial support was received for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.

Conflict of interest

The author declares that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.

Publisher's note

All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article, or claim that may be made by its manufacturer, is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.

References

1. Chowdhury S, Mok D, Leenen L. Transformation of health care and the new model of care in Saudi Arabia: kingdom’s vision 2030. J Med Life. (2021) 14(3):347–54. doi: 10.25122/jml-2021-0070

PubMed Abstract | CrossRef Full Text | Google Scholar

2. Caspersen CJ, Powell KE, Christenson GM. Physical activity, exercise, and physical fitness: definitions and distinctions for health-related research. Public Health Rep. (1985) 100(2):126–31.3920711

PubMed Abstract | Google Scholar

3. Das P, Horton R. Physical activity—time to take it seriously and regularly. Lancet. (2016) 388(10051):1254–55. doi: 10.1016/S0140-6736(16)31070-4

PubMed Abstract | CrossRef Full Text | Google Scholar

4. Hills AP, Street SJ, Byrne NM. Physical activity and health: “what is old is new again”. Adv Food Nutr Res. (2015) 75:77–95. doi: 10.1016/bs.afnr.2015.06.001

PubMed Abstract | CrossRef Full Text | Google Scholar

5. Haskell WL, Lee IM, Pate RR, Powell KE, Blair SN, Franklin BA, et al. Physical activity and public health: updated recommendation for adults from the American college of sports medicine and the American heart association. Circulation. (2007) 116(9):1081–93. doi: 10.1161/CIRCULATIONAHA.107.185649

PubMed Abstract | CrossRef Full Text | Google Scholar

6. NIH Consensus Development Panel. Physical activity and cardiovascular health: NIH consensus development panel on physical activity and cardiovascular health. JAMA. (1996) 276(3):241–6. doi: 10.1001/jama.1996.03540030075036

PubMed Abstract | CrossRef Full Text | Google Scholar

7. Downs AM. Physical activity and cardiovascular health: a national consensus. Cardiopulm Phys Ther J. (1999) 10(4):157. doi: 10.1097/01823246-199910040-00017

CrossRef Full Text | Google Scholar

8. Carter MI, Hinton PS. Physical activity and bone health. Mo Med. (2014) 111(1):59–64.24645301

PubMed Abstract | Google Scholar

9. World Cancer Research Fund/American Institute for Cancer Research. Physical activity and the risk of cancer. Continuous Update Project. 2018 [online] Available at: https://www.wcrf.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/Physical-activity.pdf (Accessed October 22, 2023).

Google Scholar

10. Mok A, Khaw KT, Luben R, Wareham N, Brage S. Physical activity trajectories and mortality: population based cohort study. Br Med J. (2019) 365:l2323. doi: 10.1136/bmj.l2323

CrossRef Full Text | Google Scholar

11. Afzal N, Omar A. The Saudi vision 2030: reproduction of women’s empowerment in the Saudi press: a corpus-based critical discourse analysis. Regist J. (2021) 14(1):121–38. doi: 10.18326/rgt.v14i1.121-138

CrossRef Full Text | Google Scholar

12. Fakehy M, Alfadhil A, Hassan Y, Alotaibi H. Empowering Saudi women for sports as a response to KSA vision 2030: attitudes of undergraduate female students toward practicing sports. J Sports Psychol. (2021) 30(2):53–66. Available at: https://mail.rpd-online.com/index.php/rpd/article/view/385

Google Scholar

13. Alghamdi AKH, Aldossari A. Healthy lifestyle, physical education, and sports for Saudi women. Phys Educ Sport Pedagogy. (2022):1–16. doi: 10.1080/17408989.2022.2123465

CrossRef Full Text | Google Scholar

14. Kamaruddin Z, Oseni UA. Between ideals and reality: Violence against women and the real image of women in Islam. Vrindavan, UP: The Institute of Oriental Philosophy. (2013) Available at: http://malrep.uum.edu.my/rep/Record/my.iium.irep.36789 (Accessed July 16, 2022).

15. OECD. Gender, institutions and development database. Available at: https://www.genderindex.org/wp-content/uploads/files/datasheets/2019/SA.pdf (Accessed July 20, 2022).

16. Human Rights Watch. Saudi Arabia: 10 reasons why women flee. Available at: https://www.hrw.org/news/2019/01/30/saudi-arabia-10-reasons-why-women-flee (Accessed July 20, 2022).

17. Al-Dubayan A. Gender as symbolic capital and symbolic violence in leadership: the context of Saudi leaders [PhD Thesis]. London, UK: Brunel University (2021).

18. Luisa MGM, Lopez de D'Amico R, Jahromi KM. Women and sport in Asia. London: Routledge (2023).

19. Almuawi MSA. Women in sport leadership in Saudi Arabia. J Am Acad Res. (2021) 9(2):21–7.

Google Scholar

20. Dagkas S, Benn T, Jawad H. Multiple voices: improving participation of muslim girls in physical education and school sport. Sport Educ Soc. (2011) 16(2):223–39. doi: 10.1080/13573322.2011.540427

CrossRef Full Text | Google Scholar

21. Al-Ruwaili MD. Females and sport in Saudi Arabia: an analysis of the relationship between sport, region, education, gender, and religion. [PhD Thesis]. University of Sterling (2020). Available at: https://dspace.stir.ac.uk/handle/1893/31239 (Retrieved on July 10, 2023).

22. Quintas A, Bustamante J-C, Pradas F, Castellar C. Psychological effects of gamified didactics with exergames in physical education at primary schools: results from a natural experiment. Comput Educ. (2020) 152:103874. doi: 10.1016/j.compedu.2020.103874

CrossRef Full Text | Google Scholar

23. Senne JA. Examination of gender equity and female participation in sport. Sports J. (2016). Available at: http://thesportjournal.org/article/examination-of-gender-equity-and-female-participation-in-sport/ (Accessed July 10, 2023).

Google Scholar

24. Harun FN, Ismail MM. Saudi women participation in sports: critical analysis of presupposition strategies in arabic online news discourse: penglibatan wanita Saudi dalam sukan: analisa wacana kritikal dalam strategi persediaan melalui perbincangan berita atas talian bahasa arab. Sains Insani. (2020) 5(2):129–40. doi: 10.33102/sainsinsani.vol5no2.178

CrossRef Full Text | Google Scholar

25. Razak MTA, Omar-Fauzee MS, Abd-Latif R. The perspective of arabic muslim women toward sport participation. J Asia Pacif Stud. (2010) 1(2):364–77.

Google Scholar

26. Fallatah BA, Hong SP, Basim AN. Recreational physical activity participation among women in Saudi Arabia. J Hum Sport Exerc. (2019) 14(Proc1):S84–91. doi: 10.14198/jhse.2019.14.Proc1.10

CrossRef Full Text | Google Scholar

27. Marwat MK, Syed Z, Waseem M, Khattak H, BiBi S. Sport performance of muslim women and different constraints in their way to participation in sport. Int J Humanit Soc Sci. (2014) 4(10):208–18.

Google Scholar

28. Ohali HH AL. The attitude of university students to participating in sports for all in Saudi Arabia. J Educ Soc Res. (2020) 10(6):202. doi: 10.36941/jesr-2020-0120

CrossRef Full Text | Google Scholar

29. Albujulaya N, Stevinson C, Piggin J. Physical activity policy in Saudi Arabia: analysis of progress and challenges. Int J Sport Policy Politics. (2023):1–16. doi: 10.1080/19406940.2023.2228812

CrossRef Full Text | Google Scholar

30. Sayyd MS, Zainuddin ZAB, Diyana ZBAG, Altowerqi Z. Sports activities for undergraduate students in Saudi Arabia universities: a systematic literature review. Int J Hum Mov Sports Sci. (2020) 8(1):1–16. doi: 10.13189/saj.2020.080101

CrossRef Full Text | Google Scholar

31. Breevaart K, Bakker A, Hetland J, Demerouti E, Olsen OK, Espevik R. Daily transactional and transformational leadership and daily employee engagement. J Occup Organ Psychol. (2013) 87(1):138–57. doi: 10.1111/joop.12041

CrossRef Full Text | Google Scholar

32. Schmitt A, Den Hartog DN, Belschak FD. Transformational leadership and proactive work behaviour: a moderated mediation model including work engagement and job strain. J Occup Organ Psychol. (2016) 89(3):588–610. doi: 10.1111/joop.12143

CrossRef Full Text | Google Scholar

33. Tims M, Bakker AB, Xanthopoulou D. Do transformational leaders enhance their followers’ daily work engagement? Leadersh Q. (2011) 22(1):121–31. doi: 10.1016/j.leaqua.2010.12.011

CrossRef Full Text | Google Scholar

34. Stenling A, Tafvelin S. Transformational leadership and well-being in sports: the mediating role of need satisfaction. J Appl Sport Psychol. (2014) 26(2):182–96. doi: 10.1080/10413200.2013.819392

CrossRef Full Text | Google Scholar

35. Arthur CA, Bastardoz N, Eklund R. Transformational leadership in sport: current status and future directions. Curr Opin Psychol. (2017) 16:78–83. doi: 10.1016/j.copsyc.2017.04.001

PubMed Abstract | CrossRef Full Text | Google Scholar

36. Beauchamp MR, Morton KL. Transformational teaching and physical activity engagement among adolescents. Exerc Sport Sci Rev. (2011) 39(3):133–9. doi: 10.1097/JES.0b013e31822153e7

PubMed Abstract | CrossRef Full Text | Google Scholar

37. Bray SR, Millen JA, Eidsness J, Leuzinger C. The effects of leadership style and exercise program choreography on enjoyment and intentions to exercise. Psychol Sport Exerc. (2005) 6(4):415–25. doi: 10.1016/j.psychsport.2004.07.003

CrossRef Full Text | Google Scholar

38. Jia Z-R, Jiang Z. Effects of physical education teachers’ leadership styles and classroom climate on learning motivation for basketball course. EURASIA J Math Sci Technol Educ. (2018) 14(4):1351–7. doi: 10.29333/ejmste/81296

CrossRef Full Text | Google Scholar

39. Sumarsono RN, Setawan E, Ryanto AKY, Mahardhika DB, Nemeth Z. Investigate relationship between grit, coach leadership style with sports motivation and athlete satisfaction while training after COVID-19. Stud Sport. (2023) 1:158–68. doi: 10.5817/StS2023-1-14

CrossRef Full Text | Google Scholar

40. Moreno AR, Roldán Bravo MI, García-Guiu C, Lozano LM, Extremera Pacheco N, Navarro-Carrillo G, et al. Effects of emerging leadership styles on engagement—a mediation analysis in a military context. Leadersh Organ Dev J. (2021) 42(5):665–89. doi: 10.1108/LODJ-05-2020-0222

CrossRef Full Text | Google Scholar

41. Martínez-Moreno A, Cavas-García F, Díaz-Suárez A. Leadership style in amateur club sports: a key element in strategic management. Sustainability. (2021) 13(2):730. doi: 10.3390/su13020730

CrossRef Full Text | Google Scholar

42. Ajeigbe IY, Owolabi AY, Alansinsin S. Relationship between leadership styles of sports administrators and orgranisational development in Ilorin metropolis. Indones J Sport Manag. (2021) 1(1):11–9. doi: 10.31949/ijsm.v1i1.933

CrossRef Full Text | Google Scholar

43. Schlossman D. Multifactor leadership questionnaire (MLQ). Available at: https://www.medinfodoc.net/uploads/1/4/0/8/14081633/med_inf_481_lmi_example.pdf (Retrieved on December 03, 2021).

44. Guillén F, Martínez-Alvarado JR. The sport engagement scale: an adaptation of the Utrecht work engagement scale (UWES) for the sports environment. Univer Psychol. (2014) 13(3):975–84. doi: 10.11144/Javeriana.UPSY13-3.sesa

CrossRef Full Text | Google Scholar

45. Taber KS. The use of Cronbach’s alpha when developing and reporting research instruments in science education. Res Sci Educ. (2018) 48:1273–96. doi: 10.1007/s11165-016-9602-2

CrossRef Full Text | Google Scholar

46. Saunders M, Lewis P, Thornhill A. Research methods for business students. 7th ed. Nueva York: Pearson Education (2016).

47. Global Media Insight. Saudi Arabia population statistics 2023 [Infographics]. Available at: https://www.globalmediainsight.com/blog/saudi-arabia-population-statistics/#:∼:text=In%20Saudi%20Arabia%2C%20the%20male,i.e.%2042.24%25%20of%20the%20population (Accessed July 10, 2023).

48. Cochran WG. Sampling techniques. 2nd ed. New York: John Wiley and Sons, Inc. (1963).

49. Bass BM, Bass R. The bass handbook of leadership: theory, research, and managerial applications. 4th ed. New York: Free Press (2008).

50. Al-Yami M, Galdas P, Watson R. Leadership style and organisational commitment among nursing staff in Saudi Arabia. J Nurs Manag. (2018) 26(5):531–9. doi: 10.1111/jonm.12578

PubMed Abstract | CrossRef Full Text | Google Scholar

51. Abualrub R, Alghamdi M. The impact of leadership styles on nurses’ satisfaction and intention to stay among Saudi nurses. J Nurs Manag. (2012) 20:668–78. doi: 10.1111/j.1365-2834.2011.01320.x

PubMed Abstract | CrossRef Full Text | Google Scholar

52. Al-Ahmadi H. Challenges facing women leaders in Saudi Arabia. Hum Resour Dev Int. (2011) 14:149–66. doi: 10.1080/13678868.2011.558311

CrossRef Full Text | Google Scholar

53. Alotaibi FT. Saudi women and leadership: empowering women as leaders in higher education institutions. Open J Leadersh. (2020) 9:156–77. doi: 10.4236/ojl.2020.93010

CrossRef Full Text | Google Scholar

54. Tashkandi H. Princess becomes first Saudi woman to head sports club. Available at: https://www.arabnews.com/node/1529416/sport (Accessed July 11, 2023).

55. Arab News. Staab appointed director of football; Lappi-Seppala takes over as coach of Saudi women’s team. Available at: https://www.arabnews.com/node/2250541/sport (Accessed July 11, 2023).

56. Goodyear VA, Skinner B, McKeever J, Griffiths M. The influence of online physical activity interventions on children and young people’s engagement with physical activity: a systematic review. Phys Educ Sport Pedagogy. (2021) 28(1):94–108. doi: 10.1080/17408989.2021.1953459

CrossRef Full Text | Google Scholar

57. Dela Cueva Panganiban T. The role of interest in athletics in promoting students’ home-based physical activities engagement amidst pandemic. J SPORTIF. (2022) 8(3):150–65. doi: 10.29407/js_unpgri.v8i3.19580

CrossRef Full Text | Google Scholar

58. Thomas AM, Beaudry KM, Gammage KL, Klentrou P, Josse AR. Physical activity, sport participation, and perceived barriers to engagement in first-year Canadian university students. J Phys Act Health. (2019) 16(6):437–46. doi: 10.1123/jpah.2018-0198

PubMed Abstract | CrossRef Full Text | Google Scholar

59. Roe A, Blikstad-Balas M, Dalland CP. The impact of COVID-19 and homeschooling on students’ engagement with physical activity. Front Sports Act Living. (2021) 2:1–13. doi: 10.3389/fspor.2020.589227

CrossRef Full Text | Google Scholar

60. Martinek T, Holland B, Seo G. Understanding physical activity engagement in students: skills, values, and hope. RICYDE. (2019) 15(55):88–101. doi: 10.5232/ricyde2019.05506

CrossRef Full Text | Google Scholar

61. Westerbeek H, Eime R. The physical activity and sport participation framework—a policy model toward being physically active across the lifespan. Front Sports Act Living. (2021) 3:1–11. doi: 10.3389/fspor.2021.608593

CrossRef Full Text | Google Scholar

62. Altheeb SA. Leadership style and employee motivation: a study of Saudi Arabian work environment. Propós Represent. (2020) 8(SPE2):1–12. doi: 10.20511/pyr2020.v8nspe2.661

CrossRef Full Text | Google Scholar

63. Alalshaikh SA. Leadership styles in Saudi Arabian universities: comparison based on educational background. [Theses and dissertations]. (2017). p. 899. Available at: https://digitalcommons.pepperdine.edu/etd/899

64. Al-Nuaim A, Safi A. Factors influencing Saudi youth physical activity participation: a qualitative study based on the social ecological model. Int J Environ Res Public Health. (2023) 20(10):5785. doi: 10.3390/ijerph20105785

PubMed Abstract | CrossRef Full Text | Google Scholar

65. Shahab MK, Villalba MP, Kossaifi E. Women and sport in Saudi Arabia. In: D'Amico RLD, Jahromi MK, Guinto MLM, editor. Women and sport in Asia. New York: Routledge (2021). p. 177–90.

66. Sayyd SM, Zainuddin ZAB, Asnaldi A, Nahary AM. Management of sports facilities and equipment in physical activities according to Saudi vision 2030. J Mens Sana. (2022) 7(2):118–25. doi: 10.24036/MensSana.07022022.15

CrossRef Full Text | Google Scholar

67. General Authority of Statistics. GASTAT: (17, 40%) of population are practicing sports for more than 150 min on a weekly basis. Available at: https://www.stats.gov.sa/en/news/315 (Accessed October 16, 2023).

69. U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Time spent in leisure and sports activities. (2022). Available at: https://www.bls.gov/opub/ted/2023/time-spent-in-leisure-and-sports-activities-2022.htm (Accessed October 16, 2023).

70. Statista. Share of individuals practicing different types of sports in Saudi Arabia in 2019. Available at: https://www.statista.com/statistics/1313751/saudi-arabia-sports-types-practiced-by-people/ (Accessed October 16, 2023).

71. Snedden TR, Scerpella J, Kliethermes SA, Norman RS, Blyholder L, Sanfilippo J, et al. Sport and physical activity level impacts health-related quality of life among collegiate students. Am J Health Promot. (2019) 33(5):675–82. doi: 10.1177/0890117118817715

PubMed Abstract | CrossRef Full Text | Google Scholar

72. Harbec M-J, Goldfield G, Pagani LS. Healthy body, healthy mind: long-term mutual benefits between classroom and sport engagement in children from ages 6 to 12 years. Prev Med Rep. (2021) 24:101581. doi: 10.1016/j.pmedr.2021.101581

PubMed Abstract | CrossRef Full Text | Google Scholar

73. Schwartz J, Rhodes R, Bredin SSD, Oh P, Warburton DER. Effectiveness of approaches to increase physical activity behavior to prevent chronic disease in adults: a brief commentary. J Clin Med. (2019) 8(3):295. doi: 10.3390/jcm8030295

PubMed Abstract | CrossRef Full Text | Google Scholar

74. Shen S, Suzuki K, Kohmura Y, Fuku N, Someya Y, Naito H. Engagement in different sport disciplines during university years and risk of locomotive syndrome in older age: j-fit+ study. Environ Health Prevent Med. (2021) 26(1):26–36. doi: 10.1186/s12199-021-00958-w

CrossRef Full Text | Google Scholar

Keywords: Saudi Arabia, participation, engagement, females, sports, barriers, leadership styles, transformational leadership

Citation: Alruwaili MD (2023) A leadership-based framework for improving Saudi Arabian female participation in sports. Front. Sports Act. Living 5:1283842. doi: 10.3389/fspor.2023.1283842

Received: 27 August 2023; Accepted: 18 October 2023;
Published: 3 November 2023.

Edited by:

Mahfoud Amara, Qatar University, Qatar

Reviewed by:

Maura Pilotti, Prince Mohammad Bin Fahd University, Saudi Arabia
Nadim Nassif, Notre Dame University—Louaize, Lebanon

© 2023 Alruwaili. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) and the copyright owner(s) are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

*Correspondence: Mamdouh Dawish Alruwaili mdsalruwail@ju.edu.sa

Disclaimer: All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.