Cultural sensitivity and sports: a case study of college students

Background and Study Aim. Sports participation plays a significant role in promoting physical and mental well-being. However, in many conservative societies, cultural sensitivity greatly impacts women's engagement in physical activities. The aim of the study is to explore the impact of cultural sensitivity on the sports participation of Muslim women college students in the Sepahijala district. Material and Methods. A total of 606 Muslim women, aged 18–24 years and enrolled in government degree colleges, were selected through purposive sampling. The Women’s Sports Problem Inventory (WOSPI) was used to collect data on four dimensions of constraints: parental, community environmental, traditional and customary, and personal. The tool had strong reliability (Cronbach’s α= 0.754). Descriptive statistics were computed using SPSS Version 26, and a one-way ANOVA was conducted to examine differences in mean constraint scores across dimensions. Assumption checks for normality and homogeneity of variances were performed using the Shapiro–Wilk and Levene’s tests. Results. Among the four constraint dimensions, community environmental factors were reported as the most significant barrier (1.902 ± 0.269), followed closely by traditional and customary constraints (1.889 ± 0.304), and personal constraints (1.843 ± 0.321). Parental constraints were rated lowest (1.734 ± 0.394). The ANOVA test showed no statistically significant difference among the four constraint groups (F(3, 36) = 0.551, p = 0.651), suggesting that all domains equally contribute to hindering participation. Conclusions. The findings underscore the importance of understanding how cultural and social contexts influence women's participation in sports. Addressing culturally rooted constraints requires approaches that are sensitive to community norms, religious values, and gender-specific expectations. Insights gained from this study may inform the development of inclusive and contextually appropriate strategies to support female participation in physical activities within conservative environments.