Structuring youth sport for development: integrating life skills in NTB Basketball Leagues

Introduction: Life skills do not naturally transfer from sport to non-sport contexts without deliberate, structured interventions. Objective: This study aims to examine the impact of structured life skill integration in youth basketball, exploring different intervention models to enhance life skill development. Methodology: A quasi-experimental design was employed with a pretest-posttest non-equivalent group format. Participants (72 youth basketball athletes aged 12–18) were purposively assigned to three groups: full integration (Group I), partial integration (Group II), and a control group (Group III). The intervention lasted 13 weeks and involved structured life skill education through training and/or competition. The Life Skill Scale for Sport (LSSS) was used to measure life skill development, with pre- and post-test data analyzed using statistical tests such as ANOVA. Results: The findings revealed that Group I (full integration) showed the greatest improvement in life skills, with significant gains in teamwork, leadership, emotional regulation, and communication. Group II (partial integration) also demonstrated significant improvements, but to a lesser extent. The control group (no integration) showed modest improvements, but their gains were significantly smaller compared to the experimental groups. Statistical analyses confirmed that full integration of life skills during both training and competition produced the strongest outcomes in life skill development. Discussion: The findings highlight the importance of intentional, contextually embedded life skill programming in sports and offer practical implications for coaches, policymakers, and sport program designers. Conclusions: The results suggest that sport, when aligned with PYD goals and structured interventions, can be a transformative environment for youth development.