At a young age, most children look for specific people that they would idolize. By “ idolize,” we mean that they would follow their steps, do what they do, and act like them. They would pattern their behavior and their way of living to that of the one they idolize, and in some cases, they even dress and talk like them.
These people are regarded by children as their role models. During the stages of psychological, social, and emotional development, the youth often get confused with many things that are happening with their lives. They might get confused with their peers, with school, and even with their parents. As such, these are the times when they seek for a wonder wall. A wall they can lean on to and regard as the ultimate guide for living their lives while they are still young, and these are the role models. Usually, role models are popular personalities.
These role models are usually chosen from the wide variety of popular figures that children see on television or in billboards. The youth usually base their choice of a role model on the similarities that they have, particularly with regards to their hobbies and interests. Aside from artists in the show business and those from the music industry, most role models of children come from the field of sports. Athletes are common role models for kids. Most of the time, the youth chooses their models on the basis of their excellence to the sport.
They watch all their games, observe their moods and how they play. They pay attention to their behavior and, oftentimes, pattern theirs with that of their role models. As such, this requires such athletes to behave well and carry good values. In the field, in basketball courts, or anywhere where the sports game will be conducted, the athlete-role model should show moral conduct while upholding inspiring values for those who idolize him.
Foremost of this is the ability to handle pressure and obstacles so as to attain an ultimate dream- which is to win. When athletes do all they can to win in a game- in a fair way- they exhibit perseverance and determination. When their fans see such act, there is a higher possibility that they will adapt these values that both the athletes and the youth should carry. Moreover, the athletes can show sportsmanship and camaraderie when they are in the game. These traits teach children about team work, coordination, and cooperation, and these are highly important for a child’s day-to-day socialization processes. However, there are some cases when athletes exhibit negative traits that their fans should not imitate.
A particular and popular example is Mike Tyson, who is a convicted rapist. He may be a good boxer but he has a record of violence towards women and fellow boxers and that makes him unqualified to be a role model. It was a decade ago when basketball hotshot Charles Barkley stated that he was not a role model. And, apparently, no one can force him to be one; no one can actually force any athlete to become a role model. However, we should all take into consideration that though athletes cannot be forced to be role models, they still end up as one because they excel in their sports. In such cases, the only thing that we could do is to encourage these athletes to exhibit positive traits and values, while at the same time, provide sufficient guidance to children who might follow their footsteps.
We should be able to orient the youth about which values to absorb from their role models, and which should they ward off.
