The Mentality of Sports Perception in Youth at the National Level in Albania

Sport represents a formative experience for the psycho-physical and social development of a human being, especially for teenagers. The purpose of this study is to analyze the motivation for practicing recreational sports by the youth of the Republic of Albania, based on the study of two variables: gender and regional origin. The geographical division of Albania is: North, Central Albania and South. The study included 821 high school students aged average 16-18 old; 307 Male & 514 Female. Included in the study is 1 school in 3 different cities in North, Central Albania and South of the Republic of Albania. The applied scientific instrument is the standardized questionnaire ATPA-D, which serves to measure the motivation for practicing recreational sports. The most important motives for young Albanians are: health, recreation and social experience. For male, social experience is a dominant motive, compared to female who choose health. Aesthetics is a more important motive for southern women, compared to northern and central female. Northern male prefers competitiveness more as a motive, unlike male in the other two regions. Also, competitiveness results as a more important motive for female from the north and center, compared to female from the south. Social experience is a favorite motive for men in all regions, but more so for northern male. This study confirms socialization theories and the cultural stereotype that male should be physically strong (muscular build) and competitive, while female should be aesthetically acceptable (in good physical shape). The motives for practicing recreational sports are almost similar for young people at the national level, regardless of regional origin, which is not a determining motivational factor in the choices of young Albanians.