Navigating the urban terrain: how practitioners adapt sport for development programs amid external challenges

Sport for development (SFD) programs can be influenced by factors that stem from the environment in which they operate. However, the influence of factors within the U.S. urban context on SFD programming have not been explored. The purpose of this study was to investigate how societal factors may affect the design, delivery, and evaluation of urban SFD programs. Utilizing a comparative case study, the questions of this study were to (a) understand what factors SFD practitioners consider when designing, delivering, and evaluating their programs in an urban setting and (b) examine how these factors influence the design, delivery, and evaluation of the SFD programs. This study was guided by the Sport for Development Theory (SFDT) and the socio-ecological model. Two nonprofit organizations in Chicago, IL were part of this study. Data were collected through six interviews with SFD practitioners, and documents were collected from each organization. Study results indicated that SFD practitioners considered the neighborhood demographics, community violence, global events, availability of public space, and the public school system in their programming. The findings highlight the need for training SFD practitioners to consider the environment in their programming.

Name thesis:degree_name

Ph.D.

Level thesis:degree_level

Dissertation

Discipline thesis:degree_discipline

Recreation, Sport, and Tourism

Grantor

University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign

Year dc:date

2025

Author dc:creator

• Hill, Patrick

Contributors dc:contributor

• Sato, Mikihiro
• Fernandez, Mariela
• Stodolska, Monika
• Chakraborty, Arnab
• Hopson, Rodney

• sport for development organizations
• urban environment
• sport management
• sport for development leadership

Statement dc:rights

• Copyright Patrick Hill 2025

Language dc:language

en

Handle dc:identifier

https://hdl.handle.net/2142/132635

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:www.ideals.illinois.edu:2142/132635