In the mid-nineteenth century, physical activity in the form of sports activities was adopted in the English public schools. They were the first to use sports activities as a deterrent to delinquency and as a mechanism for social control. It acted as a substitute for the stea

Deviance usually occurs with the rejection of social norms; however another portion of deviance that has become a growing concern in sport today does not involve the rejection of social norms. Instead, many problem behaviours are created when athletes care too much for, accept too completely, and over conform to what has become the value system of athletes, also known as sport ethic (Hughes & Coakley, 1991). Positive deviance deals with everything from cheating and burn-out to performance enhancing drugs, which violates the true spirit of sport. These are very serious concerns among sociologists today that must be dealt with. They usually occur at the competitive level of sport due to enormous amount of pressure from society to be the best (Eitzen, 1988). If society can remove this must win attitude among athletes and emphasize the importance of the desirable characteristics that sport provides, than sport could prove to be one of the ultimate weapons in fighting juvenile delinquency.

According to the strain theory, delinquency may also occur among juveniles when youth accept culturally prescribed goals of success and find that they are unable to achieve them through legal means. Delinquency is often an expression of frustration felt against school. Often students are measured against achievement criteria, which may be unattainable (Segrave, 1983). McElroy (1980) states, “students who are not exposed to the traditional predictors of achievement are uniquely exposed to opportunities through their sport participation” (p. 115). Interscholastic athletics can act as a deterrent to delinquency. An athlete, especially a successful one, usually finds school far less frustrating than a non-athlete. “Rather, school is a source of success-experience and a positive public and private evaluation of self” (Segrave, 1983, p. 187).

Several psychologists and sociologists have proposed that delinquency can often be a response to an inadequate self-concept or a lack of self-esteem. According to the personality theory, sports can enhance an individual’s feelings of dignity and self-worth and often

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