Sports and Delinquency
CAT 2018 Slot 2 · VARC · Medium · Paragraph Summary
The passage is followed by four summaries. Choose the option that best captures the author's position.
The early optimism about sport's deterrent effects on delinquency was premature as researchers failed to find any consistent relationships between sports participation and deviance. As the initial studies were based upon cross-sectional data and the effects captured were short-term, it was problematic to test and verify the temporal sequencing of events suggested by the deterrence theory. The correlation between sport and delinquency could not be disentangled from class and cultural variables known. Choosing individuals to play sports in the first place was problematic, which became more acute in the subsequent decades as researchers began to document just how closely sports participation was linked to social class indicators.
- A.
There is a direct relationship between sport participation and delinquency but it needs more empirical evidence.
- B.
Contradicting the previous optimism, latter researchers have proved that there is no consistent relationship between sports participation and deviance.
- C.
Statistical and empirical weaknesses stand in the way of inferring any relationship between sports participation and deviance.
- D.
Sports participation is linked to class and cultural variables such as education, income, and social capital.
C
Explanation
The paragraph explains that researchers failed to find any consistent relationship between sports participation and deviance because of (a) short-term cross-sectional data (statistical weaknesses) and (b) inability to disentangle correlation from class and cultural variables (empirical weaknesses). Option C captures both key points.
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