The purpose of this study was to determine whether participation in youth sports influenced middle school students' level of emotional intelligence competencies. The study was conducted to examine the relationship between youth sports participation and emotional intelligence competency. These two variables had not yet been effectively examined. The study used an instrument, The Life Effectiveness Questionnaire, to measure an individuals emotional intelligence and participants self-reported their previous youth sports participation. The test scores were averaged and cross-referenced with participant's questionnaire results. A two-tailed t-test was used to test for significance. The results were used to test the five hypotheses and draw conclusions. The most significant conclusion from the study was that middle school students that participated in youth sports had a higher emotional intelligence competency than those that did not participate in youth sports. Furthermore, male middle school students that participated in youth sports had a higher emotional intelligence competency than female students that participated in youth sports. The remaining hypotheses were inconclusive due to the smallness of the research sample. This study was an excellent pilot for future studies in the area of youth sports participation and the development of emotional intelligence competency. Recommendations for future studies include increasing the sample size in both breadth and depth and utilizing a greater variety of youth sport opportunities as choices for male and female participants.
