Cross-Cultural Expressions of Health Indices as Sports Values among Adolescents in Two Anglophone West African Countries: Ghana and Nigeria

Abstract

This study investigated adolescents’ expressions of health indices as sports values in two Anglophone West African countries (Ghana and Nigeria). Three research hypotheses were tested. The population consisted of all the male and female secondary school adolescents in Ghana and Nigeria. The study used the descriptive survey research design, multi-stage sampling techniqu e, structured questionnaire and a sample size of 2,000 participants (One thousand each from both countries) Parametric statistics of t-test was used to test the hypotheses at an alpha level of 0.05.For pre-test, Cronbach alpha coefficient was used, which gave a value of 0.87 and 0.86 and Sports Participation Scale gave (r=0.69 for Ghana) and (r=0.71 for Nigeria). The study revealed that there was no significant difference in expressions of all the indices tested; therapeutic, physical fitness and health security and safety maintenance. It was therefore, recommended that government at all levels should make sporting facilities available and accessible to adolescents by constructing new ones and rehabilitating old ones, parents should encourage their children and wards to participate in sports by providing assistance in form of monetary, equipment among others that will sustain their interest and facilitate their participation, sports administrators should be interested in the development of sports by finding means to promote it rather that working towards its downfall and should make sure that funds meant for sports programmes are not diverted to another programme or misappropriated and sporting environments should be made to appear friendly and attractive.