Collaborative learning in adherence to Sports Health Preventive Programs among youth volleyball players

Resumen

Foundation: Collaborative learning is a pedagogical strategy with the potential to strengthen athletes' commitment to preventive practices and promote behaviors aimed at safeguarding their athletic health.

Objective: to analyze the relationship between collaborative learning and adherence to sports health prevention programs in youth volleyball players.

Methods: A quasi-experimental study with a pretest-posttest design and a non-equivalent control group, conducted with 50 male youth volleyball players. The research was carried out over 12 weeks using a sports health prevention program complemented by collaborative learning strategies in the experimental group.

Results: The experimental group showed significant improvements (p < 0.001) across all evaluated variables, with effect sizes ranging from moderate to very large (r = 0.58–0.89). Collaborative learning increased by 0.51 to 0.94 points, while adherence reached high levels (4.09–4.61 points), with an overall objective adherence rate of 92.0% compared to 77.1% in the control group. Group cohesion, self-determined motivation, and self-efficacy increased significantly, while discouragement decreased markedly. In contrast, the control group showed minimal, non-significant changes across all analyzed variables.

Conclusions: The inclusion of collaborative learning constitutes an effective pedagogical strategy for strengthening adherence to sports health prevention programs among youth volleyball players. The observed improvements were not limited to achievement of preventive activities but extended to psychosocial dimensions essential for the athlete's holistic development, such as group cohesion, self-determined motivation, and self-efficacy.