COLUMBUS, Ohio - Participation in sports and exercise seems to be associated with both positive and negative psychological impacts in young women, a recent study suggests.

The research found that women who participated in sports or who exercised regularly felt more confident that they could achieve goals and deal successfully with other people.

However, they were also more likely to worry about their body image and feel pressure to meet cultural standards of how they should look.

"There was somewhat of a contradiction in our findings, in that sports were associated with both healthy and somewhat unhealthy psychological functioning in young women," said Elizabeth Parsons, co-author of the study and a therapist with the Counseling and Consultation Service at Ohio State University.

"But overall, we believe sports were linked to positive well-being for women in the study."

Parsons did the study as part of her doctoral dissertation in psychology at Ohio State. Her advisor and co-author of the study was Nancy Betz, professor of psychology. Their results were published in a recent issue of the Psychology of Women Quarterly.

The study involved a survey of 437 first-year female college students aged 20 years or younger. The women were asked about their participation in varsity high school sports, as well as regular exercise or physical fitness activities during high school. They also completed a variety of psychological tests.

"We wanted to find out how participation in high school sports was related to body image, self-confidence and other indicators of psychological well being," Betz said.

The results showed that women who participated in sports or other physical activity were more likely to score higher on a test that measured a concept called "internal locus of control" - basically, how confident they were that they could achieve their goals. Participants rated how much they agreed with statements such as "When I make plans I am almost certain to make them work."

"This shows the positive aspect of sports participation because internal locus of control has been linked to higher self-esteem and lower levels of psychological distress," Betz said.

However, sports and exercise enthusiasts were also more likely than non-athletes to score higher on a test that measured "body shame" -- how concerned they were with meeting cultural expectations of the female body. This test asked participants how much they agreed with statements such as "I would be ashamed for people to know what I really weigh."

Parsons noted that although women who participated in exercise and sports had higher scores on body shame than did other women, their average scores were still within the normal range. "We didn't find that the average woman participating in sports had a major problem with body shame," she said.

In addition, the results showed body shame was highest -although still within the normal range -- among women who participated in the most "feminine" sports and those sports that focused most on the appearance of the athletes. (In an earlier study, Betz and Parsons asked both men and women to rate sports in this fashion. Synchronized swimming and gymnastics were among the sports rated as focusing most on appearance and also as being most feminine. Golf and lacrosse were among those seen as least focused on appearance and least feminine.)

The researchers emphasized that the study doesn't show causation. There is no way to know, for example, if sports builds confidence in women, or if confident women are more likely to participate in sports.

Looking at the results as a whole, Betz and Parsons said participation in sports and exercise seem to offer more positives than negatives for high school girls.

"In addition to the health benefits, physical activity is linked with a sense of personal efficacy and confidence in young women, something that will be important throughout their life." Parsons said.

---Johns Hopkins

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