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ABSTRACT
The purpose of the study was to investigate the influence of sports activities on social interaction of University of Benin students. It sought to identify the sports activities student athletes actively engaged in; establish a relationship between sports activities and social interaction among student athletes; determine the difference in social interaction among student athletes based on gender; and benefits of sports activities. To guide the study, four (4) research questions were raised with two corresponding hypotheses formulated and tested at 0.05 level of significance. The study adopted a descriptive survey research design. The population for this study consisted of 268 student-athletes who train daily using the University of Benin Sports Complex Facilities/Equipment. The sample size was 137 student athletes. This was obtained using simple random sampling techniques to select 50 percent from each faculty comprising the population. The research instrument for the study was a questionnaire titled: “Influence of Sports Activities on Social Interaction Questionnaire (ISASIQ)”. The statistical analysis was carried out using percentages, Pearson product moment correlation statistics, t-test of independent samples, and mean and standard deviation. The findings of this research based on the research questions raised and hypotheses tested showed the following: that football and basketball were the most actively engaged sports activity student athletes engaged in; there was a significant relationship between sports activities and social interaction among student athlete; viii there was no significant difference in social interaction among student athletes based on gender; there were several benefits inherent in sporting activities, amongst which were: promoting mental health, preventing cardiovascular diseases, diabetes prevention and control, preventing some cancers, injuries, creation of participants’ fun and enjoyment, increases socialization, and aiding individuals gain control over their lives. It was concluded that sports activities relates as well as impacts on student athletes social interaction.
