Beyond Health and Leisure: The Educational Value of Sport for Adult Soft Skill Development

Abstract

This study investigates the association between sport participation and soft skills among Italian adults, exploring its potential as a non-formal learning environment. Using a sample of 16,333 individuals (aged 18–64) from the INAPP INDACO-Adults 2022 survey, we apply an OLS regression model controlling for demographic and occupational factors. Overall, sport participation is significantly and positively associated with higher levels of soft skills (β = 0.08, p < 0.01). This relationship is particularly strong among older adults (55+ years, β = 0.30, p < 0.01) and individuals with lower education levels (β = 0.24, p < 0.01), suggesting that sport may serve as a meaningful setting for skill development or maintenance in these groups. These findings highlight the educational value of sport as a complementary pathway for adult competence development, supporting its inclusion in lifelong learning strategies. Key limitations include the cross-sectional design of data, reliance on self-reported measures of soft skills, and the binary nature of the sport variable.