Gender and age differences in social fear among young swimmers 5-8 years

This study examined social Fear levels among 72 children (54.17% males) aged 5-8 years enrolled in structured swimming programs at Al-Wefaq Sports Club, analyzing gender and age-based differences. Mann-Whitney U tests revealed no significant gender differences (U = 599, p = 0.613), while Kruskal-Wallis tests showed no age group differences (H = 0.191, p = 0.984). Mean ranks were comparable across males (37.64), females (35.15), and age groups (5yo: 38.13; 6yo: 35.41; 7yo: 37.31; 8yo: 35.98). Findings suggest exploring environmental/psychological factors using mixed-methods, conducting longitudinal studies to track developmental trajectories, and comparing swimmers versus non-swimmers to isolate sport-specific effects.