Ms Mary O'Connor:

It has an impact, both directly and indirectly. It has a direct impact in that they would read social media after games but it also affects them in the belief that they should have to look a certain way and have a certain image. They look for validation on social media. I would always say to young girls that if they get onto their local sports field they will validate themselves by participating in sport, and they will get a real-life person validating their behaviours as well. With Sport Ireland, we recently developed a communication tool for coaches who are coaching teenage girls, to equip both male and female coaches in how to communicate with girls of that age and teach them what is and is not appropriate language. That is important because we might say something that a girl might misinterpret and that could start the spiral of them dropping out of sport. We also need to look at how sport is provided to girls of that age level. From holistic up to age 12, they are having fun and enjoyment and then from age 13 to 17 it is very elite and competitive. If girls are not making the team they wonder why they should stay playing. It goes back to the body image aspect as well. It is a mixed bag but online media has an impact on girls participating in sport.