J. Appl. Environ. Biol. Sci., 5(4)1-6, 2015 © 2015, TextRoad Publication ISSN: 2090-4274 Journal of Applied Environmental and Biological Sciences www.textroad.com Corresponding Author: Ali Serdar Yücel, Fırat University, Faculty of Sports Sciences, Elazığ, TURKEY, e-mail: alsetu_23@hotmail.com, phone: +905056288027, fax: +904242416512 Analysis of the Attitudes of Student-Atheletes Playing in the Universities Volleyball 2nd League in Turkey towards Sports Ahmet Atalay 1 , A. Kürşad Akbulut 2 , A. Serdar Yücel 3 , Kemal Göral 4 , Murat Korkmaz 5 1,2 Ardahan University, Vocational School of Physical Education and Sports, Ardahan, TURKEY 3 Fırat University, Faculty of Sports Sciences, Elazığ, TURKEY, 4 Muğla University, Vocational School of Physical Education and Sports, Muğla, TURKEY 5 Finance Manager, Güven Group Inc. İstanbul, TURKEY Received: January 2, 2015 Accepted: February 29, 2015 ABSTRACT The purpose of this research is to analyze the attitudes of student-athletes towards sports who played in Universities Volleyball Second League competitions held in Antalya on 16 th -27 th December 2014. Target population of the study is composed of the student-athletes studying in universities in Turkey and playing in the volleyball teams of universities at the same time, and the sample group of the study is composed of 23 student- athletes from different universities who participated in Universities Volleyball Second League held in Antalya on 16 th -27 th December 2014. With the purpose of determining the attitudes of student-athletes towards sports, the participants were applied a survey. SPSS (Statistical Package for Social Sciences) for Windows 21.0 program was used in the analysis of data. Descriptive statistics, t-test for determining the difference between two groups, One-way Anova test for comparisons of more than two groups were used in analysis of data. It has been found that attitude scores of all participants towards sports are high and attitude scores of female students towards sports are higher than those of male students. In conclusion, it has been determined that the attitudes of students playing in the volleyball teams of universities towards sports are positive. It has also been demonstrated that the attitude towards sports by the sex variable is higher in favor of female students; however, such variables as family educational background, income, age and grade point average don't create difference for the attitude towards sports. KEY WORDS: Volleyball, Sports attitude, Student-athletes, Universities Volleyball Second League 1. INTRODUCTION Franzoi [15] defines attitude as the individual's positive or negative evaluation about an object. In this sense, attitudes can be positive or negative at different levels. While negative attitudes reveal themselves as negative belief, rejection or dislike on objects or opinions and acting against them; positive attitudes may reveal themselves as positive belief, adoption and loving regarding objects or opinions [10]. Opinion or attitude formed in individuals and society concerning sports or participation in sports can also be shaped by such factors as lifestyle, education and view of life. True perception of physical, mental, cognitive and social benefits of sports will help development of attitudes towards sports. While sports provide opportunities for recognition of countries, it is also a clarion call in cultural, social and economic sense [23]. However, replying to this call can be possible via dissemination of mass sports and realization of the attitude towards sports in the society. Otherwise, it won't go beyond being an expression and will remain as a difficult act to be realized. Dissemination of sports in the society and presenting a positive attitude is closely related to transferring sports to children and young individuals as an element of culture and bringing the habit of doing sports regularly. Today, sports is an important element in raising qualified individuals who have completed their physical, mental, social and emotional development; it can also be uttered to be a significant supporter of the socialization process in children and young individuals [17, 25]. While participation in regular physical activity for adults in addition to children and young people supports healthy aging process, it also makes significant contributions to the development of cognitive functions [8, 32]. It can be expressed that sports is an important tool in development and acceleration of many attributes concerning human and life. As it can be stated that every moment of human life becomes concrete with sports and its reflections on life are observed within sports, it will no longer be wrong to say that the power of sports in influencing masses is fed from here. Sports is an area where individuals obtain a competitive structure, working discipline and fighting spirit; learn sharing and cooperation; come together and can compete individually or as a team within the same rules despite all differences [28, 29]. Participation in this area is motivated by such factors as contest, fun, competition, and development of competition (Koivula 2009). Beyond its physical and health benefits, 1