Sports in Society: Issues & Controversies

Is It and Why Study It?

cultural contexts in which we live

Sports provide stories & images

used to explain & evaluate these contexts

Sports provide a window into culture and society

useful
Concepts
Theories
Research methods

These tools enable us to “see” behavior as it

connected with history, politics, economics, and social life

a group or society
These ways of life are created and

changed as people interact with each other, as they come to terms with, and even struggle over how to
Do things and organize their lives
Relate to each other
Make sense out of their experiences

United through
a political system
a shared sense of self-identification

that distinguishes them from other people.

& processes that exist inside individuals

Sociologists study behavior in terms

of the social conditions and cultural contexts in which people live their lives

and social issues associated with sports
Look beyond scores to see

sports as social phenomena
Make informed choices about sport participation and the place of sports in our lives
Transform sports in progressive ways

that suggest changes in the organization of sports and the

organization of social life

Those who benefit from the status quo may be threatened by these research findings

part of people’s lives
Sports are connected with ideologies in society
i.e.,

the “viewpoints” that underlie people’s feelings, thoughts, and actions
Sports are connected with major spheres of social life such as:
family, economy, media, politics, education, & religion

give meaning to the world
To make sense of the

world
To identify what is important, right, and natural in that world

and for all time”
They emerge as people struggle over the

meaning and organization of social life
They are complex and sometimes inconsistent
They change as power relationships change in society

who have power and influence in society


Dominant ideologies serve the

interests of people with power and influence

masculinity, femininity, and relationships between men and women

Dominant Gender ldeology

consists of prevailing notions of “common sense” about maleness and femaleness in a group or society

people use to give meaning to skin color and to

evaluate people in terms of racial classifications

Dominant Racial Ideology consists of prevailing ideas about the meanings of skin color and the characteristics of people classified in various racial categories

spheres of social life
Family
Economy
Media
Politics
Education
Religion

Sociology of Sport Association (ISSA)
The North American Society for the

Sociology of Sport (NASSS)
The Sport Sociology Academy (SSA) in AAHPERD (American Alliance for Health, Physical Education, Recreation & Dance)

themselves as
Sport sociologists concerned with sport science issues
Sociologists

concerned with social and cultural issues
Scholars may see themselves as
professional experts (interested in consulting and the application of knowledge to improve sports)
critical sociologists (interested in social & cultural transformation), or
knowledge builders (interested in using research to accumulate knowledge about social life)

by a combination of internal & external rewards

technical aspects of the activity become important
Learning game skills becomes

formalized

its own sake; it is often spontaneous and guided by

informal, emergent norms

Dramatic Spectacle involves performances to entertain an audience for the purpose of obtaining rewards

identified as sports in a society

Determine whose sports count

the most when it comes to obtaining support and resources

meaning, purpose, & organization of sports
Who will participate and the

conditions under which sport participation occurs
How sports will be sponsored, and what the reasons for sponsorship will be