SPORTS IN SOCIETY: SOCIOLOGICAL ISSUES AND CONTROVERSIES CHAPTER 4 SPORTS AND SOCIALISATION: Who Plays and What Happens to Them? PPTs to accompany Sports in Society 2e by Coakley, Hallinan and MacDonald © 2011 McGraw-Hill Australia Pty Ltd

What is Socialisation? An active process of learning and social development. Occurs as we interact with others. Involves the formation of ideas about who we are and what is important in our lives. An interactive process. We make decisions that influence our lives and social worlds. Contexts are often out of our control. PPTs to accompany Sports in Society 2e by Coakley, Hallinan and MacDonald © 2011 McGraw-Hill Australia Pty Ltd

Becoming and Staying Involved in Sports Sports participation is related to: a person’s abilities, characteristics and resources influence of significant others – parents, teachers, siblings, peers, role models availability of opportunities to play in ways that are personally satisfying. PPTs to accompany Sports in Society 2e by Coakley, Hallinan and MacDonald © 2011 McGraw-Hill Australia Pty Ltd

Research Findings: Becoming an Elite Competitor Stevenson, 1999 The process of introduction and involvement. The process of developing commitment. Continuity linked to social recognition. Socialisation process is interactive. PPTs to accompany Sports in Society 2e by Coakley, Hallinan and MacDonald © 2011 McGraw-Hill Australia Pty Ltd

Research Findings: Becoming a Surf Lifesaver Light and Nash, 2006 Training – beach sprinting, paddling, flag races, watching specialist videos. Patrolling and competition with patrolling understood to be the ‘core’. Fundraising activities. Incidental learning. PPTs to accompany Sports in Society 2e by Coakley, Hallinan and MacDonald © 2011 McGraw-Hill Australia Pty Ltd

Research Findings: Clear and Particular Differences between Government Schools and Private Schools Wright and Burrows, 2006 Contrasting ideas about the ways that sports participation was related to other interests and goals in their lives. Their desires to develop and display competence so they could gain recognition and respect from others. Private schools emphasise and support participation and incorporate sports as a mandatory element of the extra curricular program. Memories of past experiences with physical activities and sports. Sports-related cultural images and messages that they had in their minds. PPTs to accompany Sports in Society 2e by Coakley, Hallinan and MacDonald © 2011 McGraw-Hill Australia Pty Ltd

Changing or Ending Sports Participation People don’t drop out forever, nor do they cut all ties with sports. Many play different or less competitive sports as they age. Dropping out is usually connected with developmental changes and life transitions. Dropping out is not always the result of victimisation or exploitation. Problems may occur for those who end long careers in sports. PPTs to accompany Sports in Society 2e by Coakley, Hallinan and MacDonald © 2011 McGraw-Hill Australia Pty Ltd

Research Findings: Burnout Among Young Participants Coakley, 1992 Burnout was most likely when: high performance sports were organised so that competitors had little control over their lives sports involvement was perceived to interfere with accomplishing important developmental tasks. PPTs to accompany Sports in Society 2e by Coakley, Hallinan and MacDonald © 2011 McGraw-Hill Australia Pty Ltd

Research Findings: Changing Personal Investments in Sports Careers Wheeler, 1999 When competitive sports careers ended, the main challenges faced by competitors with disabilities were: reinvesting time and energy into other spheres of life reconnecting with family members and friends going back to school and getting on with occupational careers. PPTs to accompany Sports in Society 2e by Coakley, Hallinan and MacDonald © 2011 McGraw-Hill Australia Pty Ltd

Factors Often Overlooked in Research on Character Building in Sports Different sports offer different experiences. Selection processes in organised sports favour some characteristics over others. Different people define sports experiences in different ways. Meanings given to sports experiences often change over time. Social relationships mediate sports experiences. Many activities other than sports can provide character-building experiences. PPTs to accompany Sports in Society 2e by Coakley, Hallinan and MacDonald © 2011 McGraw-Hill Australia Pty Ltd

Sports Participation is Most Likely to Produce Positive Effects When: New non-sport identities are formed. Knowledge is gained about the world beyond sports. Experiences go beyond sports. New relationships are formed that go beyond sports. Lessons learned in sports are applied to situations outside of sports. Participants are seen by others as total human beings, not just competitors. General competence and responsibility are learned. PPTs to accompany Sports in Society 2e by Coakley, Hallinan and MacDonald © 2011 McGraw-Hill Australia Pty Ltd

General Summary If playing sports constricts or limits a person’s life, expect negative socialisation effects. If playing sports expands or diversifies a person’s life, expect positive socialisation effects. PPTs to accompany Sports in Society 2e by Coakley, Hallinan and MacDonald © 2011 McGraw-Hill Australia Pty Ltd

Power and Performance Versus Pleasure and Participation Sports Power/Performance Use power to push limits in pursuit of victories Excellence proved through winning Body = tool and weapon Competence-based inclusion/exclusion Hierarchical structures Opponents = enemies Pleasure/Participation Emphasis on connections between people Ethic of expression, enjoyment, health Body = source of pleasure Inclusion and accommodation of differences Democratic structures Compete with others PPTs to accompany Sports in Society 2e by Coakley, Hallinan and MacDonald © 2011 McGraw-Hill Australia Pty Ltd

Real-Life Experiences: Sports Stories from Participants The voices of sports participants indicate that: people define and give meaning to their sports experiences in connection with their social relationships meanings given to sports experiences are grounded in cultural definitions about gender, race and ethnicity, social class, sexuality and other characteristics defined as socially important. PPTs to accompany Sports in Society 2e by Coakley, Hallinan and MacDonald © 2011 McGraw-Hill Australia Pty Ltd

Research Findings: The Moral Lessons of Youth Baseball Fine, 1987 The moral socialisation that occurs in Little League Baseball: depends on how the boys 'hear' and apply the moral messages from adults emphasises masculinity as involving toughness and dominance. PPTs to accompany Sports in Society 2e by Coakley, Hallinan and MacDonald © 2011 McGraw-Hill Australia Pty Ltd

Research Findings: Lessons in the Changing Room Theberge, 2000 The locker rooms of women’s ice hockey teams are key places in which: women bond with each other and form a sense of community the players use relationships with each other to develop meanings for their sports participation and apply those meanings to their lives. PPTs to accompany Sports in Society 2e by Coakley, Hallinan and MacDonald © 2011 McGraw-Hill Australia Pty Ltd

Research Findings: Stories of Gay and Lesbian Competitors Symons, 2002 Gay sports participants are especially cautious about coming out in sports Combining a gay identity with a sports identity is often a challenging process. Individual sports and 'cosmopolitan' sports are more gay-friendly than team sports and 'macho' sports. Being out in sports is liberating, but it can also be dangerous. Being out is easier when friends, teammates and organisations provide active support. PPTs to accompany Sports in Society 2e by Coakley, Hallinan and MacDonald © 2011 McGraw-Hill Australia Pty Ltd

Social Worlds: Living in Sports Social world refers to a way of life and an associated mindset that revolves around a particular sport. Sports experiences and the actions of people in sports can be understood only when placed in the context of the social world in which they occur. PPTs to accompany Sports in Society 2e by Coakley, Hallinan and MacDonald © 2011 McGraw-Hill Australia Pty Ltd

Research Findings: Maintaining Croatia in Sydney Hughson, 1992 Young men of the Bad Blue Boys (BBB) became deeply engulfed in their supporter identities. Social world of soccer support became the context in which the young men identified themselves, set goals and viewed the rest of the world. No evidence to suggest that the BBB applied these lessons to other aspects of their lives. PPTs to accompany Sports in Society 2e by Coakley, Hallinan and MacDonald © 2011 McGraw-Hill Australia Pty Ltd

Research Findings: Realising Image is Not Everything Klein, 1993 The lives of bodybuilders revolve around issues of gender and sexuality Men and women learn to project images of power while experiencing doubts about their identities and self-worth. The social world of bodybuilding fosters a desperate need for attention and approval. Ideas about masculinity are so narrow that male bodybuilders develop homophobic attitudes and self-presentations based on caricatured ideas about manliness. PPTs to accompany Sports in Society 2e by Coakley, Hallinan and MacDonald © 2011 McGraw-Hill Australia Pty Ltd

Research Findings: Living in the Shadow of a Man’s World Crosset,1995 The lives of women competitors in the LPGA were influenced by gender relations in U.S. culture. The women developed an 'ethic of prowess' – a mindset highlighting a commitment to physical competence as a basis for evaluating self and others on the tour. This ethic existed to neutralise the negative effects of traditional ideas about femininity. Conformity to the ethic helped the women legitimise their roles as professional competitors. PPTs to accompany Sports in Society 2e by Coakley, Hallinan and MacDonald © 2011 McGraw-Hill Australia Pty Ltd

The Politics of Socialisation as a Community and Cultural Process Sports are sites for struggling over how we think and what we do. Sports are sites where people create and learn 'stories' they can use to make sense of the world. Sports consist of vocabularies and images that influence ideology. PPTs to accompany Sports in Society 2e by Coakley, Hallinan and MacDonald © 2011 McGraw-Hill Australia Pty Ltd

Socialisation and the Formation of Ideology Hegemony is the process of forming agreement about particular ways of viewing and making sense of the world. Sports are important sites for hegemonic processes because they provide pleasurable experiences to so many people. Corporate sponsors use sports to establish 'ideological outposts' in people’s heads. PPTs to accompany Sports in Society 2e by Coakley, Hallinan and MacDonald © 2011 McGraw-Hill Australia Pty Ltd

Sports, Socialisation and Ideology Research shows that none of us live outside the influence of ideology. The stories that emerge in connection with sports and sports experiences generally reproduce dominant forms of ideology, but they also can challenge and even transform dominant ideology. PPTs to accompany Sports in Society 2e by Coakley, Hallinan and MacDonald © 2011 McGraw-Hill Australia Pty Ltd

Research Examples: Socialisation as a Community and Cultural Process ‘Blackfella’ Basketball – Hallinan and Judd (2007) connection between sports and identity socialisation of an Aboriginal based team. Glass Backboards – Burke and Hallinan (2006) reasons underpinning the overrepresentation of male coaches in junior girls’ basketball. Learning Anatomy – Pronger (1995) the objectification of the human body in exercise science labs. PPTs to accompany Sports in Society 2e by Coakley, Hallinan and MacDonald © 2011 McGraw-Hill Australia Pty Ltd

The Most Informative Research on What Happens in Sports Deals with: The everyday experiences of people who play sports. The social worlds created around sports. Community and cultural processes that are related to the ideological messages associated with sports in society. PPTs to accompany Sports in Society 2e by Coakley, Hallinan and MacDonald © 2011 McGraw-Hill Australia Pty Ltd