Kin 261 - Finals Review

Subdiscipline of sociology and physical education that studies sports as a social and cultural phenomena.

Sports are closely tied to major spheres of social life such as family, economy, media, politics, education, and religion, so it is important to understand how sport is integrated in various facets of life in order to be best practitioner.

Sports are not isolated activities but they are deeply embedded within broader social, cultural, political, and economic structures. Understanding these contexts is crucial for a comprehensive analysis of sports.

Shared ways of life and shared understandings that people develop as they live together.

Culture is socially constructed as it is constructed by people as they interact with one another under the social, political, and economic conditions.

Shared interpretive framework that people use to make sense of and evaluate themselves, others, and events in their social worlds.

The ideas, beliefs, and interpretive frameworks favoured by people who have power and influence in society.

Physical activities that involve challenge or competitive contests including competitive aspects, institutionalized processes, and it requires motivation (whether intrinsic or extrinsic).

Because it is context dependent resulting in many activities being overlooked due to dominant perspectives and decisions on sport.

Multiple realities exist based on social interactions, so it is often not practical or possible to remove ourselves from these social worlds. We must live in them to understand them. Often utilizes qualitative approaches.

Researchers must distance themselves from their research and remain unbiased. Values measurement and objective truth. Often uses quantitative approach.

Logically interrelated explanations of the actions and relationships of human beings and the organization and dynamic of social worlds. Helps us understand deeper meanings.

Explains what we know about the ways people think and express their values, ideas, and beliefs as they live together in social worlds (Ex: narrative theories like labelling theory).

Explains what we know about the origins, dynamics, and consequences of social interaction among people in particular social worlds (Ex: gender theories).

Explains what we know about forms of social organization that influence actions and relationships (Ex: marxism, feminist theory).

Summary of our ideas about and explanations of social life and the contexts in which it occurs in OUR social world. Not tested, rigorous, or systematic.

Develop research question and background research, select appropriate theory and research methods, collect and analyze data, use findings to produce conclusions, publish results so that others can assess the rigour of your work.

Collecting data about people and social worlds and converting that data into numbers for statistical analysis (ex: questionnaires). Provides big picture.

Collecting information about people, media, events, social worlds to identify patterns and unique features. Data is analyzed using interpretive procedures (ex: interviews). Provides deeper meaning.

A process of learning and social development which occurs as we interact with one another and become acquainted with the social world in which we live. Not one-way, interactive. Significant others are our most central agents of socialization.

Physical literacy, family culture, sport's connection with other interests and goals, desire for competence, access to resources, positive memories of sport, and the social/cultural significance of sport in their social world.

Context dependent. Family, social, cultural determinants.

High physical literacy = more likely to play sports, low physical literacy = less likely to play sports.

Outside of resources and availability, developmental changes (puberty), injuries, sport does not align with identity and restricts their experiences (high performance sport). Not permanent, can change depending on context.

Exploring/developing identities outside of sport, knowledge building outside of sport, new relationships, transferability of lessons from sport to other areas, and opportunities to displayrow non-sport talents.

Sports are essentially pure and good, and their purity and goodness are transferred to anyone who plays, consumes, or sponsors sports.

Because if it is true, then there is no need to study/evaluate sports with the purpose of transforming or making them better, because they are already what they should be.

Myth that sport builds character. Myth perpetuated by failure to recognize 6 things.

Sport experiences are diverse, so not all athletes have the same experience (ex: athlete A enjoys training, athlete B enjoys games and not training).

Those with certain traits are more likely to be attracted to sport (higher physical literacy may be more attracted to sport).

The meaning we assign to sport is completely subjective (everyone is different).

People and their interpretations change over time (ex: high-level athlete preferring to play for fun as they get older instead of high performance leagues).

Relationships and context matters (ex: not all sport is good).

Sport is not the only avenue to experience these values (ex: school, art, etc).

When: 1946-1964; By who: Primarily those in baby boomer generation; Why: Early in the 20th century people realized human development was influenced by social environments, so they wanted boys to build character through sport (turn boys into men).

Increasing numbers of families with both parents working, changes to the idea of 'good parenting', ideas about unsupervised children getting into trouble, ideas about safety, increasing knowledge about health and wellness, increased visibility of high-performance sports (media).

Children play to entertain (adults have to be there to witness), play must be controlled to be valuable (high quality instruction is needed for character development), children are mini-adults (kids are smaller and less strong adults), learning to win throughout sport is an essential life lesson (need to learn to win so they aren't losers).

3 examples of how sport program leaders can adapt their program to be developmentally appropriate: Alter rules of game, alter size of field of play, alter size of goals to focus on skills and needs that are developmentally appropriate.

Categories of people who share an economic position in society based on a combination of their income, wealth, education, occupation, and social connections.

Social relations and interactions between people of different social classes that results from the power differences between different classes of people.

Ideas and beliefs that people use to understand economic inequalities, identify their position, and evaluate the impact of economic inequalities on the organization of social worlds.

Dominant class ideology which assumes that position of leadership and power are earned when people prove that their characteristics and abilities are superior to those of others.

How people in upper socioeconomic classes use their income, wealth, and power to maintain privileged positions in society and pass that privilege from one generation to the next.

Fairness and justice in the distribution of resources and opportunities. Recognizes that people have different circumstances and require different levels of support to achieve similar outcomes.

Sameness in treatment, opportunities, and resources for everyone. Does not recognize people's circumstances.

Unity subsidies, tax breaks, and event hosting.

Cuts to education (fewer PE teachers, fewer extra-curricular activities, increased rental fees to use spaces), cuts to municipal parks and recreation (more fees to use facilities and parks).

Less time/money for fitnessecreation/sport, less access to large yards/cul-de-sacs/maintained parks/facilities, less volunteers to help run/maintain programs/facilities, less leftover resources to spend on sport, lack of resources among some affect many.

Interrelated ideas and beliefs widely used to define masculinity and femininity, identify people in terms of sex and sexuality, evaluate forms of sexual expression, and organize social relationships.

Ideas and beliefs associated with inflexible binary approach to classifying all humans.

Men are portrayed as superior in terms of traits that are connected with status and power. Men like machines, tools, fighting, sports, etc.

Women are defined as inferior to men except in their ability to nurture. Women like people, gossip, nurturing, beauty, etc.

Social marginalization, belief that women who played sports would have difficulties with reproduction, women sports tied to grace and beauty vs. Mens sports, etc.

New opportunities (teams and programs did not exist for women), government legislation (laws mandating equal rights for women and girls in society and sport), global women's rights movement (changes in women's roles allows for more time and resources for sport), health and fitness movement (more awareness of health benefits for physical activity for women), increased media coverage (more visibility of women in sports inspiring girls to join).

Because they are still tied to traditional ideas of femininity like thinness and objectification.

Hypocrisy in how female athletes are discussed in the media vs men, including criticism for female athletes in sponsorships and body-shaming.

Those who benefit from the status-quo resist legislation that mandates change, fearing loss of privilege.

Men have established networks, search committees favor men, and support systems for women are scarce.

More women in coaching would normalize it, challenge patriarchal control, and promote gender equality.

Athletes feel pressure to conform to traditional gender traits, with low representation of LGBTQ+ in professional sports.

Socially constructed population of people believed to be biologically or naturally distinct from others.

A particular cultural heritage used to identify a category of people.

Interrelated ideas and beliefs used to classify humans into categories assumed to be biological.

Justification for colonization and to exercise power over people of colour by white Europeans.

Attitudes, actions, and policies based on the belief that one racial category is superior to others.

Generalizations used to define and judge individuals in a particular racial category.

Black athletes' success attributed to natural abilities, while White athletes' success attributed to discipline and hard work.

Media perpetuates racial stereotypes by highlighting race as a determining factor in success or failure.

Unearned advantages given to White people due to their skin color, including being seen as the norm.

Winning does not need explanation, while losing is attributed to performance reasons; more likely to play strategic positions.

Adopting elements of a minority culture by the dominant culture without understanding or respecting the original context.

Adopting or use of elements of a minority culture by members of the dominant culture without understanding or respecting the original context and significance.

Newspapers, magazines, radio, television, social media, video games, etc.

Information, interpretation, entertainment.

Entertainment.

Those who control media decide which sports and events to cover, constructing how consumers define and incorporate sports in their lives.

Watching a game live has no commentary or narrative; on TV, it is viewed through the media's lens with narratives, close-ups, and play-by-play descriptions.

Creates drama and tells an engaging story which helps to retain viewers, leading to more money from advertising.

Determines which sports are presented, the kinds of images, commentary, and stories shown, creating frameworks for how we view sports.

Emphasis placed on success with exaggerated importance on rivalries and medals, missing competence, creativity, friendships, and enjoyment.

Women's sport is secondary to men's, receiving less visibility, while LGBTQ+ individuals are essentially ignored.

Athlete's race determines media messaging in success and failure, with stereotypes about different racial groups.

Emphasizes national unity and reinforces ideas of us vs them.

Team failures or successes are traced to the individual, expected to achieve independently.

Contrasts individualism; media credits team success to teamwork, highlighting players who adhere to the coach's playbook.

Rough and physical play is viewed as positive, using warrior/military language.

20% of televised sports time is advertisements, encouraging support for sponsors.

Assumes athletes participate in the creation of norms and laws, which are built and created.

It understands deviance as a socially constructed phenomenon that is fluid and changes with time.

Rejection or ignoring norms.

Unquestioning acceptance of norms to the point of extreme or unhealthy levels of conformity.

OVERCONFORMITY.

Those with low self-esteem, who see achievement through sport as their only identity, and those coached to enforce this approach.

Teaches that a little more than half of elite athletes would take a drug that guarantees them a gold medal but would also kill them in 5 years.

Understanding that elite athletes are willing to go through physiological harm for success, creating a predisposition for doping.

Use of excessive physical force which causes or has the potential to cause harm or destruction, linked to control.

Verbal or physical actions grounded in an intent to dominate, control, or do harm to another person, often involved in violence.

Masculinity in culture associated with promotion/acceptance of violence in sport, where violence is celebrated and ability/worth can often be measured through violence.

Processes of organizing social power and making decisions that affect people's lives in a social world.

The ability to influence people and achieve goals, even in the face of opposition from others.

Formal organization with the power to make and enforce rules in a particular territory or collection of people.

A form of power that comes with a recognized and legitimate status or office in a government, an organization, or an established set of relationships.

Governments maintain safety, police major events, and reduce crime through sport.

Governments ensure gender equity, access to sport by those with disabilities, and fair treatment for all.

Governments fund PE classes, school sports, sports organizations, and fitness facilities, although research shows illness is more related to environmental factors.

Successful national teams bring international recognition to a country, while successful local teams bring recognition to a community.

Governments use sport to promote identity and unity amongst diverse constituents, reaffirming imagined communities.

Using sport to reproduce dominant political values and align political views with other dominant values to gain legitimacy.

Political leaders use sports to boost their legitimacy in the eyes of citizens, often funding sports/athletes to gain support.

Utilizing public resources to host major sports events with the stated goal of benefitting the entire community.

Promote the recognition of Russia as a superpower, foster patriotism, gain soft power, and facilitate economic and social development.

Short-term improvements in public support, but long-term exposure of systemic corruption spun as 'western persecution' may have galvanized his base.

Severely damaged his political success internationally as he was treated with skepticism and deemed untrustworthy.

State media portrayed Rodchenkov (the doctor) as the mastermind behind the plot and a traitor, thus allowing Putin to evade much of the blame.

Countries with more authoritarian governments looking for national recognition or even countries undergoing varied social issues would likely gain a lot from winning at the highest of levels.

Countries recently, like China, have had many accusations but far less proven than what Russia did.

In highly nationalistic cultures, cultures with authoritarian governments, cultures that place an emphasis on bravado and masculinity, societies that have immense pressure to maintain their dominance are all more likely to see more of an impact from doping.

Attitudes, actions, and policies based on the belief that people perceived as lacking certain abilities are inferior and therefore, incapable of full participation in mainstream activities.

Interrelated ideas and beliefs that are widely used to identify people as physically of intellectually disabled, to justify treating them as inferior, and to organize social worlds and physical spaces without taking them into account.

Ability is constructed socially in our relationships with each other and is categorized on a continuum from low to high.

It implies that physical and intellectual variations are not a normal part of human existence, one's ability to be 'able' is permanent, that ability is binary, and that disabilities can be categories and managed based on those categories.

Views impairments and deficits problems that prevent full participation in an environment, can be cured by relying on access to professionals that normalize impairments by 'fixing' the person with surgeryehab/therapy.

Views society's lack of accommodations as the problem. Disability is caused by ignorance/prejudice/stereotypes about how these people can be accommodated.

Location of the problem: Medical = person with impairments, Social = societal barriers and structures.

Medical = Medical treatments, cures, therapies, etc; Social = accommodations, societal barrier elimination, etc.

Medical = functional limitations or impairments; Social = temporary social structures/organizations exclude people with different levels of ability.

Medical = Responsibility of person to manage impairments; Social = Responsibility of society to remove barriers and create inclusive environment.

Medical = language around deficits, impairments, etc; Social = language around rights, inclusivity, social barriers.

Managed by 'impairment experts' that arbitrarily decides which types and severities of physical/mental impairments should be included.

Belief that all bodies can be improved to achieve new goals via enhancement procedures and technologies.

Usually favours younger people and discriminates other age groups as being incapable of participating in sport.

Definitions range from ages over 18, 30, 35, 55. Varied levels (beginner to former elite level athletes), people in large communities with well-funded public facilities, and usually come from privileged white able-bodied socioeconomic backgrounds.

Injuries and burnout limit longevity in sport, athletes expected to retire and move into coaching, adults expected to limit play time for children's/youth programs.

High socioeconomic, white, able-bodied people tend to have more time and live in more well-funded communities that promote sport in adulthood.