SPORT SOCIOLOGY IN THE CANADIAN

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CHAPTER 1

• SPORT SOCIOLOGY IN THE CANADIAN
• CONTEXT AN INTRODUCTION

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Sport provides people of all ages opportunities
for socialization. Source to Come
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Why study sport sociology?

• Course requirement
• Interest as participant
• Interest as spectators
• Fits in schedule

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Prevalence of sport in Canadian life

• Media
• Internet
• Participation from young age
• Large amounts of money spent
• All ages, groups, involved

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Problems in Canadian sport

• Inequality of opportunity
• Discriminatory practices
• Exploitation
• Strikes
• Drug use
• Illegal gambling

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What is sport sociology?

• Sociology is study of human behavior
• Sport sociology concerned with our behavior when
  involved in sports
• Study athletes, coaches, owners, fans
  (individuals)
• Study institutions and social structures
  (education, mass media, economics, politics,
  religion)

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Beginnings of Sport Sociology

• Research didnt exist prior to 1960
• 1965-1969 Gerald Kenyon published series of
  articles
• 1976 Sociology of Sport Academy founded
• 1960s and 70s unrest in North America pointed to
  need for more study
• North American Society for Sport Sociology
  founded 1978

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Play vs Games

• PLAY
• Free
• No limitations to space and time
• Outcome cannot be determined
• Purpose is intrinsic in nature
• May contain element of make-believe
• Example game of tag

• GAME
• Rules
• Agreed upon time, space
• Game outcomes
• May participate for intrinsic and/or extrinsic
  reason (e.g. prize, championship)
• Example round of golf, baseball game

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WHAT IS SPORT?

• Coaching Association of Canada definition
• an activity with a significant physical
  component in which two or more participants
  engage for the purpose of competitively
  evaluating their personal performance

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1. Competitive activity is institutionalized

• (i) rules of the activity must become
  standardized
• (ii) a regulatory body is in place to oversee
  rule enforcement

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1. Competitive activity is institutionalized

• (iii) the organizational and technical aspects
  become important
• learning of the game skills becomes formalized

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2.Rigorous physical exertion or the use of
relatively complex physical skills is involved.

• Rigorous physical activity not necessary as long
  as complex skill involved e.g. curling

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3. Participants motivated by personal enjoyment
and external rewards

• As level of participation increases, personal
  enjoyment may wane external rewards become more
  important

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Sport is a social construct

• we invent sport
• for our own purposes
• and
• according to what we value in our culture

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Three kinds of sport

• Corporate sport sport as big business
• Pseudo sport sport mainly as entertainment
  e.g. WWE
• Media sport sports organized mainly as media
  events, like skins games

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Characteristics of sport

• Involvement at behavioral level
• Involvement at the cognitive Level
• Involvement at the affective Level
• Unpredictability
• Paradox
• Drama

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• CULTURE set of learned behaviours or activities
  common to a groups of people passed down from one
  generation to next
• CONGRUENCE link between one thing and another,
  agreement
• Choice of sports usually CULTURALLY CONGRUENT

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REASONS WHY CANADIANS FOLLOW SPORT

• Personal
• Enjoyment
• Excitement
• Exercise
• Social
• Gather with others to watch
• Join with others to participate

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Socialization

• Into sport
• Parental influence
• Media influence
• Peer influence
• Via sport
• Learn social skills
• Learn lifes lessons
• Can be positive or negative

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SOCIALIZATION (2)

• Out of sport
• Lack of time
• Lack of interest
• Limitations due to health/injury
• Age
• Over-emphasis on winning

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Conclusion

• Many problems in Canadian sport today at all
  levels
• HOWEVER
• Much being done to improve situation and make
  sport be a healthy, rewarding activity for
  participants