Sport,physical activity and social exclusion

This paper is a brief review of the concept of social exclusion and its evolution. I address which individuals are excluded from sport and physical activity and how; link inclusion policies to the ‘cross-cutting issues’ and the idea of social capital; and outline the intervention policies being adopted in the new sport strategy ‘Game Plan’ (Department of Culture, Media and Sport, ). I address the link between transport, exercise and health in a case study. Since these policies are new, research and evaluation has been short term and scattered, and outcome measurements have not yet received academic or professional consensus, it is too soon to say for sure what works or even to confirm what is best practice.     

You Can Make the Difference: Women in Sport in Taiwan

Abstract

This article aims to develop a comprehensive understanding of changing cultural norms that have enabled and constrained women’s sport activities. It aims moreover, to analyse the changing nature of women’s sport activities in Taiwan. I want to show that what men can do, what women can do – and what I want to, what I can, and what I will do. I also address how I became interested in sports history and the pursuits I have made in that field.     

Sport managers’ perspectives on poverty and sport: The role of local sport authorities

Poverty and social exclusion are ‘wicked issues’ and require a joint approach from a wide array of policy fields. As practicing sport has become a customary activity, it has a part to play in fighting social exclusion. But to what extent is this a realistic expectation? Drawing on qualitative data gathered from semi-structured interviews at twenty local sport authorities in Flanders (Belgium), the aim of this study is to gain insight in the experiences of local sport authorities with people in poverty, and to identify barriers and facilitators for investing in the inclusion of this social group. Results indicate that facilitating inclusion for people in poverty is a challenging task for local sport managers. Policy initiatives, if any, often remain limited to providing financial discounts. Only a minority of local sport managers reported more comprehensive policies, involving different strategies. A major problem is the limited understanding and expertise of local sport managers with regard to poverty. Therefore, cooperation between sport managers and organisations from the social sector is crucial. Recommendations as to how the role of local sport authorities as a facilitator of social inclusion can be strengthened are formulated.     

Developmental processes and motivations for linkages in cross-sectoral sport clusters

Interorganisational linkages are a widely studied topic in sport management. However, most researchers focus on public or non-profit organisations and analyse one focal organisation rather than a network of interrelated organisations. The purpose of this study was to address both of these shortcomings by investigating interorganisational linkages in sport clusters, a type of cross-sectoral network. The authors address three main questions: (a) what is the nature of interorganisational linkages in sport clusters; (b) how do linkages in sport clusters develop; and (c) what are the organisational motivations for creating or joining linkages in sport clusters? A multiple case study approach explores two sailing clusters in France and New Zealand. Results show that interorganisational relationships tend to be formalised, while interorganisational networks tend to be informal. A circular development process from formal relationships to formal networks via informal relationships and networks was detected. Reciprocity is the most prevalent motive for the development of all types of interorganisational linkages. This research contributes to sport management practice by showcasing the potential multitude and variety of interorganisational linkages in a cross-sectoral sport context which are foundations for cooperation and collaboration. The theoretical contribution lies in the conceptualising of the IOR development process and different motivational patterns as antecedents.     

Sport to the Rescue of the Suburbs: Sport to Educate? Sport to Reassure? When Politicians Respond to the Signs of Disturbance of Law and Order

Since the beginning of the 1980s, sport has appeared to be the last recourse against the worsening of living conditions, lack of job security and the ghettoisation of certain boroughs that stand out mostly because of continuing urban riots and juvenile violence. All of this is continually exaggerated by the media and politicians in their continual desire to dramatise and exaggerate. Certain sub-issues immediately emerge: what are the theoretical or ideological foundations on which this concept of making sport a lever for preventive policies is based? And what sport are we talking about? Is it the physical activities and sport (PAS) practised in the schools and institutes, civil sport or sport in the streets? Why do young people increasingly abandon civil/federated sport to practise ‘adventure sports’ or self-organised sports? Can self-organised sports and, more precisely, sport played outside the tower blocks favour the ‘self-control of impulses’? And if they can, under what conditions can they favour socialisation and contribute to preventing vandalism or violent acts? If it must be admitted that the links between sport and education, sport and prevention, sport and insertion, etc., are considered to be self-evident, they are rarely analysed or questioned.     

Reflections on tie Philosophy of Sport In Australia

With recent controversies surrounding the eligibility of athletes with disorders of sex development (DSD) and hyperandrogenism, as well as continued discussion of the conditions transgender athletes must meet to compete in high-performance sport, a wide array of scholars representing a diverse range of disciplines have weighed in on both the appropriateness of classifying athletes into the female and male categories and the best practices of doing so. In response to cases of high-profile athletes’ sex (and gender) being called into question, the International Olympic Committee, the International Association of Athletics Federations, and the National Collegiate Athletics Association, among others, published or updated policies addressing who is eligible to compete in the women’s sport category and under what conditions. This paper addresses the areas in which philosophical reasoning and ethical analysis can contribute to reopened debates about the surveillance of the women’s category in sport. Emphasis is placed on determining where the onus of responsibility should fall for ensuring the new policies are followed.     

Role Distance in Question: When it is No Longer Participating But Winning Which is Important

The purpose of this study, which follows on from previous work, is to show in what ways sport has surreptitiously changed and become more complex, to the extent that its functioning only imperfectly responds to one of the basics of sport as envisaged by Elias: role distance. That is the propensity of the participants to avoid being caught in the game, which is only a game, defining in this way the social distance which classes sports performers and the relationship of their practice to the contingencies and material necessities of life. The choice of this focal point is another attempt to understand what happens when sport, by transforming itself, becomes more than sport or even another type of sport. In other words, here we wish to discover what makes Elias' model incomplete. Although sport is supposed to contribute to the pacification of social relations, there are still a large number of elements, which in sporting practice, and in its most recent developments, cannot be explained by the theory of the ‘civilising process’.     

Sport and the anxious mind

ABSTRACT

Sport is the locus of varieties of athletic experience. In this paper, I focus on anxiety as a felt experience in sport. Anxiety is often experienced as a form of psychological distress. It is a common experience and one that is arguably a frequent companion of sports participants. By exploring the underlying nature of anxiety, we may gain a better purchase on both why anxiety occurs in sports participation, and what contours it takes. I posit that the experience of anxiety in sport is informed by a variety of factors: biopsychological, social, and ontological factors. Each factor provides insight into the nature of anxiety in sport and beyond. I also explore some of the reasons why human beings pursue competitive sporting endeavors that give rise to anxiety and examine the possibility of ameliorating anxiety in sport.     

What would a deep ecological sport look like? The example of Arne Naess

Since the 1960s environmental problems have increasingly been on the agenda in Western countries. Global warming and climate change have increased concerns among scientists, politicians and the general population. While both elite sport and mass sport are part of the consumer culture that leads to ecological problems, sport philosophers, with few exceptions, have not discussed what an ecologically acceptable sport would look like. My goal in this article is to present a radical model of ecological sport based on Arne Naess’s version of deep ecology called ecosophy_T. After outlining the Naessian ecocentric view of biospheric egalitarianism I present the consequences for sport and physical activities. I also give examples from Arne Naess’s own practice of sport which was guided by the principle ‘Richness in ends, simplicity in means!’ I discuss whether Naessian deep ecological sport is what we will all end up with after the ecocatastrophe or whether it can be an inspiring ideal for many of us right now.     

德国的城市体育规划——以美茵河畔法兰克福为例

从公共社会政策的视角出发,对体育运动的发展具有非常重要的政策价值。德国是体育运动发展比较发达的国家,体育被纳入了社会政策的范畴,许多城镇都会进行专门的体育发展规划。本文首先概述了德国体育发展的现状,然后介绍了德国体育政策规划的一般步骤和方法,并且以著名的金融城法兰克福为例,从体育赛事、体育组织和体育空间的3个层面讨论了体育政策是如何与城市发展结合起来的,并推动了体育和社会的共同发展。最后,本文探讨了德国的体育发展政策以及规划对于中国体育发展的启示意义。     

Improving well-being through hedonic,eudaimonic, and social needs fulfillment in sport media consumption

Understanding sport consumer well-being is essential for enhancing the psychological experience and benefits of sport consumers. While watching a sporting event on TV or Internet is a key means of sport consumption, not much is known about the activity’s influence on well-being. Well-being improves when one’s hedonic, eudaimonic, and social needs are fulfilled. Need fulfillment occurs when hedonic, eudaimonic, and social values are experienced and perceived as one’s own. A pre-post survey and SEM-based research was conducted to examine individuals’ psychological experiences in sport event viewing and its link to well-being. The influences of the sport fanship and media consumption setting on the links were also examined. The results indicate that hedonic, eudaimonic, and social values experienced by sport event viewers fully or partially (moderated by sport fanship and media consumption setting) led to well-being improvement, supporting the notion of hedonic, eudaimonic, and social needs fulfillment as the mechanism of improving well-being in this context.     

A mixed methods approach to compare elite sport policies of nations. A critical reflection on the use of composite indicators in the SPLISS study

Abstract

This paper discusses the utility of mixed methods research in international comparative studies on elite sport policies and (quantitative) composite indicators (CIs) in particular. It illustrates how complex and large amounts of data in 15 nations have been objectified into easily understood formats, CIs. Using a nine Pillar model, data were collected through a research inventory and surveys completed by 3142 elite athletes, 1376 coaches and 241 performance directors. Ninety-six critical success factors and 750 sub-factors were aggregated into a CI. The paper shows how CIs are helpful in identifying a possible (non) relationship between elite sport policies and success, in facilitating interpretation and comparison, and in understanding differences and convergences in elite sport systems. However, there are a number of drawbacks, for example, understanding elite sport policies as part of a broader social, cultural and political context. Complementary qualitative analysis is necessary and has been used to interpret elite sport policies of nations.     

An administrative mess: A case study from the officiating community

This case is written for instructors of classes focused on strategic management, organisational behaviour, human resource management, and/or an officiating course. The case highlights the numerous administrative processes a new employee in a sport organisation would face. Although the case is fictional it is based on the authors’ personal and professional experiences in athletics administration and officiating, and further draws upon the authors’ research in the area of officiating. Consequently, this case study was constructed based on first-hand observation, interviews and conversation with numerous officials and administrators, and through the examination of documents frequently used to manage officials. As a result, the case provides an opportunity for students to critically evaluate and address: (1) a sport organisation's policies and procedures; (2) issues related to human resource management within a sport setting; (3) the managerial response after an organisational failure.     

Autonomous Authorization of Deception in Sport

Two recent articles in this journal – one by Morris, the other by Pfleegor & Rosenberg – have revived the philosophical discussion of the ethics of deception in sport which had largely laid dormant since the 1973 publication of Pearson’s ‘Deception, Sportsmanship, and Ethics’. Morris and Pfleegor & Rosenberg both share with Pearson the view that ethical deceptive sport acts are those that relate to sport-specific skills. However, whereas Pearson ultimately grounds this view in the agreement she takes to obtain amongst sport participants, both recent treatments overlook this fundamental aspect of her account and offer alternative justifications for that view. I argue, though, that in both cases the arguments offered are incomplete precisely because they require an appeal to the agreement amongst participants that lies at the foundation of Pearson’s account. On all three treatments, I argue, what ultimately determines an action’s ethical status is not its relation to sport-specific skills, but its conformity to, or violation of, that agreement. I conclude with a discussion of what this implies for future work on deception in sport.     

What about sport? A public health perspective on leisure-time physical activity

In an effort to determine how sport could be better positioned on the public health agenda, three community physical activity programs aimed at combating obesity were examined to determine the benefits residents seek through their participation. Using a case study approach and critical framework, assumptions and presumed knowledge of these public health programs were drawn out through site visits and interviews. A total of 42 interviews with community leaders, program organizers, and residents in each community were conducted. The results reveal that new approaches need to be considered for promoting greater levels of participation in U.S. community sport and other leisure-time physical activity programs. Instead of the commonly emphasized benefits of physical health or appearance, the results demonstrate that hedonic rewards and opportunities for social interaction are two overlooked, yet primary benefits sought by participants. This research suggests that concerted efforts to focus on the hedonic feelings and social aspects can potentially lead to increased sport participation and holistic health. Such an approach may help better address vital public health policy issues while demonstrating the distinctiveness and utility of sport.     

Moving bodies beyond the social/biological divide: toward theoretical and transdisciplinary adventures

In this paper I call for ‘new forms of thinking and new ways of theorizing’ the complex relations between the biological and social in sport and physical culture. I illustrate the inseparability of our biological and social bodies in sport and physical culture via the case of exercise and female reproductive hormones. Inspired by feminist biologists and philosophers of science such as Lynda Birke and Elizabeth Grosz, I describe my current research project in which I am seeking to create space for female exercisers' (as distinct from female athletes) voices about their embodied experiences of exercise-associated amenorrhea. I offer reflections from my ongoing study and reveal a number of dilemmas that emerge as I consider how we might bring biology—and particularly hormones—back into conversations about women's moving bodies in non-reductionist and non-determinist terms. I conclude by advocating the need for more transdisciplinary approaches to help us move toward more multidimensional understandings of the body in sport and physical culture.     

从政策变化看改革开放30年我国社会体育发展

改革开放30年,我国社会体育政策变化表现出社会化、法制化、科学化、生活化等阶段性特征,推动社区体育、民间体育、多元化体育发展,使国民体育权益有了基本保障,社会体育发展有了明确方向,体育管理有法可依;使健身有了科学参考,体育决策有了依据,体育科研水平有了提高。促进体育服务的发展,使体育活动日常化,为提高生活质量创造条件。应加强体育公共政策、体育社团"实体化"、基层体育服务保障指标体系、多元化体育服务与其他社会活动协调发展等政策研究。     

An exploration of the distractions inherent to social media use among athletes

Social media present athletes with a number of benefits and challenges. As a result, various sport stakeholders have debated appropriate social media use among athletes at major sport events, with some suggesting that using these platforms can have negative consequences. The purpose of this research was to examine the elements of social media that athletes perceive to be distracting during major sport events and the practices they undertake to address such distractions. Interviews with Australian elite athletes (N = 15) were conducted and data were analysed using thematic analysis. The findings reveal several elements associated with distraction, including positive and unwanted messages, branding pressures, and competitor content. Athletes reported two key practices that assisted in overcoming distractions, including switching off and handing over the control of their social media accounts. The findings extend distraction-conflict theory to athlete social media research, while presenting a preliminary conceptual model to assist researchers in further understanding the potential impact of social media distractions on athletes. Opportunities for sport practitioners to develop or implement social media education programs are described.     

Sports and Naiveté

Abstract

This paper examines varieties of naiveté manifested in the world of sport. In particular, I examine epistemological, ethical, and metaphysical naiveté. My contention is that virtually from cradle to grave forms of naiveté toward sport are present. We are tempted and all too often succumb to the temptation to accept appearances. But the initial appearances of sport often disappoint, and the underlying reality that confronts us is sometimes a hard reality. Faced with disappointment and exposed illusions, one’s next step may be to adopt a hermeneutics of suspicion towards sport. There is no going back to the earlier naive stance. But is this the final word on the matter? Once one has adopted a critical perspective towards sport, is it possible to join the hermeneutics of suspicion to what Wendy Doniger refers to as a “hermeneutics of retrieval”? That is, after the first naiveté toward sport is exposed as inadequate, is it possible to arrive at what the philosopher Paul Ricoeur calls a “second naiveté” that allows one to appreciate, in a renewed and legitimate way, a phenomenon such as sport, subsequent to the loss of layers of innocence? In this paper I examine whether, in the case of sport, this can be done with integrity.