Chapter 15, Section 2

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Chapter 15, Section 2

• Theoretical Perspectives and Sport

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Culture and Sport

• Culture is created and reinforced through sport
  it is a major social activity
• Sociologists disagree over the social
  implications of sport

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Functionalism

• Functionalists believe sport is important because
  it helps society work more smoothly by performing
  the following functions
• Sport teaches basic beliefs, norms, and values
• Sport promotes a sense of social identification

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Functionalism

• Sport offers a safe release of aggressive
  feelings generated by the frustrations,
  anxieties, and strains of modern life
• Sport encourages the development of character
• Functionalists have identified some drawbacks to
  sport
• Achievement-oriented values can be intensified to
  an extreme degree

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Functionalism

• Violence in sport
• Many sports have developed the role of enforcer
  a team member whose major responsibility is to
  intimidate, provoke, and sometimes injure
  opponents
• Cheating

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Conflict Theory

• Conflict theorists are interested in who has the
  power and how elites use power to satisfy their
  own interests
• The most powerful oppress, manipulate, coerce,
  and exploit others
• Sport mirrors the unequal distribution of power
  and money in society
• Sport maintains inequality

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Conflict Theory

• Conflict theorists believe that even though
  people from all major segments of community or
  society join in cheering for the same team, their
  union is only temporary
• Conflict theorists argue that sports do not
  contribute to forming good character

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Symbolic Interactionism

• Concentrates on personal meanings, social
  relationships, and self-identity processes
• Concerned with the symbols of sports
• The meanings and interpretations of these symbols
  are important because they affect the
  self-concepts as well as the relationships of
  those involved

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Symbolic Interactionism

• Coaches and parents teach the rules of the game
  and values such as team play, hard work, fair
  play, competition, and winning

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What are some limitations of each perspective?

• Functionalist perspective makes important points
  regarding the positive and negative role of sport
  in society
• Critics argue that sports today contribute more
  to private profit that to the general society
• Conflict theorists focus on racism and sexism in
  sports
• Tend to overlook the positive contributions of
  sport to society

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What are some limitations of each perspective?

• Conflict theorists tend to underestimate the
  character-building benefit of team sports
• Symbolic interactionism fails to include the
  broader social and cultural context when
  discussing the socialization process in sport

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Assignment

• Section 2 Assessment (p.509) 1-3
• Handout Boys and Girls Together