University of Windsor Scholarship at UWindsor Electronic Theses and Dissertations Theses, Dissertations, and Major Papers 2016 Women’s Involvement in Highland Games Heavy Events: A Hope and Strengths Perspective Jeana Celine Freeman-Gibb University of Windsor Follow this and additional works at: https://scholar.uwindsor.ca/etd Recommended Citation Freeman-Gibb, Jeana Celine, "Women’s Involvement in Highland Games Heavy Events: A Hope and Strengths Perspective" (2016). Electronic Theses and Dissertations. 5820. https://scholar.uwindsor.ca/etd/5820 This online database contains the full-text of PhD dissertations and Masters’ theses of University of Windsor students from 1954 forward. These documents are made available for personal study and research purposes only, in accordance with the Canadian Copyright Act and the Creative Commons license—CC BY-NC-ND (Attribution, Non-Commercial, No Derivative Works). 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Women’s Involvement in Highland Games Heavy Events: A Hope and Strengths Perspective By Celine Freeman-Gibb A Thesis Submitted to the Faculty of Graduate Studies through the Department of Kinesiology in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Master of Human Kinetics at the University of Windsor Windsor, Ontario, Canada 2016 © 2016 Celine Freeman-Gibb Women’s Involvement in Highland Games Heavy Events: A Hope and Strengths Perspective by Celine Freeman-Gibb APPROVED BY: Dr. Kathryn Pfaff Faculty of Nursing Dr. Marcia Milne Department of Kinesiology Dr. Victoria Paraschak Department of Kinesiology August 23, 2016 DECLARATION OF ORIGINALITY I hereby certify that I am the sole author of this thesis and that no part of this thesis has been published or submitted for publication. I certify that, to the best of my knowledge, my thesis does not infringe upon anyone’s copyright nor violate any proprietary rights and that any ideas, techniques, quotations, or any other material from the work of other people included in my thesis, published or otherwise, are fully acknowledged in accordance with the standard referencing practices. Furthermore, to the extent that I have included copyright material that surpasses the bounds of fair dealing within a meaning of the Canadian Copyright Act, I certify that I have obtained a written permission from the copyright owner(s) to include such material(s) in my thesis and have included copies of such copyright clearances in my appendix. I declare that this is a true copy of my thesis, including any final revisions, as approved by my thesis committee and the Graduate Studies office, and that this thesis has not been submitted for higher degree to any other University or Institution. III ABSTRACT In this thesis I explored women’s experiences as participants in Highland Games Heavy Events within a Hope and Strengths Perspective, which is underpinned by Duality of Structure. Through 12 semi-structured interviews with eight athletes and four athletic directors, I examined 1) the history of women’s involvement in the sport of HGHE within North America, 2) how female competitors have a) shaped and b) been shaped by their experiences in HGHE and 3) the newspaper coverage of women HGHE athletes as compared to a) their male counterparts (HE participants) and b) other female participants (in piping and dancing) from 1995-2015. Participants explained their past and current experiences within the HGHE community and how their strengths (both physical and psychological) linked to necessary human and financial resources. A content analysis of newspaper articles showed that female and male coverage of HGHE was almost equal, and largely positive in tone. A textual analysis of those articles documented patterns of female coverage including gender marking, infantilization and sexualisation. IV DEDICATION To my hope and strengths enhancing family, your guidance and positivity made this a journey ever so memorable. Thank you. To the members of the Highland Games Heavy Event community, thank you for welcoming me into your community with open arms. To the participants in this study, thank you for your interest, kind words, stories and allowing me to interview you. To all the little girls out there who aspire to wear a kilt and throw heavy things, this thesis is for you. V ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Vicky, you are amazing. This process would not have been the same without you. Your constant positivity and guidance did not go unnoticed. Thank you for all of the time, dedication and thought you put into this project with me and for the constant supply of snacks. Talking with you about theories and practices opened my eyes to the world in a different way. Marcia, we experienced a lot this past year while executing the run, jump, throw, wheel study and co-coaching our girl, Virginia. Thank you for your insights into a gender based sport system and for allowing me to pick your brain about concepts during practice. Kathy, your insights on theory and research were extremely helpful when it came to understanding my qualitative data. Thank you for agreeing to be my external committee member and for your kind words throughout this process. Thank you to the Faculty of Human Kinetics for allowing me to continue my education in the realm of sport. Your open door policy is truly one of a kind. Thank you to my Lancer Track and Field family. It’s been seven years with you and I wouldn’t trade one day to be on any other team. Thank you for showing me that even when the odds are not in your favour, a victory is still possible. Ami, Austin and Nicole, thank you for being my rocks during this process. You allowed me to relax and have some fun, but also encouraged me to keep working toward my end goal. Thank you for always having my back in school and in life. A special thank you to my parents, who continuously support my dreams both academically and athletically;, without you this would not have been possible. VI TABLE OF CONTENTS DECLARATION OF ORIGINALITY ..........................................................................................III ABSTRACT ................................................................................................................................. IV DEDICATION ............................................................................................................................... V ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS .......................................................................................................... VI LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS & FIGURES ................................................................................. IX SECTION 1 INTRODUCTION ......................................................................................................1 Introduction .........................................................................................................................1 Main Research Question ......................................................................................................4 Assumptions .........................................................................................................................5 Practical and Theoretical Justifications ...............................................................................6 Theoretical Framework ........................................................................................................9 SECTION 2 REVIEW OF LITERATURE ...................................................................................19 Sub-Question 1...................................................................................................................19 SQ1 Directional Proposition ..............................................................................................22 Sub-Question 2...................................................................................................................22 SQ2 Directional Proposition ..............................................................................................26 Sub-Question 3...................................................................................................................29 SQ3 Directional Proposition ..............................................................................................31 SECTION 3 RESEARCH METHODOLOGY ..............................................................................33 Data Collection and Analysis.............................................................................................33 Delimitations and Associated Limitations .......................................................................45 SECTION 4 RESULTS AND DISCUSSION ...............................................................................49 Sub-Question 1...................................................................................................................49 Sub-Question 2...................................................................................................................66 Sub-Question 3...................................................................................................................96 Discussion: All Sub-Questions