Producing Knowledge, Producing Bodies:

Cross-Currents in Sociologies of Sport and Physical Culture

ABSTRACTS 31st Annual Conference November 3-6, 2010 San Diego, California

NASSS North American Society for the Sociology of Sport Société nord‐américaine de sociologie du sport Sociedad Norteamericana para la Sociología del Deporte Front Cover Art

Picture of Allison’s Renshaw’s “Chlorophyll Gum” (72" x 96" 2009 mixed media on panel) Copyright © 2010 Allison Renshaw Courtesy of Quint Contemporary Art

About San Diego Artist Allison Renshaw

Allison Renshaw received a B.A. degree in economics from Pepperdine University in Malibu, California, and a Master’s of Fine Arts degree from Maryland Institute College of Art in Baltimore, Maryland. She is an associate faculty member at MiraCosta College in Oceanside, California.

Renshaw was nominated this year for the San Diego Art Prize and recently had a solo exhibition entitled “Plastic Fantastic” at the Oceanside Museum of Art in San Diego. Renshaw was also recently included in “Here Not There” at the Museum of Contemporary Art in San Diego. The front cover of our NASSS Program as well as our NASSS book of abstracts feature the piece that was used to advertize the Plastic Fantastic exhibition: “Chlorophyll Gum,” a 72" x 96" mixed media on panel (2009). Chlorophyll Gum, Never Mind the Mainstream (the 56" x 48" 2010 mixed media on panel featured on the back cover of our NASSS Program) and other pieces shown in the Plastic Fantastic exhibition explore the contrast between McMansions and the artificiality of high-end living with San Diego’s gorgeous seaside weather and natural beauty. While seemingly random and difficult to decipher, her art references today’s open-source culture of sampling and recycling. Fashion, modern architecture and beach aestheticism combine and collide in Renshaw’s vibrant mixed-media compositions. Pulsating with energy and pop abstraction, the imagery in Renshaw’s paintings allows lines between organic and man-made to blur while exploiting the tension between plasticity and temporality. She creates a chaotic universe weaving fragments of pop culture into a fusion of color and intricate doodle-like patterns.

Renshaw’s art seemed particularly suited for this year’s NASSS conference theme “Producing Knowledge, Producing Bodies: Cross-Currents in Sociologies of Sport and Physical Culture.” This theme encourages scholars to reflect on cross- currents and the blurring of boundaries, to focus on “physical culture,” and to explore issues around the body, as it is increasingly fragmented and biomedicalized. Such elements are also part and parcel of Renshaw’s work. Renshaw is delighted to see her art being featured on our cover as she is also an avid sportswoman. She teaches aerobics, runs marathons, and enjoys surfing, paddleboarding and skiing.

2010 NASSS Conference Abstracts Page 2 2010 NASSS Conference Abstracts

Adam, Maxwell, Queen's University ([email protected])

The Güegüensista Experience: Apprenticeship, Embodiment, and Decolonization in Western Nicaragua

"The Ballet of the Güegüence; or, The Macho-Raton" (Brinton 1883) is an anti-colonial dance-drama that has been performed in the streets of the departments of Masaya and Carazo since at least the early seventeenth-century. This dance-drama was widely interpreted by twentieth century “intellectuals … as a parable for Nicaraguan national identity and its formation” (Field, 1999, xix) and it was proclaimed a “masterpiece of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity” by UNESCO in 2005. But what the performance actually means to its practitioners—those most intimately involved in contemporary (re)productions—remains unclear. This study brings discussions of (the) body and embodiment into an analysis of Güegüence tradition. Loïc Wacquant’s (2004, 2005, 2009) reworking of the Bourdieusian conceptualization of habitus provides both the anchor and compass for this ethnographic journey. By enrolling into dance classes and keeping an ethnographic journal, as well as conducting supplementary interviews, the researcher sheds light on how and why one becomes a güegüencista, what it means to be a cultural performer, and how Güegüence has maintained its transformative anti-colonial nature three centuries following its colonial birth.

Adams, Mary Louise, Queen’s University ([email protected])

“Walk This Way": The Concept of Risk in the Promotion of Walking for Health

"Walk into Health," "Walk Yourself Fit!" This paper addresses walking as a means of understanding how discourses of risk are shaping notions of physical activity and influencing contemporary forms of embodiment. In both popular media and public health literatures walking is widely promoted as a simple and effective means of averting the dangers of sedentary living, that is, of reducing the risk of chronic disease while increasing only slightly the risk of activity-related injuries. Responding to what Robert Crawford calls ‘the imperative of health’ public health workers now lead walking workshops, provide instruction on walking technique and advice on walking gear. To demonstrate the long reach of risk discourses, this paper engages a discursive analysis of recent texts (newspaper articles and health promotion videos and pamphlets) that promote walking for health. What are the risks of walking? What are the risks of not walking? Drawing on Foucault’s concept of governmentality and concomitant understandings of risk as a moral technology through which contemporary subjectivities are constituted, the paper demonstrates the way rationalities of risk infuse the meanings that can be made of the most fundamental aspects of everyday life.

Agyemang, Kwame, Texas A&M University ([email protected]) and John N. Singer, Texas A&M University ([email protected])

Black Male Athlete Social Responsibility (BMASR) in Big-time American Sports

Stemming from their commodification as a means for growing sport into a commercial entity, multi-million dollar professional contracts with teams and sponsors, and sometimes, socially unacceptable acts, current Black male professional athletes in big- time American sports face not only the pressure to perform athletically, but also to conduct themselves in a socially responsible manner. Given the above mentioned factors, this paper sees today's Black male athlete as a business, therefore necessitating them to engage in socially responsible acts as a means of management, just as scholars have encouraged CSR initiatives, among many strategies, to manage a corporation. Answering the call of sport management scholars to further analyze and expand CSR principles in sport, the purpose of this paper is to illuminate on Black male athlete social responsibility (BMASR) as a management strategy with the intention of moving toward a framework for understanding this unique concept.

2010 NASSS Conference Abstracts Page 3 Aicher, Thomas J., Northern Illinois University ([email protected]) and Janelle E. Wells, University of Florida ([email protected])

Is it the "Old Boys" Network or the "Old White Boys?": A Race by Gender Analysis of Homologous Reproduction of Women's Basketball Teams

Nontraditional leaders face many challenges when attempting to break through the "concrete ceiling" in intercollegiate athletics. Researchers have evaluated the impact of organizational structures on women and underrepresented racial groups separately, however, scant research has evaluated the two groups together. This study centered on determining if a race by gender interaction existed among women's basketball coaches competing in all three NCAA divisions. According to Kanter's (1977) homologous reproduction we hypothesized sex and race would separately impact hiring practices, and a race by gender interaction would occur. Consistent with previous research, we evaluated the coaching data based on the number of assistant coaches, and utilized Chi-square analyses to explore the differences of 976 institutions'. Results partially supported the hypothesis based on sex in that both men and women employed a greater proportion of women coaches. In terms of race, the hypothesis was also supported: White head coaches staffs were predominately White, and non-White head coaches were mostly non-White when more than one assistant coach was present. The race by gender interaction was also supported in that White women, non-White women, and non-White men employed the greatest proportions of the respective groups; White men's staff constituted mostly of White women.

Alexander, Lisa Doris, Wayne State University ([email protected])

Sheryl Swoopes and the Intersection of Race, Gender, and Sexuality

Sheryl Swoopes is the epitome of sporting excellence: she led the Houston Comets to four WNBA championships while earning three MVP awards and an Olympic Gold Medal. Given Swoopes' status, one would have assumed that when the star announced she is a lesbian in 2005, the media would have been all over the story. Prior to Swoopes' announcement, sportswriters had speculated that if a high-profile team-sport athlete came out during their career the announcement would lead to a media frenzy followed by fan's rejection, loss of sponsors, and a relatively quick end to said athlete's career. Swoopes' announcement made her the highest profile U.S. team-sport athlete to come out during their career but the news was treated like a non-story. If society is so obsessed with celebrity relationships, especially same-sex ones, what would account for the lack of interest in Swoopes' announcement? Using Susan Birrell and Mary McDonald's methodology of Reading Sport Critically, I argue that Swoopes' status as an African American as well as the historical misperceptions regarding female athletes' sexuality suppressed the anticipated hype and in addition, the ways in which her entire career has been framed speaks to larger issues surrounding race and gender.

Anaza, Emeka, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign ([email protected]) and (supervisor) Jacqueline McDowell, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign ([email protected])

Constraints Restricting Nigerian Women from Participation in Recreational Sport Activities

Sport participation and outcomes are deemed very important in Nigeria; however, the lack of resources provided by public and private institutions function as constraints restricting Nigerian men and women’s ability to perform leisure sport activities. Extant research conducted in Nigeria focuses on factors attributed to recreational sport of men; but, researchers have failed to investigate constraints that limit women’s participation in sport and recreation. Using data from interviews with Nigerian women in Lagos, Nigeria, this presentation seeks to illuminate the recreational sporting patterns of Nigerian women and the constraints they face in participating in recreational sport activities. Specifically, we highlight how Nigerian women experience several structural, interpersonal, and intrapersonal constraints, including the lack of time due to family and work responsibilities, lack of finances, inadequate facilities and equipment, health related concerns, and cultural traditions, norms, and ideologies.

2010 NASSS Conference Abstracts Page 4 Antonopoulos, Nikki, Loyola Marymount University ([email protected])

Sex Testing in the Media: Different Constructions of Caster Semenya

The sex of South African runner Caster Semenya was questioned after she won the 2009 World Championships in Berlin due to her masculine appearance and sudden time improvement. Even though Semenya was raised as a female and identifies herself as a female, the International Association of Athletics Federation (IAAF) forced her to take a sex test to prove her biological sex. IAAF’s fear of a male or intersex athlete competing in the female sports division is that this creates an unlevel playing field. Research and media treatment of intersex and sex testing leave many questions unanswered in defining sex. This paper examines and critiques representative media treatments that blame or sympathize with Semenya and/or South Africa with respect to "leveling the playing field". Media treatments compared include newspapers published in South Africa, United States, and Commonwealth countries. Media criticism of Semenya’s treatment is found to differ by geographical location. This finding emphasizes the unclear guidelines and ambiguity over intersexuality in athletics. The biases and discrepancies seen in media treatment about intersexual female athletes shows that there is little agreement about a solution that will completely level the playing field in sports with respect to determinations about biological sex.

Avner, Zoe, University of Alberta ([email protected]) and Jim Denison, University of Alberta ([email protected])

Curving Coaching Practices: A Foucauldian Analysis of Teaching Skills and Progressions

This paper takes as its starting point that teaching and learning skills in sport is a complex and dynamic social process (Nash & Collins, 2006), which cannot be reduced to a mechanistic or fixed set of procedures. This linear pedagogical model uncritically applied as “best practice” has numerous problematic effects which are difficult to discern because it strongly frames and constrains how coaches understand knowledge, the body, and performance. As a result, skills are predominantly taught and learned as a disembodied and standardized procedure relying exclusively on a coach’s logic. Not only is this model very often ineffective but most problematically it can stifle an athlete’s ability to develop as an effective and independent problem-solver. Drawing on the work of Michel Foucault and his understanding of knowledge production as a social process, we offer possible new perspectives on the body and performance, which emphasize skill acquisition as a fluid relational process and move firmly away from a reductionist understanding of the body as machine. We believe that such new perspectives, along with an ongoing critical examination of taken-for-granted assumptions (Lawson, 1984) can help coaches develop more effective and ethical practices and become a positive force for change.

Aycock, Alan, University of Wisconsin – Milwaukee ([email protected]) ‘Roid Rage: Moral Panic in America’s Secular Religion Bellah’s notion of civil religion seems to apply to baseball more than to any other American sport: baseball represents a nativist longing for an authentic, rural past in which culture heroes like Ruth and Aaron played according to the rules. The intrusion of foreign substances like steroids sullies modern achievements and threatens to degrade baseball as a national pastime; with it, American identity. Jenkins’ model of moral panic helps to explain the continuing online debate between those who mourn the decline of American values and those who argue that steroids have little, if any effect on athletic performance in professional baseball.

Baerg, Andrew, University of Houston-Victoria ([email protected])

Risk Management and the Sports Video Game

This essay responds to Donnelly’s (2004) work on risk culture and Giulianotti’s (2009) call for a deeper investigation of risk with respect to sport and sport sociology. The paper brings Beck’s (1992, 2009) understanding of risk and the risk society together with governmentality theory and then combines these theoretical bases to apply them to a discussion of risk management and the sports video game. At a glance, it would seem that the sports video game has very little to do with risk. However, it is the way that the sports video game positions the user that opens up space for questions to be asked about risk management. In this paper, I argue that the sports game’s ubiquitous quantification of the athletic body naturalizes scientifically and economically defined strategies attached to risk management. These strategies responsibilize users by positioning them to adopt these expert approaches to managing risk. To illustrate this argument, I apply these ideas to a qualitative textual analysis of Sports Interactive’s soccer simulation, Football Manager 2010.

2010 NASSS Conference Abstracts Page 5 Bates, Nameka R., University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign ([email protected])

The Formula: Black Male Athletic Bodies in Academic Spaces

Histories, academic achievement, exploitation, identity development, and career aspirations are just a few of the lenses through which the experience of African American male collegiate athletes has been interrogated by sport sociologists. Indeed, the social justice movement toward racial equity in athletics continues to be critical in sport studies as many questions, challenges, and injustices persist. This presentation, based on the author's preliminary dissertation work, studies the cultural context in which African American male collegiate athletes engage in sports, academics, and social life. Special attention is devoted in this presentation to identification and discussion of significant prevailing issues, and historical and theoretical foundations, regarding Black male athletic bodies in academic spaces. The goal of the larger research project of which this is a part is to garner holistic understanding of connections (or lack of connections) between athletic participation and overall campus engagement.

Batts, Callie, University of Maryland ([email protected]) and Steph MacKay, University of Ottawa ([email protected])

Job “Hunting” 101: Navigating the Job Search Process and Beyond

This year’s graduate student workshop focuses on the variety of employment opportunities available upon completing a graduate degree. This session is organized for, but not restricted to, graduate students at all levels, and it aims to address specific concerns and questions related to entering the job market. Panelists will speak to their experiences of searching for jobs both inside and outside of academia, the application and interview process, and negotiating such issues as salary level, teaching load, and job responsibilities. We will have panelists who represent different perspectives on post-degree employment and offer diverse insights on how to creatively and successfully navigate a job search in the current economic climate. Panelists will speak for approximately five minutes about their job search and hiring experiences, and the remainder of the session will consist of an open question and answer period. This informal and interactive workshop will be driven primarily by questions from attendees, and all are welcome to attend and participate.

Batts, Callie, University of Maryland ([email protected]), David L. Andrews, University of Maryland ([email protected]) and Michael L. Silk, University of Bath ([email protected])

The Next Great International Sporting Hub? The 2010 Commonwealth Games and the Globalization of Delhi

In staging the 2010 Commonwealth Games, the city of Delhi aspires to not only host a successful and highly visible sporting event, but also to emerge from the afterglow of the Games as a truly global city (Sassen, 1996). Thus, those responsible for securing and delivering Delhi 2010 are looking to the Games as a means of advancing the city as a truly international metropolis illustrative of India’s escalating economic power, growing influence within international politics, and unequivocal cultural import. On the surface, Delhi 2010 would appear to be a positive development for a city that has long been riven by structural and social challenges. However, as with the recent staging of many global sporting mega-events—and, as tends to be the corollary of neo- liberal development strategies (Hackworth, 2008; Waitt, 2008; Oza, 2006)—beyond the palpable urban infrastructure enhancements catalyzed by the Games, there exists a widening gap between rich and poor, the educated and the uneducated, and bodies that matter and those that plainly do not. Those that do not—such as the 27,000 families displaced to make way for the Games Village (Puri & Bhatia, 2009)—remain invisible and expendable to the power elite who seek to use the Games to simultaneously globalize and capitalize Delhi in and through sport, with the aim of attracting, engaging, and serving those bodies that do matter. This paper provides a critical and contextualized reading of the Games, with specific regard to the contestation surrounding its role in effecting the challenges and contradictions of (re)creating Delhi as a culturally and economically vibrant international metropolis. As such, the discussion explores both the dominant corporatist neo-liberal discourse championing the rise of Delhi as an international sporting hub, and the popular media-fuelled critical counter discourse speaking to the role of the Games in exacerbating the dehumanization and marginalization of the Delhi throng. Critical to this interrogation is recognition of the irrefutable connections between the body, sport, and postcolonial power relations that shape the contemporary Indian condition. Hence, this project synthesizes, and looks to build upon, insights derived from such fields as urban studies, globalization studies, postcolonial studies, and physical cultural studies.

2010 NASSS Conference Abstracts Page 6 Beal, Becky, California State University, East Bay ([email protected]) and Maureen Smith, Sacramento State University ([email protected])

Straight Gaze: Curl Girls, Homonormativity and Consumer Lesbianism

This paper examines the representations of gender and sexual identities of sporting lesbians as depicted/portrayed on Logo’s reality TV show, “Curl Girls.” Because reality programming tends to employ a spectrum of people including queer “others,” we were curious to see how a reality program of all queers creates difference and hierarchies. We conducted a content analysis of the six episode series, following six lesbian surfers set in Los Angeles, and totaling two hours. We found that materialism, monogamy, and a white heterosexual bodily aesthetic were privileged. Using the concept of homonormativity (Duggan, 2003) we explain both the hierarchies created and currency of these representations as connected to neo-liberal moment and “rearticulate whiteness and economic individualism as queer norms” (King, 2009, 274)

Beatty, Colin, Price Waterhouse Coopers ([email protected])

Management and Performance of the Crowd; The Hospital as Stadium

This presentation will parody a board of trustees "lecture" that addresses the turn of corporate healthcare in America in to treating healthcare companies and hospitals more and more like stadium bodies/ crowds (corporeal / corporation). These companies use an increasing number of sports metaphors to articulate the location, management, and care of bodies (spectators) in a physical site (hospital or clinic as stadium). The paper will use these sports metaphors to demonstrate the variability and application of such terms for corporate management and human care of large or collective groups (patients = crowds).

Beck, Cindy, Queen’s University ([email protected])

Who Pays and Plays: Funding Allocation in Ontario High School Sport In Canada it is generally expected that high schools, in some capacity, will offer sport programs for students to participate in competitively. Given that education is provincially funded, guidelines and expectations vary by province. The Ministry of Education in Ontario strongly recommends that schools provide sport opportunities at both the elementary and secondary levels, however, as with all other extra-curricular activities; there is no specific funding for athletics. It is then at the discretion of school boards and individual schools as to how sports are organized and funded. Arguably, the activities that are supported by direct financial contributions at both the Board level and at the individual school level are deemed most important. This paper examines three public school boards in Ontario in terms of how their high school sport leagues are organized and funded. This inquiry stems from noticeable barriers to sport participation that continue to exist for many high school students, including increased student user fees and the need for extensive school-based fundraising. Additionally, despite the student-before-athlete rhetoric, sport development in some instances continues to override educational goals and priorities. The ways in which certain systems of funding allocation reinforce and encourage sport development as a priority are explored.

Belore, Melanie, University of Toronto ([email protected])

Right To Play and the Crisis of Representation: A Critical Discourse Analysis of Vancouver 2010

As the sport for development and peace (SDP) movement continues to expand worldwide, one organization remains firmly at the forefront of the charge. This paper will explore how Right To Play has evolved as the ‘face’ of the SDP movement through critical discourse analysis. Drawing from postcolonial (Said, 1978), feminist (Mohanty, 2003) and intersectionality studies (Peterson & Runyan, 2010), I attempt to unpack how Right To Play’s (self)-representation in the media promotes an image of SDP which ultimately acts as a barrier to the effective, widespread social change they seek. Guided by Norman Fairclough’s three- dimensional framework, I aim to establish links between spoken and written language surrounding Right To Play (as presented through advertisements and in their Press Kit), the interpretation and reproduction of these texts (in on-line news stories collected throughout the 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympic Games), and their collective influence on social practice (primarily issues of power, knowledge and representation). My intention is not to discount the valuable work done through Right To Play’s unparalleled fundraising achievements; instead, I argue that an increased commitment to participatory research and

2010 NASSS Conference Abstracts Page 7 programming might secure Right To Play a spot as not only the leader of the SDP movement, but one that is committed to challenging power imbalances within the donor-recipient relationships they engage in.

Bernstein, Samuel B., University of Maryland ([email protected])

The Pursuit of Perfection: A Public Health Crisis

This paper focuses on various discursive claims concerning the embodied effects of post-modernity, the increasing spread of neo-liberal ideologies and the link between personal and public health. More specifically, this paper examines representations of the 'obesity crisis' as illustrative, not only of a ‘moral panic’ manufactured to maintain hegemonic control (Cohen, 1972; Hall et al., 1978), but the 'success' of this effort. Examining the 'ideal of perfection,’ it becomes increasingly clear how (American) conceptions of the 'Perfect Body' (c.f., Dworkin & Wachs, 2009) are crafted to maintain particular forms of bodily knowledge. Seeking to disrupt the frequent configuration of obesity as the maladaptive outcome of our current ‘crisis,’ this paper examines the popular fascination with perfection as the root cause of this public health crisis.

Billings, Andrew C., Clemson University ([email protected])

Reinventing the LPGA Tour: Brand Survival in a Male-Dominated Marketplace

This paper explores the continued efforts of the Ladies Professional Golf Association to become more relevant, more popular, and more profitable through a series of questionable decisions that received much public criticism. Ranging from the attempt to adopt an English-only policy for their players to marketing heterosexuality by highlighting Association daycares and other domesticated offerings, the LPGA has embarked on a multi-year and multi-faceted reimagining of what their sport could or should be. Changes regarding the intermingled notions of gender, ethnicity, and nationality percolate within all of these decisions and will be considered in terms of differential impact on athletes, consumers, and decision-makers related to women’s professional golf.

Block, Betty A., Adams State College ([email protected])

Sport and Catholicism: Developing the Cardinal Virtues

Pope John Paul II (2000) proclaimed that sport and the importance of exercising the body, intellect and will were gifts from God. He stated that sport has grown to be “one of the characteristic phenomena of the modern era, almost a ‘sign of the times’ capable of interpreting humanity’s new needs and new expectations.” Because of the global dimensions of sport, those involved have “great responsibility for establishing a new civilization of love.” Participation in sports gives an opportunity for the examination of conscience, to identify and promote positive aspects of sport, and recognize the various transgressions to which it can succumb: taking care that the human body is protected from attack on its integrity and exploitation. John Paul II said (2004) that sports can help Christians develop the cardinal virtues and created a sports department in the Vatican to reinforce his assertions. This session will examine the cardinal virtues: fortitude, temperance, prudence and justice and how Catholics attempt to develop these virtues through sport.

Boily, Véronique, Université d’Ottawa ([email protected]) and Christine Dallaire, Université d’Ottawa ([email protected])

Youth Francophone Games: How Sport Linked With Culture Fosters Pride

The Jeux de la francophonie canadienne (JFC) and the Jeux franco-ontariens (JFO), both created by minority Francophone youth associations, invite French-speaking teenagers to compete in a multidisciplinary event (sport, cultural and leadership activities) where they can meet other French-speaking youths, display their talents while simultaneously celebrating Francophone pride and identity. This paper draws on ethnographic data including participant observation, interviews, questionnaires and drawings to understand how this particular marriage between sport and culture successfully sparks or strengthens participants’ Francophoneness and particularly their sense of pride. At both games, sport is a strategy (or a "lure") to attract a larger number of participants to a fun event where they can be exposed to Francophone language and culture. Both

2010 NASSS Conference Abstracts Page 8 events also focus on the development and staging of youth sporting and cultural talents and skills to reinforce self-esteem and self-confidence among participants. While the JFC reproduce organized amateur sport competitions, the JFO invent new sporting practices in an effort to emphasize participation and social interaction among participants. Despite these differences, both games succeed in creating a strong sense of Francophone pride because of their strategic use of culture and youth talent throughout the Games.

Boliba, Brittney, California State University, East Bay ([email protected])

Accessibility of an Action Sport: Examining Social Inclusion/Exclusion in Kiteboarding

This study examines the social inclusion/exclusion mechanisms in 'kiteboarding' or 'kitesurfing', and the ways in which hegemonic ideologies related to mainstream sport, specifically concerning gender, physicality and age are reproduced and/or challenged by kiteboarders. Contrary to claim that action sports are more accessible by females than mainstream sports, this study demonstrates that females still struggle to gain equality and legitimacy in kiteboarding. Both male and female participants considered the tricks performed by males as superior to those performed by females, and attributed male domination in the sport to 'natural' differences in physical and mental abilities. Moreover, while the sport is accessible by females and males alike of virtually any age, physical ability and body size/shape, the significant investment of time and money, and fear were found to be major exclusionary factors within the sport. My intent with this article is to initiate scholarly discourse of kiteboarding culture by presenting an investigation of its participants and social environment.

Booth, Douglas, University of Otago ([email protected])

History and Sociology: Promise, Promiscuity and Potential

Notwithstanding occasional dialogue between historians and sociologists of sport, practitioners working in the two sub-disciplines over the last thirty years have largely passed by each other in silence. This roundtable examines the relationships between sport history and sport sociology in the past, present and future. While such sessions have appeared at previous conferences, most presenters have focused on the epistemological and methodological tensions between sport history and sport sociology, and they have tended to compare the strengths of their field with the limitations of the other. This roundtable focuses on internal tensions and struggles for coherence within the two sub-disciplines and identifying commonalities, especially in the so-called critical streams of sport history and sport sociology. Practitioners working in the critical streams of the two sub-disciplines share interests in the present, in power relations, and in the emancipation of marginalized and alienated social groups. Moreover, they appear willing to expose the methodological limitations in their own fields and to embrace multidisciplinary approaches and perspectives.

Boujikian, Danielle, Loyola Marymount University ([email protected])

Swimming in Deep Water: Amanda Beard as Athlete and Model

Sexualized female athletes have become prominent in marketing strategies and advertisements that feature hyper-feminized bodies in ways that diminish athletic achievement. While female athletes are increasingly comfortable in such promotional displays, they risk perpetuating women’s marginalization in sport. U.S. Olympic medalist Amanda Beard, along with other notable female athletes, such as Lindsay Vonn, have willingly agreed to pose nude for magazines and claimed comfort with their decisions. Yet, such strategies raise questions about both the ethical propriety of exposing the body to advance one’s fortunes and their functioning in perpetuating stereotype that reinforces inequality between female and male athletes. This study critically examines Beard’s appearances in Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Edition, Playboy, and Olympic Magazine in considering the nature of female athlete’s relation to sport marketing and media strategy. Photographs of Beard in each magazine were compared (for context, situation, symbolism, and aesthetics) to assess how female athletes are presented as marketable bodies. Conclusions consider how this examination of Beard ‘s pictures, along with comments from fans and critics, illuminates the marketing and media climate for female athletes.

2010 NASSS Conference Abstracts Page 9 Bravo, Gonzalo, West Virginia University ([email protected]), Rosa López de D’Amico – Universidad Pedagógica Experimental El Libertador, Venezuela ([email protected]), and Doyeon Won, Yonsei University, South Korea

Not Everything is Money! An Examination of Work Conditions of Venezuelan Coaches

The Venezuelan sport system has been going through significant changes since the 1990s. The biggest change has been an increase in the financial resources allocated to this sector. Despite this change, professionalizing coaches remains one of the most complex tasks that the Venezuelan sport system has faced in years. This study investigates the impact of the psychological contract fulfillment (PCF or breach) on a sample of paid coaches working for Venezuela’s NGBs. It examines the influence of the PCF on employee-related outcomes and the influence of the perceived status and cause of the psychological contract breach on the employee-related outcomes. The psychological contract at work is understood as an exchange relationship about the subjective belief of implicit agreements between employees and employers. Thus, it is based on perceptions of informal non- contractual agreements that go beyond pure transactional matters. Results of this study confirm the findings of the importance of the PC as evidenced in other studies conducted in traditional industries. The coaching profession is no different than other professions in which an employee not only works for money but also finds a place where he/she can also growth professionally and personally.

Broch, Trygve B., Norwegian School of Sport Sciences ([email protected])

Conflicting Representations? Media Depictions of Norwegian Team Handball

Norwegian Team Handball manifests gender as a national, historical and psychosocial construction. While this contact sport is constituted as a men’s game in most European countries, widespread Norwegian comprehensions identify team handball as women’s sport. In contrast to other team sports, such as hockey, team handball is played by women and men with the same set of rules (except for ball size) allowing strenuous body contact and tackles for both sexes. This backdrop creates an interesting arena for sociological inquiry exploring gender dynamics in contemporary Norway, as well as general mechanisms of transformation and reproduction. This presentation explores preliminary research data and suggests some methodological perspectives for a newly started research project: A comparative analysis of mediated team handball and team handball practice. The aim of the investigation is to highlight gendered knowledge presented by Norwegian sports media and how this knowledge may relate to team handball practice among young Norwegian handball players of both genders .In this presentation Norwegian media receives the main focus.

Burns, Kellie, University of Sydney ([email protected]) and Kate Russell, University of Sydney ([email protected])

Sexual Health Knowledge and the Cervical Cancer Vaccination Program in NSW, Australia

This paper reflects on initial findings of a qualitative study of the HPV/cervical cancer vaccination program, administered in secondary schools across Australia since 2007. These findings are from two case studies of single-sex (all-girls) metropolitan secondary schools in the State of New South Wales. Semi-structured, in-depth interviews were conducted with school principals, teachers, school nurses and parents at each school. In addition, focus groups were conducted with lower and upper secondary students. Our engagement with the data acknowledges that schools and young people’s bodies are sites for the production and management of ‘good’ and ‘healthy’ citizenship (Harrison & Colquhuon, 2007; Wright & Burrows, 2004; Wyn, 2007). We explore how various ‘stakeholders’ within the school setting take up this vaccine, which purports to ‘protect’ young women from certain sexual health risks, as a symbol of responsible citizenship and as an investment in lifelong health and wellbeing. Despite having very limited understandings about HPV, cervical cancer or how the vaccine ‘works’, almost all of the participants in the study narrated girls’ ‘choice’ to be vaccinated by conjoining discourses of gender and (hetero)sexuality with neoliberal rhetoric about social responsibility and consumer ‘choice’.

2010 NASSS Conference Abstracts Page 10 Bustad, Jacob J., University of Maryland ([email protected])

Postmodern Muscle: Individualism, Fitness Culture and the Body Ecstatic

This work seeks to explore the relationship between ideas of personal fitness, "fit" bodies and fitness culture, and a modality of individualism characterized by the social realities of the postmodern condition, specifically in regards to men and male bodies. By incorporating postmodern social theory and work on the male “body panic,” my aim is to provoke discussion of the changing nature of personal fitness and the "fit" body, including the heightened awareness and symbolic proliferation of “corporeal perfection.” Thus this project seeks to distinguish postmodern personal fitness as not entirely novel, but very different from, modern ideas of fitness – and to uncover linkages between personal fitness and a postmodern modality of hyper-individualism, and the neoliberal ideologies and policies of the western State. Without diminishing the possibility for pleasure in corporeal fitness, I hope to promote a reflexive dialogue about the corporealities and ideologies inextricably intertwined within the often hyperreal and ecstatic bodies of contemporary male fitness.

Byron, Kipchumba, University of Georgia ([email protected]) and Rose Chepyator-Thomson, University of Georgia ([email protected])

The Foreign Coaching Phenomenon in African Football

Following independence Africans took football seriously, with the performance of national teams being considered paramount at World Cup. However the coaching of African football has been, since independence, a European affair across the continent. The purpose of this paper is to understand the foreign coaching phenomenon in African football as implicated in capital accumulation in the European core, resulting in under-development of the sport in the African continent. Sources examined include journal articles, popular press and Internet-derived information. This literature-based research investigation uses postcolonial and world- systems theories as a framework to make sense of perspectives on football. Themes concern federations' and governments' disconnection between internal culturally responsive social and financial solutions and external dependency in football coaching, foreign coaches' contradictory assessment of African players' skills and behavior, African footballers' changed views on indigenous coaches and Football playing in Africa, Geopolitical and Geopolicy-Related Perspectives on Coaching. Using Wallersteins's (1974) theory indicates European core nations to exploit periphery-based labor resources, deriving disproportionately benefits that sustain the football-based capitalist economy. Implications for football include the removal of colonial anesthesia in postcolonial Africa, and decolonizing sports leaders' mindset that is grounded having foreign coaching as a solution to the development of African football.

Caldwell, Laura M., Pennsylvania State University ([email protected]) and Marie Hardin, Pennsylvania State University ([email protected])

ESPN's "Body Issue" and the Limits of Liberating Gendered Bodies

In general, popular magazines, including those in sport, have been indicted by scholars and critics for the ways they reinforce constricting, gendered body ideals. ESPN's inaugural "Body Issue," released in fall 2009, was simultaneously praised and blamed for the way it reinforced (or rejected) these ideals. In a textual analysis of the magazine informed by the concepts of sexual difference and ambivalence, we suggest that the magazine -- despite editorial images that clearly rejected ideal-body norms -- reinforced stereotypical (and restrictive) understandings of male and female athletic bodies on the whole. We argue that ultimately, any venture to do otherwise within a commercial context may be doomed; the political economy of the sports-media complex, reflected in the ad-driven nature of ventures such as these, undermines any liberatory images therein.

2010 NASSS Conference Abstracts Page 11 Campbell, Lynn, University of Alberta ([email protected])

Newspaper Coverage of Canadian Hockey at the 2010 Olympic Games

Female athletes are frequently underrepresented and misrepresented in newspaper coverage. A common misrepresentation is undermining women’s accomplishments through picture and text. The purpose of this study was to examine the newspaper coverage of the men’s and women’s Canadian hockey teams during the 2010 Olympic Games and provide evidence of how newspapers reinforce patriarchal ideal in hockey by their representation of female players. Hegemonic masculinity forms the theoretical premise for this study as it is evident in both media and sport institutions. Analysis of a Canadian newspaper involved determining the number, size, and location of the photographs and articles dedicated to each of the teams. Results demonstrated that the men’s team was covered more frequently and in a more favourable manner than the women’s team. I then analyzed the articles and photographs, looking for seven common discursive strategies (Wensing and Bruce, 2003; Donnelly, MacNeill, and Knight, 2008) used to represent females in a marginalized manner. Preliminary findings indicate the trivialization of female hockey players by depicting them as gendered bodies rather than as athletes. Regardless of women’s accomplishments at the most elite level of a sport in which Canada prides itself, male players and terms are often held in higher regard.

Carey, Robert Scott, Brock University ([email protected])

(Re)Producing Hoosiers: Discursively Analysing the 2009-2010 Butler Men’s Basketball Team

Butler University, located in the heart of Indiana, saw their men’s basketball team make an impressive run to the 2009-2010 NCAA Final Four championship game. Despite finishing the tournament as eventual runners-up, the team’s successes had been situated underneath the umbrella of a “Hoosier narrative”. Recognizing the word “Hoosier” as an important signifier within Indiana’s political and cultural landscapes, this paper seeks to problematize its subsequent discourse as it is used within Indiana’s basketball climate. Drawing from critical race theory and critical white studies whilst relying heavily upon published and online news articles, it is argued that Butler’s predominantly white, Indiana-born roster played an integral role in (re)producing a Hoosier discourse. More importantly, the concealed whiteness that has forever remained a part of the word “Hoosier” is inconspicuously celebrated through what is framed as a less racialized “Hoosier morality.” Problematically then, the whiteness through which this morality becomes authenticated goes unnoticed, yet its associative values are exclusively claimed and nostalgically revered by audiences as a source for white power. Furthermore, those athletes who are deemed to legitimately embody the Hoosier morality are produced to defend and protect its values from a dichotomized and threatening Black counterpart.

Carter, Akilah R., Texas A&M University ([email protected]) and Jacqueline McDowell, University of Illinois- Champaign ([email protected])

Examining the Significance of Leadership Development for Black Women in Sport

In 2009, O’Neil, Hopkins, and Bilimoria proposed that leadership development practices used in the business sector, such as executive coaching, mentoring, and emotional intelligence skills development, could be effectively utilized to develop women in sport. More specifically, these practices could be used holistically in the development of female athletes to assist in their professional, personal, social, and/or athletic development. This presentation examines the viability of such practices in the development of Black female athletes and Black women pursuing careers in sport and recreation. In doing so, we will explicate how the Black women intersectionality (e.g., race, gender, class, sexual orientation) impacts their holistic development. Additionally, we highlight how these leadership development practices can be used to develop authentic leaders who espouse social justice values.

2010 NASSS Conference Abstracts Page 12 Carter, Thomas F., University of Brighton ([email protected])

On Citizenship and Mobility in Transnational Sport Migration

The relationships between sport-related professionals and the institutions that govern sport are complex, dynamic, and constantly in flux. In this paper I examine some of the institutional structures states use to regulate these movements, drawing particularly attention to the category-making relationship of citizenship, and how individuals make use of citizenship categories for their own ends. Part of an ongoing project on transnational sport migration, my concern is that much of the discussion regarding sport migration has ignored the role of the state in regulating the production of athletic mobility. Begun in the late 1990s, this multi-sited ethnographic project incorporates five years of fieldwork in two marginalized localities within global sport, tracing the travels and trials of numerous transnational migrants. In that time, what has become glaringly apparent is that the role of the state has a significant impact on the ability of transnational sport migrants to enact their own mobility. Thus, my focus is on transnational sport migrants and their negotiations and uses of citizenship to effect their own mobility.

Catsoulis, Mata, York University ([email protected])

The Importance of Routine and Superstition In Professional Hockey Athletes

According to popular media, routines and superstitions in sport, in general, and hockey in particular, are commonplace. Superstitions among athletes have become an accepted feature in elite sport and are often followed and normalized in popular media, and yet little is known about these practices and behaviours beyond popular media. Aside from some dated research (e.g., Gregory & Petrie, 1975; Neil, 1982), there is relatively no scholarly research – socio-cultural or otherwise – critically examining superstitious behaviour among athletes. This proposed study will attempt to address this gap in research by critically examining the role of superstition and routine among professional hockey players. The key aim of this study will be to understand how and why ice hockey players employ routines and superstitions in their training practices and the effect it may have on competition. While there are numerous examples of superstitions in a wide variety of sports cited in popular media, this study will focus on hockey and this proposed study will attempt to differentiate between routine and superstition as experienced by professional hockey players.

Cavalier, Elizabeth S., Georgia State University ([email protected])

Men at Sport: Gay Men’s Experiences in the Sport Workplace

Research on sexual identity and sport has revealed a shifting narrative about the experiences of gay men. While some suggest the atmosphere is hostile, others posit that homophobia and sexual prejudice are playing less of a role in gay men’s experiences. This research focuses on the experiences of ten gay men working in professional, collegiate, and club sport, as part of a larger dataset of 37 male and female employees. Five of the men were overtly and publicly out at work, while five were closeted (to varying degrees). This paper focuses on two major areas of dissonance for gay men in sport—their perception of a slightly negative workplace environment even as their experiences belied that designation, and their disconnect between their level of outness at work and their actual behaviors in coming out. It also discusses the experiences of the five publicly out participants and suggests that the public “story” of gay men working in sport represents one of two extremes—either the proverbial “horror story,” or the extremely positive representation of gay men’s experiences. This project suggests that gay men’s experiences in sport are more complex and nuanced than the public narrative implies.

Chiba, Naoki, Hokusho College ([email protected])

Migratory motivations of American professional basketball players in the world

Drawing upon world-system theory this study focuses on basketball player migration from the USA to Japan, Europe and Australia. There are many American professional players playing outside the USA. Why do they move to overseas countries to play basketball? How do they impact on local basketball leagues in terms of athletic level and cultural integration? This study used a qualitative methodology using interviews with five American professional players in Japan, Spain and Australia from 2009

2010 NASSS Conference Abstracts Page 13 to 2010. Overall, the study seeks to clarify: 1) the migratory motivations of American players and cultural differences between the USA and other countries, and 2) transitions in numbers of American players in JBL, Euroleague, and NBL.

Chilson, Megan, The University of Montana Western ([email protected] ) and Fredrick Chilson, The University of Montana Western ([email protected] )

The Social Impact of Women and Tailgating

The objective of this paper is to place women in the context of the popular American sport ritual of tailgating. More specifically, this paper attempts to address issues such as: What role do women play in tailgating, and how do women negotiate this role? What motivates women to tailgate? How do women see themselves in tailgating? The prevailing sociology and women’s studies theory in this field can be located in the areas of tailgating as a social institution, the feminist movement, Durkheim’s sociology of rituals, and tailgating as a libratory process. An exploratory study employing in-depth interviews and content-analysis was conducted. Women involved in college and professional sports were interviewed and the content of tailgating pictures from personal research was analyzed. A first analysis of the interviews and pictures reveals that there are close similarities but also clear differences between male and female tailgating and that women are, nowadays, much more sophisticated about the entire sport experience. This seems to suggest that there is a distinct “female tailgating experience” that makes it much more acceptable for today’s women to like sports in the male-dominated arena of sports.

Chin, Jessica W., San José State University ([email protected])

Health Knowledge and Body Production in Romanian Health Clubs

Worldwide health and fitness trends are increasingly evident in post-communist Romania, not only in terms of declining health standards (i.e., obesity rates), but also shifting patterns of class-based (body) consumer practices. Taking full advantage of an emerging capitalist marketplace and the national push to promote better health, local investors and international fitness chains alike are creating a new landscape of private fitness/sport and health clubs in Romania. While new facilities are fully equipped for consumers to shape and display their bodies, however, body management practices are not exclusively achieved within spaces devoted to physical activity. Indeed, even as these clubs purport to promote healthy lifestyle practices, this does not preclude offering amenities such as bar service and smoking areas. In this context, how are health, fitness, and wellness defined? In what ways are private fitness clubs promoting particular meanings of health and healthy bodies? Addressing these questions, this paper explores the (co-)production of class- and gender-based definitions (and divisions) of health and fitness in the private fitness and health club setting in Romania. Analysis is based on a case study for which data was collected through ethnographic participant-observation and interviews with workers of a private health club in western Romania.

Cho, Seongsik, Hanyang University ([email protected]) and Eunha Koh, Korea Institute of Sport Science ([email protected])

Black Athletes and Coaches as Agencies for Korea’s Multicultural Development

This study, employing cultural studies’ epistemology, attempted to explore which socio-cultural meanings are connoted from the presence of black athletes/coaches in Korean professional sports. Korea has traditionally recognized as an ethnically/racially homogeneous State and Korean people’s social distance for black people seems to be very far, as compared to other racial groups. From the analysis of media images and the interpretation of selected black athletes’ and coaches’ roles and figures, two opposite implications were suggested. On the one hand, their existence serves to produce and reproduce Korean people’s racial stereotyped prejudices against blacks. On the other hand, however, it seems to challenge and resist such prejudices, and even transform them into global multicultural values; the significant number of posting comments on the internet points out that the exclusive sporting culture against black players should be abolished; black people’s leadership position in Korean sport leagues can be a cultural symbol for racial integration through breaking racial lines; some cultural and emotional interactions between Korean people and black athletes/coaches help to dismiss the color lines in Korean society and to refuse the racially biased people’s thoughts. This paper argues that black athletes/coaches should become important social agencies for Korea’s globalized multiculturalism.

2010 NASSS Conference Abstracts Page 14 Christesen, Paul, Dartmouth College ([email protected])

Sports and Democracy: A Theoretical Framework and Two Case Studies

This paper consists of two parts: (1) a rapid sketch of a theoretical framework, derived in part from the scholarship of Pierre Bourdieu and designed to explicate the connections between sports and democracy, and (2) the findings that result from the application of that framework to two specific historical contexts, sixth-century BCE Greece and nineteenth-century CE Britain. The proposed theoretical framework is based on the assumptions that every society needs to strike a balance between order and autonomy; that order is achieved primarily through coercion, socialization, and consensus; and that individuals need to learn to manage autonomy. Democratic societies have to overcome unusually large challenges in finding a balance between order and autonomy because overt forms of coercion can be applied only with difficulty, because the dispersion of power makes consensus both more important and more difficult to achieve, and because large numbers of individuals need to learn how to manage a high degree of autonomy. Sixth-century Greece and nineteenth-century Britain are examples of societies which experienced simultaneous movements toward democratization and toward mass participation in and spectatorship of sports. In both societies regularly playing and watching sports contributed significantly to the resolution of the aforementioned challenges by exerting coercive force on and socializing participants, by building consensus among those who enjoyed social and political privileges and excluding those who did not, and by helping individuals learn to manage autonomy. These findings suggest that the proposed theoretical framework may be fruitfully applied to a variety of societal contexts.

Church, Anthony G., Laurentian University ([email protected])

Lost in Translation: NBA Broadcasts and Punjabi Culture in Canada

In November 2009, the Toronto Raptors Basketball Club (Raptors) and the Canadian Broadcast Corporation (CBC) announced that the CBC would broadcast eight Raptors games in Punjabi during the 2009-10 National Basketball Association (NBA) season. The purpose of this research was to determine whether the language being used to broadcast basketball to Canadians in a language that is not one of Canada’s official languages, was primarily a literal translation of the English broadcasts, or whether it was an attempt to infuse Punjabi culture into the broadcasts. By conducting a content analysis of the Punjabi broadcasts the researchers have been able to distinguish if the language being used is reflective of Punjabi culture, Canadian culture, basketball culture, or some combination of the three. The findings of this research show that while there is distinctly Canadian cultural content, there are a great deal more references to Punjabi culture than simply the use of the Punjabi language. The broadcasts are most assuredly attempts to tie Canadian popular cultural forms to those popular in Punjabi culture.

Claringbould, Inge, Utrecht University ([email protected])

Creating Identities in Interaction: Youth, Adults and Sport

The popularity of youth sport continues to increase in part because adults see it as a place where young people are assumed to learn important values and skills that will help them to develop their social -and cultural- identities. Social identity is often defined as “how we locate ourselves in the society in which we live and the ways in which we perceive others as locating us” (Bradley, 1996, 24). Adults play an important role in youth sport as coaches, as supporters, as referees, as organizers, and as members of governing boards. They also attempt to teach youth 'the culture of sport', that is, dominant values, norms, expected behaviors and the desired social identities that reflect that. The purpose of this paper is to use interviews with youth aged from 8 to 18 to explore how youth experience and give meaning to the involvement of adults in organized youth sport. The results give insights into, and add to our understandings of youth sport as a possible pedagogical site for social identity construction of youth. They also show how gender, sexuality, status hierarchies, marginalization and exclusion may contribute to the construction of social and cultural identities of youth sport participants.

2010 NASSS Conference Abstracts Page 15 Clark, Marty, Queen’s University ([email protected])

Investigating Kingston’s Bid for the Hockey Hall of Fame

In 1943, Captain James T. Sutherland convinced the Canadian Amateur Hockey Association (CAHA) and the National Hockey League (NHL) to house the official Hockey Hall of Fame (HHOF) in Kingston, Ontario, but in 1958, after 15 years without the construction of a physical site, the NHL enthusiastically endorsed an alternate plan to place the HHOF in Toronto, Ontario, where it remains today. The short history of the Kingston HHOF is an important aspect of the institutionalization of hockey in Canada and can shed light on the different and contested meanings of hockey throughout Canadian history. In this paper, I disrupt mainstream HHOF histories that contend the Kingston HHOF dream “died with Sutherland” in 1955. The NHL, I argue, was not interested in a Kingston site, and more importantly, there was an anti-HHOF movement posed by Kingston residents that helped thwart construction efforts. Ultimately, the anti-HHOF movement uncovers two competing notions of “proper” Canadian culture and history that existed in Kingston during the 1940s and 1950s: one that saw hockey as an important aspect of Canadian culture that should be placed within Canada’s national history and another that did not.

Clift, Bryan C., University of Maryland ([email protected])

You Run with Who? An Ethnographic Inquiry with Back On My Feet

In this project I explore homeless bodies in their juxtaposition against volunteer bodies in a perplexing program called Back On My Feet (BOMF). BOMF is a non-profit organization that “promotes the self-sufficiency of Baltimore's homeless population by engaging them in running as a means to build confidence, strength and self-esteem.” As one of the most vulnerable and impoverished peoples and citizens, those homeless and recovering from substance abuse, how their cultural identities shape their understandings and experiences of participation in BOMF speaks to the individuality of a pervasive neoliberalism. Using Wolcott’s (2008) ethnographic conventions, experiencing, inquiring, and examining, I collected data using the following methods: participant observation, semi-structured interviews, purposeful and casual conversation, and archival information. This (re)presentation is in narrative form. Contextualized in the City of Baltimore, considered by Harvey (2001) a microcosm of urban city development in a capitalist America, participants embody broader neoliberal socio-politico-economic configurations. Their understandings of and experiences with BOMF signify the politicization of those most impoverished, and who are faced with the reality that they must find their own solutions to lack of health care, education, and social security, less they fail and maintain a stigma of failure and laziness.

Clopton, Aaron W., Louisiana State University ([email protected]), D. Scott Waltemyer, Towson University ([email protected]) and Bryan L. Finch, Oklahoma State University ([email protected])

Using Professional Sport for Community Enhancement

Sport - either as a social, physical, economical, or cultural institution - possesses a unique potential to impact its host community and those community members. One of these roles is as a social anchor in the network of the community. According to Social Anchor Theory (Clopton & Finch, in press), networks within a community require a grounding by said social anchor which accomplishes this through two elements: one, by enhancing bonding and bridging social capital through interactions, and two, by fostering an overall collective identity of the community or community group that draws individuals together. To explore this concept, data were collected from members of two large communities who have been uniquely-impacted and intertwined by professional sport - New Orleans, LA and Oklahoma City, OK. Community members from selected civic and neighborhood associations completed surveys assessing such outcomes as community identity, team identity, and social capital. Preliminary findings from the study reveal a significant connection between identifying with the community’s sports teams and the overall community identity. However, overall findings suggest a mixed conclusion in the relationship between team identity and the overall quality of community based upon perceived images of the community and social capital.

2010 NASSS Conference Abstracts Page 16 Coakley, Jay, University of Chichester, UK ([email protected])

Sociology of Sport Research in Latin America- Present and Future

The primary goal of this panel is to provide members of NASSS with a sense of sociology of sport research in Latin America. The panelists will briefly describe their own research and identify research topics that have been popular in their countries and topics that need research attention now and in the future. The secondary goal of the panel is to provide a context for discussion and facilitating collaborative relationships between members of NASSSS and ALESDE.

Comeau, Gina S., Laurentian University ([email protected])

“A Repository of Human Possibility:” Sport in Canadian and American Films

Films play an important role in strengthening a society’s popular culture by reinforcing certain myths, stereotypes, and values. To understand how the representation of sport influences and reflects culture, this paper examines the portrayal of sport in Canadian and American films released within the last two decades. This provides an interesting opportunity for comparison given the proximity and similarities between the two countries (Smith, 2008). A difference between Canadian and American culture is that Canadians tend to value their sporting achievements slightly more than Americans (Nevitte, 2002). This value difference is reflected in Canadian cinema which values both the spectator and participant aspects of sport as well as a sense of community. Conversely, American sport films tend to promote aspects of “individualism and self-reliance” even when presented within a team context (Baker, 2006:12). My research examines which values, symbols and myths are promoted within the different films and argues that the links between popular and political culture help account for these differences.

Cooky, Cheryl, Purdue University ([email protected]), Shari Dworkin, University of California, San Francisco ([email protected]) and Ranissa Dycus, Purdue University ([email protected])

“What makes a woman a woman?" vs. "Our First Lady of Sport": A Comparative Analysis of Caster Semenya in U. S. and South African News Media

Caster Semenya, South African female track & field athlete from rural Limpopo South Africa, won the IAAF 2009 World Championships in the 800m. She was then subject to gender verification testing. Media reports underscored that Semenya underwent "gender verification" testing due to her "deep voice, muscular build and rapid improvement in times." Combining content and textual analysis, we conduct a comparative, critical media of the Caster Semenya controversy in the United States and South African print news media. Results demonstrate within the U. S. papers, dominant media frames include debates about Semenya's sex whereas South Africa framed the controversy as being centrally about her gender. Additionally, the United States media reports consistently "medicalized" debates about sex testing and presented the limitations of assessing male and female bodies in sport. South African print media sources deployed nationalist frames and a strategic essentialism to frame Semenya as a "true" woman, defending the nation against a perceived racist assault. South African print news media also included human rights frames, which were absent in the U.S. papers. We conclude the paper with a discussion the way in which sport institutionally enforces narrow and unjust definitions of sex and gender.

Cooper, Joseph N., University of Georgia ([email protected])

Critical Success Factors for Black Male Football Student Athletes

For years, Black male student athletes have been viewed as academically inferior and athletically superior. Unlike much of the research that focuses on low graduation rates and low student retention, this study will focus on the critical success factors of Black male football student-athletes. The purpose of this study was to identify the Critical Success Factors (CSFs) of current Black male football student-athletes at a major Division I Southeastern public predominantly White institution who exhibited a high level of success academically and athletically. This study was a quantitative case study of 42 Black male football student athletes at a major Division I Southeastern public predominantly White institution. Critical Success Factor Success Survey (CSFS) was separated into six sections: personal development, social harmony, engagement with a strong support system, time management skills, career aspirations, and organized religion. A 4-point Likert type scale was used for the responses of the 19

2010 NASSS Conference Abstracts Page 17 multiple choice questions and, 11 yes/no questions. The critical race theory was referenced as the conceptual framework for this study. While the results revealed no significant findings, the responses produced from the survey revealed significant implications for further research.

Cork, Stephanie, Queen’s University ([email protected])

Soldier On: An Exploration of Daily Life After Acquired Disability

This Master’s thesis is based on semi-structured interviews with Canadian Armed Forces amputees who are, or who have been involved in rehabilitation programs. Sport is seen as a major focus within rehabilitative programs for individuals living with disability. This project develops ethnography of post-amputee life, which engages with selected themes related to: perceptions of health, human agency, and adjustments to life with a prosthetic limb. It is argued by disability theorists that ‘impairment’ represents the physiological changes within a previously unimpeded body. Disability, then, arises from the social barriers such as environmental, cultural, ideological and political structures that inhibit individuals from participating in all ‘able-bodied’ arenas. Paralympic athletes such as Aimee Mullins and Oscar Pistorius provide valuable case studies that illustrate the decisive role sport plays within studies in disability. Further, the ethnographic data provides some important insights into the way in which participants in post-injury physiotherapy relate to the philosophy of the ‘tactical athlete’ that underlies these programs – aimed specifically at military personnel (i.e. Soldier On/Sans Limités). Specific attention is paid to the manner in which participants interpret the notion of “soldiering on” in the face of a dramatic change in physical circumstance and concomitant life chances.

Cormier, Joel, Nichols College ([email protected])

The Ivy League and the Expansion of the Commercialized Sport

The professional model, and the debate in incorporating its use in college athletics, has been contested since the first college athletics contest. The attempted reforms to improve college sport demonstrate that this professional model have played a big role in the many often times heated discussions throughout history. To avoid the controversy from these discussions, there are many institutions who attempt to separate themselves from the potential perversion of commercialism that may exist in the professional model. Many of these institutions, representing the highest esteemed colleges and universities in academia, create a line of demarcation presenting an ideal of how college sports should be presented. Through conference realignment and entering a division status, these schools of academia present themselves above the problems. Does this professional model exist in the colleges with the great academic reputations? Does the pressure to win at all costs affect schools even with the most prestigious academic reputations? This presentation will attempt to investigate these issues through anecdotal and gathered data.

Cormier, Joel, Nichols College (Member-at-Large, The Drake Group) ([email protected])

Defending Academic Integrity in the Face of Commercialized College Sport: A Panel Discussion Sponsored by the Drake Group

The mission of The Drake Group (TDG) is to help faculty and staff defend academic integrity in the face of the burgeoning college sport industry. The Drake Group’s national network of college faculty lobbies aggressively for proposals that ensure quality education for college athletes, supports faculty whose job security is threatened for defending academic standards, and disseminates information on current issues and controversies in sport and higher education. The purpose of this session will be similar to this year’s NASSS Conference theme of “Producing Knowledge, Producing Bodies: Cross Currents in the Sociologies of Sport and Physical Culture” in discussing the many current issues in college athletics.

2010 NASSS Conference Abstracts Page 18 Cornejo, Miguel, University of Concepción, Chile ([email protected])

Natural Disaster and Social Recovery: Changing Priorities for the Sociology of Sport

On February 27, 2010, a major earthquake and tsunami struck and devastated the entire Bio Bio region in southern Chile. The impact of such a natural disaster created significant changes that affected the life and entire social and economic stability of these communities. The impact of this tragedy affected not only the poorer segments of the Chilean society but also those from the upper classes too. The devastation created by the earthquake brought to life the un-readiness of Chilean authorities to adequately face this type of disaster. Priorities went to solve problems related to housing, health, and the reconstruction of roads. Sporting activities were also affected as most infrastructures were seriously damaged. Those facilities that resisted the earthquake became temporary shelter for the homeless. In spite of the psychological impact the earthquake created on the people, many found in the informal sport practice an alternative outlet to cope with their grief and despair. Despite this, sport as a mechanism for social recovery is not (and has not been) part of the recovery plan within the local authorities. This analysis discusses the way sport can be effectively used as a way for social recovery to uplift the life of people after natural tragedies.

Corrigan, Thomas F. (T.C.), Penn State University ([email protected])

Studying Sports Blog Production: Methodological Challenges

The sociology of news has highlighted the important role routine production practices play in the creation of news (Fishman, 1980; Tuchman, 1978). Sports sociology has drawn on this work, examining how sports journalism is produced, why certain routine practices are employed, and whose interests are served by existing production processes (Lowes, 1999; Theberge & Cronk, 1986). This ongoing research adds to the literature above by examining the routine practices of sports bloggers from a major sports blog network. The growth of the sports blogosphere both challenges and amplifies the work of traditional sports media; however, the routine practices of bloggers also strain ethnographic observation strategies commonly employed in studies of media producers (Lowrey & Latta, 2008). This paper explores the methodological promises and pitfalls of an adapted ethnographic research strategy for studying sports bloggers’ routine practices. In lieu of direct observation of blog production, daily telephone interviews are suggested in combination with more traditional document collection and long interview techniques. Preliminary experiences with this research strategy will be discussed.

Cottingham II, Michael P., University of Southern Mississippi ([email protected]) and Brian T. Gearity, University of Southern Mississippi ([email protected])

A Qualitative Examination on the Consumption Motives of Quad Rugby Spectators

The revenues produced through sport is estimated at $410 billion (Plunkett, 2010). Diametrically opposite to this huge sum is the budget of the United States Quad Rugby Association (USQRA), wheelchair rugby’s governing body, which has been able to capture less than $100,000 annually. In order to increase fan attendance and subsequent revenue The USQRA requested research to understand and subsequently increase fan attendance. Previous sport marketing research used Trail and James’ (2001) Motive Scale for Sport Consumption and a modified form of the Trail, Robinson, Dick and Gillentine’s (2003) Point of Attachment Index in the context of adaptive sport (Byon & Cottingham, 2009; Cottingham, Gearity, Chatfield & Hall, 2010) to examine spectator behavior. While these studies have increased understanding of consumer behavior there might be other factors specific to adaptive sport which influence fan attendance. Thus, the purpose of this exploratory qualitative study was to understand spectators’ motives to attend a quad rugby event, as well as their perceptions of two factors (interest in disability community and inspiration). The findings of this study include desire to see athletes engage in violence, appreciation for the facilities, differences in perspective on disability community and impact of inspiration on motivation to attend.

Crocket, Hamish, University of Waikato ([email protected])

Games Begin at Fulltime: Examining Peripheral Rituals in Ultimate Frisbee

In this paper, I draw on data from my ethnographic research on ultimate Frisbee to examine the meanings of shared post-match rituals common at many ultimate tournaments. As an emergent sport, ultimate’s spectator base is largely made up of other

2010 NASSS Conference Abstracts Page 19 ultimate players; hence there is no neat division between post-match rituals of players and those of spectators. I demonstrate that post-match rituals such as combined team huddles, ‘calls’ (i.e., inter-team challenges), tournament parties, and trading nights are crucial in the construction of both contested and shared meanings amongst ultimate players. In particular, I draw on Foucault’s technologies of the self to examine how ultimate players’ engagement in post-match rituals is linked to players’ perspectives on ethical engagement in sport, and, more specifically, ultimate’s doctrine of fair play, the spirit of the game. From this analysis, I argue that ultimate’s peripheral rituals are significant for understanding how some ultimate players construct an identity based on a commitment to play for fun and to recognize their opponents as worthy of ethical consideration.

Dalakas, Vassilis, California State University San Marcos ([email protected]), Gregory Rose, University of Washington, Tacoma ([email protected]) and Robert Madrigal, University of Oregon ([email protected])

Watching Sports and Drinking Attitudes and Behaviors by College Students

Critics have suggested that marketing alcohol through sports to the youth contributes to more positive attitudes toward alcohol and excessive drinking among young adults, especially when they watch sports. This study used different visual stimuli for priming college students; a 2x2 experimental design was used where the conditions varied in terms of the viewing occasion (sports vs. reality television) and the drinks for the occasion (beer vs. soda). Overall, the results suggest a relationship between watching sports and alcohol-related attitudes and behaviors among college students. Specifically, when students were primed by pictures of people who drink beer while watching sports, they perceived the behaviors of drinking alcohol and getting drunk as more acceptable than those students who were primed by pictures of people who drink soda while watching sports or people who drink beer while watching reality TV. Also, those who perceived a strong fit between alcohol and sports gave higher estimates on numbers of their peers who drink, and also perceived fewer negative consequences of drinking alcohol and more positive consequences of drinking alcohol. The results have important implications regarding alcohol marketing through sports to college students.

Dane, Emily, St. John Fisher College ([email protected])

Gendered Choices: Mascot Interactions in Minor League Baseball

Most mascots for teams are identified as male. Since the passage of Title IX, more females have become involved in sport and some female mascots have entered the sport scene. It is unclear how this addition of a gendered mascot choice has impacted the interactions with children attending sporting events. The present study examined the interactions between children of each gender and mascots of each gender at three minor league baseball games. Frequency of contacts from child to mascot and mascot to child were observed. Chi-square and population proportion comparisons revealed that there were significant gender differences in children contacting either the male or female mascot such that children were not approaching mascots in a manner similar to their gender counterpart. The mascots themselves also demonstrated a gender bias in interaction targets in that there were significant differences in which gender they approached more frequently throughout the game. While this research does not attempt to establish the female mascot as a role model, it is clear that the female mascot received greater attention than the male mascot and therefore could be utilized in some capacity to mark the entrance of women into sport.

Danzey-Bussell, Leigh Ann, Ball State University ([email protected]) and Brenda Riemer, Eastern Michigan University ([email protected])

Responding to Backlash in the Classroom: What’s a Professor to Do?

According to Hernandez and Fister (2001), dealing with disruptive students is the one issue that seems to frustrate, baffle, and confuse most college instructors. Almost daily, college instructors are privy to the tactics employed by the current "entitlement" generation as a means for disrupting class and creating issues of disrespect for peers and professors. Maintaining respect in the classroom is necessary for optimal learning. Professors are challenged to build immediate respect within the classroom so as to assert control and thwart potential disrupters. There once was a time that the shear nature of being a professor commanded respect, but that no longer hold true (DeLucia & Iasenza, 1995). Add to this dimension of incivility the concepts of race, gender and class and we begin to complicate this issue further and create an environment where teaching is relegated to the back seat. This roundtable seeks to elaborate on the relationships between race, gender and class and disrespect through real-life

2010 NASSS Conference Abstracts Page 20 examples and reactions to incivility in the classroom. Pedagogical strategies for dealing with student to student, student to professor and professor to student interactions will presented along with ideas/best practices for managing classrooms.

Danzey-Bussell, Leigh Ann, Ball State University ([email protected])

Investigating Supervision Risks

Today, a well-rounded education involves experiences which occur outside of the classroom and traditional school hours. Regardless of venue, students and parents expectations of safety and security of participants is paramount. When situations arise, blame is placed on the organization and more specifically, the lack of proper supervision. Bullying, cyber-bullying, harassment and hazing are commonplace for today’s youth and are all too often in the headline. Stories of physical and emotional abuse of youth by youth are too frequent. (Fields-Meyer, 2003; Leung, 2004; Whitley, 2008; The Associate Press [AP], 2010; King, 2010; Olmeda, 2010). In sport, rules exist for safety and fair play, so why does the legal system resonate with supervision cases? The law explicitly states each athlete is owed a duty to ensure a safe and secure environment by a supervisor (typically a coach). If according to Allan and Madden (2009) 47 percent of college freshman indicated they had been privy to hazing during high school, what is/can be done to address this serious issue? This study investigated supervision in Indiana high schools in an attempt to identify flaws and to formalize plans to thwart such behavior. Subsequent research on a national level is forthcoming.

Darnell, Simon, Dalhousie University ([email protected])

Sports Mega-Events f/or Development? A Framework for Brazil 2014/Rio 2016

In this presentation, I offer a theoretical framework for exploring and understanding a) the increasing movement of sports mega- events to the Southern Hemisphere and b) the subsequent positioning of these events both as, and within, initiatives for sustainable development (Cornelissen, 2008, 2009). I suggest that sports mega-events like the FIFA World Cup and Olympic Games are now championed by political stakeholders not only through the traditional rhetoric of ‘legacies’ but as a legitimate part of the Sport for Development and Peace (SDP) movement in which the popularity (and relatively benign politics) of sport make it a useful and attractive approach to meeting a myriad of development challenges. Of course, such politics are complex and contestable given that sports mega-events not only serve as symbols of emerging state power, prestige and competitiveness (Allison & Monington, 2005) but have been shown to have limited effectiveness in delivering sustainable and equitable change amidst the constraints and challenges of the globalized economy (see Whitson and Horne, 2006; Black, 2008). To illustrate this framework, I draw on a variety of sources (policy documents, media reports, field interviews) while focusing on Rio 2016 as an important site for future research.

Davies, Kate Z., University of Alberta ([email protected])

Bears, Boys and Docile Bodies: Hockey as a Truth Game

Literary critics maintain that children’s stories are powerful mediums through which dominant values and beliefs are produced and transmitted within a culture (Bainbridge & Thistle-Martin, 2000). To gain a deeper understanding of how contemporary children’s sport literature connects to larger discourses and power relations that define sport (hockey), I analyze Canadian author and illustrator Marc Tetro’s No Rest for Edwin (1998). The story, about a young bear who transgresses the natural order to experience winter, is replete with socio-cultural markers. I employ a Foucauldian feminist perspective to examine how various identities (feminine, national and animal) are constructed within the truth game of sport (hockey). The implications of these findings are discussed.

2010 NASSS Conference Abstracts Page 21 De Lisio, Amanda, University of British Columbia ([email protected])

Mandate Action: The Quest to (Re)fashion Olympic Host Cities

Amidst the ambiguities of a worldwide mega-event, host cities can be certain: people from all over the world will watch. In response to this attention, an enormous amount of financial investment is given to (re)fashion both the urban and urbanite with respect to a particular image. Olympic cities, as one example of a mega-event, are familiar with this process and Vancouver, British Columbia was not an exception to this phenomenon. The purpose of this paper is to investigate the strategies of a provincial government campaign to brand British Columbia, Canada as the healthiest Olympic/Paralympic host in the world. Particular attention will be given to the effort of this campaign to target young people through the endorsement of school policies/strategies. To this end, the paper will draw on evidence from a qualitative research project that was able to evaluate the impact of Daily Physical Activity (DPA) on a group of young people from a high school in the Greater Vancouver Area. The discussion of the data will highlight the need to consider the development and consequence of neoliberal policies/strategies on people within host cities in the evaluation of a mega-event.

De Vasconcellos Ribeiro, Carlos Henrique, UNISUAM, Brazil ([email protected])

Perceptions about the Legacies of Sport Mega-Events in Brazil

The development of sports in Brazil is still an ambitious project. As an example, this country is the 38th position in IOC ranking. Moreover, its participation in sport world has been seen as a labor force instead of winning important sports championships (Ribeiro, 2009). Exceptions are football and volleyball. As development country, the economic growth benefits in the last decades are still not for everybody, and issues such education and health care are serious problems to solve. In spite of that, Brazil will be the host of two sport mega-events in the next decade: 2014 FIFA World Cup and Rio de Janeiro 2016 Olympic Games. But what is the perception about the legacies of those events? The main purpose of this research is analyze the perception of those mega-events for physical education teachers that teach in Rio de Janeiro public schools, mainly in poor areas. As a result, we found three general perceptions from our interviewers: these sport mega-events will not impact their careers at all, the strong unconfident about Brazilian Government accountability, and the hopes about the increasing of sports interested for the population since media start to coverage these mega-events.

Delaney, Tim, State University of New York at Oswego ([email protected])

Praying for Favorable Sporting Outcomes: Does it Work?

It is fairly common for people to appeal to a higher authority in times of stress and hope. In the sports world, both sports fans and athletes have been known to pray for favorable outcomes. Belief in religious prayer is equated to a belief in a God, or Holy Spirit, that is capable of anything. If God is capable of anything, then certainly influencing the outcome of a game is within the control of God. Prayer would seem, to some, then, as a “logical” path of communication between individuals and a “Higher Power” when requesting a favorable outcome. People also turn to such secular means as superstition and magic in hopes of attaining favorable sporting outcomes. Using data collected on college students from a public state university and a private Catholic college, the role of prayer in sport is explored and plausible explanations for praying for favorable sporting outcomes are provided. The role of ritualistic behavior, a belief in magic and adherence to superstitions is also explored.

DiCarlo, Danielle, York University ([email protected])

Sex, Gender, and Sexuality among Female Ice Hockey Athletes

Although many female athletes have challenged popular beliefs around the abilities of women in sport, sport remains contested terrain for the production and reproduction of hegemonic discourses on sex, gender and sexuality. Sport is often contentious for those female athletes who colonize and participate in sports traditionally played exclusively by men, such as hockey, and even more so for those women who participate on men’s hockey teams. This paper qualitatively examines how female ice hockey athletes come to understand their participation on men’s hockey teams, prior to transitioning to female leagues, as framed by the social constructions of sex, gender and sexuality. This study also explores how female ice hockey athletes come to understand

2010 NASSS Conference Abstracts Page 22 their bodies and body ideals by participating on men’s teams and how these understandings change among female athletes following transition to a women’s league. The findings of this study suggest that their experiences demonstrate the tensions and contradictions around being female athletes involved in a traditionally male sport and the rigid categories used by female athletes in negotiating their lived experience while playing on male ice hockey teams.

Dickerson, Nik, University of Iowa ([email protected])

Visible Whiteness: Sport Films as a Form of Pedagogy

As someone who would identify as tri-racial, I am always aware of my own racial identity. Through my own lived experience as well as the knowledge I have gained as a graduate student, it has become easier to grasp how notions of whiteness structure my everyday life. However, within the sport studies classroom when the subject of whiteness comes up, it is often met with blank stares as well as hostility, in my experiences. This paper is going to explore ways in which to discuss whiteness within the classroom. Specifically, this paper will use film in order to make the social construction of whiteness visible, as well as imagine how this critique of whiteness could be rearticulated in order for white students to take on a racial identity that could facilitate a more democratic and progressive society (Giroux, 2007). This paper examines the sport film The Wrestler, to argue that an understanding of how whiteness shapes the sporting world can be comprehended through film. This understanding can then lead to critique and a re-articulation of whiteness, which has the potential to create a more progressive understanding of racial relations within the classroom.

Dorney, Karima, Queen’s University ([email protected])

Healthy Citizenship and Young Women's Efforts to Negotiate Body Ideals

This paper presents final results from a study of how young women make sense of their fitness practices. In the context of pervasive neoliberal notions of health, my analysis explores some lines of intersection between social class and fitness/health as they relate to discourses of physical capital and healthism in today’s society. I chose to facilitate a focus group, circulate the transcripts, and then follow-up with individual interviews. The data arising from the group shifted the project’s focus toward underlying questions about what it means to be healthy in today’s culture. The participants clearly wanted to be perceived as “healthy”, or more importantly, to not be perceived as “unhealthy”. We are inundated in North America with messages about the imperative to be healthy and overt messages suggesting that getting healthy will change our lives for the better. Fitness practices, like diet and exercise are culturally linked to both appearance and health, and tend to focus on changing or maintaining the outside of body rather than the inside (Smith Maguire, 2008). My research revealed that many young women are negotiating a paradox in that they engage in fitness practices despite their often-mainstream knowledge of body image critique.

Draucker, Fawn T., University of Pittsburgh ([email protected])

‘He Shoots, He Scores!’: Perceptual Organization of Televised Sports Broadcasts

In televised sports broadcasts, the organization of information presented to the audience impacts understanding of that information. Broadcasts convey more than a narrative of actions in a sporting event – they also present background and evaluative information as an integral part of the broadcast. While audiences receive a visual presentation of the event, the linguistic aspect of the broadcast also plays a role in one’s understanding of the event. An audience must understand the perceptual organization of the reporting of events and the interaction with background and evaluative information. Croft (2001) writes “the Gestalt organization of information into figure and ground is the basic principle underlying the organization of information in discourse” (pg. 335). This paper investigates Croft’s claim, looking at the perceptual organization of televised sports broadcasts from the NFL, MLB, NBA, and NHL, to analyze the perceptual structure created in the discourse of the broadcast, as well as the grammatical and discursive devices used to develop this structure. Preliminary analyses suggest a multi-layer figure-ground construction, intertwining reported events, background, recapitulated events, and evaluations. A look at the use of narrative timeline, verbal aspect, subordination, and turn-taking illustrates the creation and reanalysis of figure and ground throughout the broadcasts.

2010 NASSS Conference Abstracts Page 23 Eliopulos, Lindsey, San José State University ([email protected]) and Robert Wright, San José State University ([email protected])

Gazing Through the Paradoxical Lenses of “Straight Outta L.A.”

The authors (re)locate the myriad of meanings conveyed by N.W.A.’s lyrics to clarify the proverbial and stereotypical representations embodied in and amplified by N.W.A.’s 1988 double platinum selling album “Straight Outta Compton” and the Los Angeles Raider’s ethos. (Re)examining the dominant ideologies and discourses present in veteran lyricist and N.W.A. emcee Ice Cube’s documentary “Straight Outta L.A.,” the paper identifies the seminal influences that are constructed (e.g., Raiders-as-a-gang analogy) by navigating through the interconnections that (de)mobilized both the Los Angeles Raiders and N.W.A. in the late 1980s. The employment of a wider cultural, albeit holistic framework illustrates the larger socio-cultural and historical themes of race, autonomy (e.g., anti-establishment), violence (e.g., legitimization of actions), and the intersection of aesthetics and local/global fandom (e.g., logoed merchandise). The dissection of the overlapping themes and the production and propagation of the hostile image of the weapon-toting pirate positioned the Raiders as exemplars of the early attestation of the term “gangsta,” hearkening to N.W.A.’s Compton-based, bad-boy South Central Los Angeles persona, which was invariably juxtaposed by the affluent, glamorous landscape of Los Angeles.

Ellis, Bryan R., Howard University ([email protected])

Have African Americans Dominated Sports Always?

Many sport sociologists have debated the relationship between race, sport, and performance. Some argue that black athletes are physically superior to white athletes. Others argue that there is no correlation between athletic achievement and racial characteristics. They claim, instead, that black athletic achievement is best explained by social and cultural factors. Both schools of thought, however, concern themselves with the ability of black athletes—that is, what best explains black athlete’s performance. Many have neglected to study black athlete’s opportunity (or lack thereof) to perform, especially historically. I maintain that black athlete’s opportunity (or lack thereof) to perform is the central issue at hand, not their ability per se. My prior research shows that there is a correlation between history and black athlete’s opportunity (or lack thereof) to perform. During chattel slavery, for instance, black athletes were among the top athletes, especially in the South. They were forced to compete. Their performance had little to do with their biology or culture, but much to do with their class position as slaves in society. During the Jim Crow era, black athletes were excluded from mainstream professional sports, and therefore forced to create their own leagues and teams. Their exclusion came as a result of the period in which they lived. During the Civil Rights era, black athletes were given the opportunity to compete in mainstream professional sports again. Thus, I argue that race, sport, and performance must be understood in historical context, and in relation to larger economic and political conditions of society.

Erickson, Elisabeth, University of Iowa ([email protected])

"How Will You Be Remembered?” Representing the Midwest in Film

Many sport films utilize tales of individualism and self-reliance to advance a conservative ideology. This paper argues that “Field of Dreams,” “The Final Season,” and “Hoosiers” are different, in that they highlight the importance of community in the Midwest. In examining how the three films underscore the ways that Midwesterners are often depicted as hard workers who live in a place that offers redemption through community, this paper looks at the ways that sport is used to further develop a location’s distinct characteristics.

Farrell, Annemarie, Ithaca College ([email protected])

Bringing up Baby: An Examination of Sport Fan Indoctrination Videos

Team Baby Entertainment debuted its first fan indoctrination video in 2008 with the University of Texas Longhorns. Since then, dozens of titles have been produced introducing children 5 months to 5 years into the cult of sport fandom. The slogan “Raising tomorrow’s fan today” is highlighted on each DVD featuring a young baby or toddler clad in team colors. Using licensed footage from teams and schools, the videos seek to provide “an informative, entertaining and educational way to introduce your child to

2010 NASSS Conference Abstracts Page 24 the school and team you root for” (Team Baby Entertainment, 2008). Programs use songs and counting games to showcase logos and icons of sporting teams from both college and professional ranks. While infants, toddlers and parents sing along, larger questions loom: What is the narrative that these videos popularize concerning modern sport fandom? How does the choice and focus of certain icons over others highlight what is valued in the sport? This presentation will provide an exploration into the content of Team Baby videos, the narratives presented and how content reinforces what it means to be a "real fan."

Field, Russell, University of Manitoba ([email protected])

Donning “National” Jerseys: Nations Without States at the VIVA World Cup

Montserrat Guibernau (1999) argues that “nations without states” realize a “national” identity through a variety of strategies: cultural recognition, political autonomy, and federation. But how does sport fit into her formulation? An entrée to this question is offered by the VIVA World Cup, an alternative “international” bi-annual soccer tournament for regions unrepresented in global sport and held in 2010 in Gozo, the northern island of Malta. A singular understanding of this event is made difficult first by the assertions of organizers that theirs is not a political project and they want their event to have nothing to do with “politics,” while teams such as Kurdistan and Pandania made explicit the political nature of their desire to participate in and win the event; and secondly by the diversity of the participants, including teams representing groups who define their “otherness” along political, linguistic, ethnic, and geographic markers. Moreover, the interests of teams and individual players in the VIVA World Cup were never consistently resistant or alternative and reflected a particular transnationality. For example, players and officials representing Padania and the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies openly talked about rooting for Italy in anticipation of the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa.

Foo, Cornell E., University of Florida ([email protected]), Janelle E. Wells, University of Florida ([email protected]) and Michael Sagas, University of Florida ([email protected])

Perceptions of Sport Between Division III International and Domestic Student-Athletes

Tom Farrey (2009) claims that over the last decade international student-athletes traveling to the United States has tripled. This is supported by the fact that over 17,230 international student-athletes competed in American universities during the 2008-09 school year (NCAA, 2009). According to Bale (1987) and Popp (2006) international student-athletes place greater emphasis on academic success, and see sport competition as less important than their domestic peers. This is supported by Guest (2007) who compared college soccer players from the US and Malawi. Competition was listed as their primary motivator for participation by the US college athletes whilst Malawi players did not mention competing as a factor. Therefore, the intent of this study is to examine the disparity between international and domestic student-athletes views on the purpose of sport at NCAA Division III institutions. Utilizing multivariate analysis of covariance (MANCOVA) and controlling for grade point average, gender and class year, data collected will be analyzed and used to build upon the theoretical framework and practical applications of the purpose of sport commonalities and how they translate between international and domestic student-athletes academic welfare, team unity, and societal acceptance. Results will be discussed at the presentation.

Formentin, Melanie, Pennsylvania State University ([email protected])

Moving Beyond the 2004-05 NHL Lockout: A Fan Survey

Many things have changed for the National Hockey League (NHL) since the 2004-05 lockout, and seemingly for the better. Television ratings have increased steadily and the Winter Classic has already become an annual tradition. However, questions remain about the NHL’s overall reputation and how it has changed since the 2004-05 lockout. This exploratory study used an online survey of 140 NHL fans to identify how the league’s reputation has changed in the five years since the lockout. Specifically, situational crisis communication theory (SCCT) variables were used to identify a link between reputation management variables of crisis responsibility, crisis history, and prior reputation and fan attitudes toward the NHL and hockey. Results supported previous SCCT findings and identified links between fan attitudes toward the NHL, fan attitudes toward the sport of hockey, and SCCT variables. Results also showed that among the convenience sample of hockey fans, the league’s reputation has generally improved in the five years following the lockout.

2010 NASSS Conference Abstracts Page 25 Fornssler, Barbara, European Graduate School ([email protected])

Heidegger and Deleuze Jump from a Plane: Skydiving and Process Philosophy

This paper explores a Deleuzian process philosophy via affective technology in an ethnographic multimodal performance of the author's first experience with tandem skydive. As Deleuze and Guattari write: "Flows of intensity, their fluids, their fibers, their continuums and conjunctions of affects, the wind, fine segmentation, microperceptions, have replaced the world of the subject" (ATP, 162). Process philosophy is necessary for building a Body without Organs and is best understood through the embodiment of tandem skydive. Relational dynamics emerge in the becoming-subject/object of the skydive: in the traumatic rupture of jumping from a plane, we find Deleuze falling in tandem with Bergson on his back; Heidegger diving simultaneously and finding a world (not earth) in the harness/frame; and the Whitehead-parachute opening above, slowing the fall of emergence for Massumi to direct us from below towards a safe landing zone. Each relational touching is the movement of process philosophy in affective encounter with technology.

Forsyth, Janice, University of Western Ontario ([email protected]), Michael Heine, University of Western Ontario ([email protected]) and Audrey Giles, University of Ottawa ([email protected])

Another ‘Drive-by’ Award Ceremony: Hockey and Commemoration among First Nations

This paper is based on oral history interviews conducted with Tom Longboat Award recipients in competitive hockey. Although this Award is one of the most prestigious awards for Aboriginal people in Canadian sport, most of the recipients share similar recollections about its contextual obscurity: hardly any winners understood they had been nominated or knew much about the Award’s significance; only a handful were recognized for their achievement through a public ceremony. A telling episode saw a certain recipient receive news of his Award from a Band Council member who drove past him on a training run and told him that a package was waiting for him at the office. In light of that pattern, this paper explores the paradoxical position of the Award as a weakly developed form of commemoration in the sport of hockey – a cultural practice that marks a central, and usually strongly positive reference point in many First Nations communities throughout Canada. A thematic reading of the Tom Longboat Awards and recipient experiences will be used to illuminate the complex position that sport awards and commemorative practices occupy in Aboriginal lives and cultures, and the possible implication this has for sport.

Friedman, Michael, University of Maryland ([email protected])

A Trial by Space? Nationals Stadium and Queer Space in Washington, DC

In September 2004, Major League Baseball announced it would relocate the Montreal Expos to Washington, DC and end the organization’s 33-year absence from the U.S. capital city. As Washington promised to build a new stadium in the Near Southeast neighborhood, it displaced a cluster of six sexually-oriented businesses along O Street, where the city’s LGBT community had a commercial presence for more than 30 years. As spatial tactics have been essential within the struggle for LGBT rights, this displacement seemingly represented a setback for DC’s LGBT community in its “trial by space,” in which, according to Lefebvre (1991), space is both the prize in conflicts between groups and the medium through which groups and ideologies attempt to constitute themselves. Within the trial by space, the failure to achieve or the loss of a concrete spatial presence results in those groups and ideas losing their effective power. However, in Washington, the LGBT community provided relatively minor resistance to displacement of O Street in favor of Nationals Park. To understand this passivity, this paper explores the stadium as part of the on-going redefinition of LGBT identities and bodies within the broader context of the late capitalist moment.

2010 NASSS Conference Abstracts Page 26 Fusco, Caroline, University of Toronto ([email protected]), Patrick Keleher, University of Toronto ([email protected]), Ivan Service, OISE/University of Toronto ([email protected]), Sarah Switzer, University of Toronto ([email protected]) and Matthew Strang, University of Toronto ([email protected])

Producing Space, Producing Bodies: Biospatiality, Governance and Youth Subjectivities

This paper is drawn from an in-depth study of youth’s geographies of sport and physical activity participation that seeks to develop a theoretically and empirically grounded account of the dynamic social and spatial forces of inclusion and exclusion experienced by adolescents within their unique urban contexts. Conducted at three sites in Toronto (e.g., an suburban school, a school program focused on anti-homophobic educational practices, and a private fitness club for children and youth), which involved forty interviews with youth aged 7-19 years and seven interviews with teachers, principals and/or staff, the research interrogates the spatial and symbolic meanings that attach to institutionalized healthified environments. Paying particular attention to the socio-spatial (bio)power relations that impact young people’s lives (e.g., gender, sexuality, age, ability, ethnicity and socio-economic status), we explore how social categories impact on youth’s representations of the body, space and health. We conclude that subjects’ desires to cultivate themselves as healthy subjects (or not) requires that they make/take their place(s) within neoliberal spatial imaginaries of health (in)differently.

Galindo-Ramirez, Elysia, Loyola Marymount University ([email protected])

What’s the Problem with Johnny Weir? Masculinity, Sexuality and Media

This project examines the relationship between mass media, men’s figure skating, and masculinity through the lens of figure skater Johnny Weir. In the last ten years, Weir has ascended to the top levels of men’s figure skating and, in the minds of some, come to represent everything that is wrong with the sport. The 2010 Vancouver Olympics saw this controversy explode after two Canadian sportscasters attacked Weir’s personal presentation. Focusing on hegemonic masculinity and its accompanying behavioral norms, this sporting saga is dissected. The media treatment of Weir’s biggest rival Evan Lysacek is shown to be built around the glorification of Lysacek as the masculine, heterosexual ideal. In contrast, media treatment of Weir focused on his non-sporting activities (including a reality show and fashion line), with scant treatment of the same athletic activities that are omnipresent in coverage of Lysacek. Discussion focuses on the impact of these differing dialogues, how these have shaped Weir’s career opportunities, and the influence of received attitudes and values in figure skating fandom. The conclusion considers how this reception to Weir’s "problem" will continue to hurt and warp the lives of competitors, fans, and casual observers unless challenged and exposed.

García González, Vanessa, Universidad Autónoma Chapingo, Mexico ([email protected])

Using praxis-sports to deal with existential isolation: A case study

This paper presents the results of an investigation of whether the practice of praxis-sports is one of the tools that can be effectively used by individuals to cope with existential isolation, one of the unintended consequences of modernity. This social condition is described in line with the theoretical proposals of A. Giddens, U. Beck and Z. Bauman. To answer the research question a case study was conducted and 30 narratives were collected using Daniel Bertaux’s technique for constructing “narratives of life.” To analyze the narratives, common themes were identified and biographical profiles were reconstructed from each, and all of them were compared with each other. The narratives were categorized into four groups based on two criteria: (1) whether or not practice of a sport was mentioned as part of their daily routine at the moment of the interview, and (2) the inclusion of sport participation in their biographical profiles. The groups identified were: "lifetime athletes", "recent athletes," athletes of the past "and" non-athletes. "

2010 NASSS Conference Abstracts Page 27 Gearity, Brian T., University of Southern Mississippi ([email protected]) and Melissa A. Murray, University of Southern Mississippi ([email protected])

Social Psychology of Poor Coaching: Athletes’ Experiences

The purpose of this study was to explore athletes’ experiences with poor coaching. Guided by an existential phenomenological framework, participants (N=16) were asked to describe their experience with poor coaching. All responses were recorded, transcribed, and the data were analyzed through a series of iterations, which led to the identification of five themes that constitute the essence of athletes’ experiences with poor coaching. The five themes derived from athletes’ reports were: not teaching, uncaring, unfair, inhibiting, and coping. Two of these themes, inhibiting and coping, are closely connected to psychological constructs, and are presented in this paper. The theme of inhibiting was made up of athletes’ descriptions of poor coaches as being distracting, engendering self-doubt, demotivating, and dividing the team. The theme of coping describes how athletes responded to being poorly coached. This paper will discuss the findings in relation to relevant topics in the sport social psychology literature with particular attention to the coach-athlete relationship and the influence poor coaching can have on athletes and how athletes can resist poor coaching.

Gee, Sarah, University of Otago ([email protected]) and Steven J. Jackson, University of Otago ([email protected])

Placing Masculinity: Speight’s Beer and New Zealand’s Southern Man City

This paper explores how the production, representation, consumption, and experience of place as commodity incites and reproduces a particular vision of masculinity. Focused on Speight’s, a local brewery and beer brand in New Zealand, this study examines how masculinities are constructed in and through a specific space and how certain places become gendered as masculine. Our cultural conception of the city of Dunedin, New Zealand as a socially constructed SPEIGHT’S SPACE (a “holy trinity” masculinity-sport-beer space) is illuminated through critical contextual examination of particular places, events, and media that not only help define a city but also influence the production, representation, consumption, and experience of masculinity, beer, and sporting spectacle. In figuratively locating Dunedin as a mnemonically defined SPEIGHT’S SPACE, we highlight the Speight’s Brewery/Heritage Centre and Carisbrook Stadium, Otago rugby, traditional events associated with the student culture from the University of Otago, and the Speight’s “Southern Man” promotional campaign that provides a visual representation of the Otago region and its related rural, romanticized, white Southern Man masculinity. Taken collectively, we conclude that these impart a sense of nostalgia to stimulate memories, perform histories, and symbolize identities for past, present, and future inhabitants of this “holy trinity” space.

Genovese, Jason, Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania ([email protected])

The Complexity of Sports Television Reporting in the Modern Sports-Media Complex

Sports journalists have long worked in what has been derogatorily referred to as the “toy department” and the criticism of those who work in sports television is even harsher. While sports journalism scholarship has traditionally focused on print journalism, this study uses ethnographic techniques to provide an in-depth look at the work of reporters at a regional sports television station and reveals the considerable challenges they face in the modern sports-media complex. Sports television reporters must negotiate a complex professional identity that frequently presents conflicts between their journalism values and the hybrid nature of sports television production. Additionally, they are experiencing a destabilization of their position in the sports media hierarchy as the primacy of professional sports journalists is increasingly challenged by the Internet’s empowerment of athletes and fans – this is the most prominent of the numerous technologically driven changes they are attempting to adapt to. Corporate ownership adds yet another degree of difficulty as the reporters at this regional sports station are forced to navigate an organizational setting that has evolved to become a ubiquitous influence on their daily work. These issues and developments reveal the sports television workplace as increasingly complicated and problematic.

2010 NASSS Conference Abstracts Page 28 Giardina, Michael D., Florida State University ([email protected])

"Fueling up to Play 60": Promotional Culture, Nutrition, and the NFL-USDA Partnership

In 2007, the National Football League announced the formation of a "new national youth health and fitness campaign" featuring numerous players and designed to "focus on the health and wellness of young fans by encouraging them to be active for at least 60 minutes a day." Partnering with such entities as the American Heart Association, United Way, and U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, the campaign was initially viewed as yet another in a long line of public service and community outreach campaigns engaged in by professional sport leagues (e.g, "NBA Cares") or individual teams (e.g., Los Angeles Kings Care Foundation). In 2009, however, Play 60 explicitly teamed up with the Obama administration and its United We Serve initiative (a program premised on community voluntarism), filming a Thanksgiving Day PSA and linking up with other government agencies such as the US Department of Agriculture in the promotion of nutrition and, explicitly, ‘the fight against childhood obesity’ (most notably in schools). Thus does this presentation critically interrogate the commercial and promotional narratives at work in this renewed public-private partnership, especially in light of an increased cultural trend toward ‘bodies in crisis’ and ‘obesity epidemics.’

Gibbs, Laura, University of Ottawa ([email protected]) and Christine Dallaire, Université d’Ottawa ([email protected])

News Media Coverage of the Patrice Cormier Hockey Violence Incident

On January 17, 2010, Canadian Major Junior hockey player, Patrice Cormier, used his elbow to make contact with an opposing player during a Quebec Major Junior Hockey League game. A Foucauldian discourse analysis was used to understand how Cormier, his actions, and his subsequent punishment were represented in the widespread news media coverage of this incident and its repercussions. Ninety-three English-language texts from five Canadian media sources (two newspapers, two sports media websites, and one online hockey magazine) were analyzed and two discursive themes emerged. The first theme was focused on Cormier himself. He was constructed as a star player whose actions crossed the line of acceptable behaviour. This discursive strategy reinforced dominant discourses of “good”, “Canadian” hockey players while at the same time establishing the boundary between acceptable and unacceptable play. The second theme focused on Cormier’s punishment and its expression of the unacceptability of his actions. This theme also discursively constructed the various organizational bodies (i.e., QMJHL, AHL, and NHL) involved as responsible for “sending a message” to other players through the sentencing, honouring and enforcing of Cormier’s suspension.

Giles, Audrey R., University of Ottawa ([email protected])

Producing Safe, Healthy Residents in Canada’s North

The Northwest Territories (NWT) Above-Ground Pool Program has been in operation in northern Canada since 1967; today, its focus is now on drowning prevention and lifeguard training. Despite this long-term investment in aquatics, rates of drowning in the NWT are on average 6-10 times higher than rates found in southern Canada, with Aboriginal residents, especially males, drowning at a much higher rate than non-Aboriginal residents. Despite the apparent failings of water safety education in the NWT, there are few efforts that have focused on aquatic injury prevention in the most “at risk” population. Further, water safety education continues to consist of the delivery of information created in southern Canada, which is often devoid of important information that pertains to culture, geography, and traditional Aboriginal knowledge. As a result, in order to be “safe” and thus “healthy,” Aboriginal northerners are effectively told through current messaging that they must adopt southern, Euro-Canadian belief systems concerning risk and safety and ignore their culturally- and regionally-based practices. In this presentation, I suggest that this production of healthy citizenship is neoliberal, colonial, and – most importantly, often dangerous in northern settings. Using four years’ worth of data, I offer a culturally-based, alternative approach to water safety.

2010 NASSS Conference Abstracts Page 29 Gitersos, Terry, University of Western Ontario ([email protected])

Hockey Players as Political Actors in the 1980 Quebec Referendum

This paper proposes to examine the roles played by the francophone players of the Montréal Canadiens and Québec Nordiques of the National Hockey League during the 1980 Québec referendum on sovereignty-association. The months before the referendum represented one of the few chances where professional athletes have been encouraged to make overtly political statements. High-profile players such Guy Lafleur, Serge Savard, Réal Cloutier and Marc Tardif were compelled by an activist francophone sport media to announce publicly how they would vote. At the same time, these players’ public utterances were influenced by the institutional pressures inherent in their roles as representatives for their specific teams, and as employees in the larger professional hockey industry. Using newspaper reports from La Presse, Le Soleil, Le Journal Montréal and Le Journal de Québec, I understand players’ statements about the referendum as struggles to accumulate social capital by making utterances that are a propos (Bourdieu, 1991). The multiplicity of different statements made during the referendum campaign sheds interesting light on the role of hockey players in the construction and maintenance of Québécois national identities, as well as hockey’s place in the political hothouse that was Québec in the early 1980s.

Green, Kyle, University of Minnesota ([email protected])

Talking on the Mat: Mixed Martial Arts & the Emergence of Narrating Men

Through an ethnographic study of mixed martial arts training schools in the Twin Cities metropolitan region this paper examines how participants justify their engagement with the controversial, but increasingly popular, practice. The mixing of necessity (it is a violent world) with biological discourse, popular spiritual teachings, stories of alienation, and discussions of the exotic demonstrates a complex narrative construction that is rarely found in other sport spaces. The manner that these narratives shape understanding of actions outside the training site bears more in common with the storytelling and identity exploration of the popular men's movements of the 1980s and 1990s. Specifically, two years of observant participation in mixed martial arts in the Twin Cities reveals how training in this physical, pain-filled practice, seemingly outside the expected habitus of the participants, is enabled by, and central to, the ground-up emergence of a set of masculine narratives.

Hallinan, Chris, Monash University ([email protected]) and Barry Judd, Monash University ([email protected])

Indigenous Celebrity and the Making and Unmaking of Heroic Sports Identities

The mediation of Australian sport routinely provides recurring opportunity for both the production of celebrity as well as ‘success’ stories in race relations. We consider the identity bind of Aboriginality and high level sport by drawing upon the theoretical work of Indigenous Studies scholars Marcia Langton and Lynnette Russell alongside Graeme Turner’s work on the cultural function of celebrity. Our examples explore the production and consumption of Indigenous sport celebrity and focus primarily on the distinction between Catherine Freeman and Anthony Mundine - probably the most well known active Indigenous sports competitor in Australia. Mundine is currently a world boxing champion. He has also been a professional rugby league player and a state representative basketballer. However, Mundine is considered by many to be the antithesis of the universally praised and much loved Freeman. To them, he is the quintessential antihero. We conclude that the analysis of Aboriginality in contemporary Australia is complex. It is open to a multiplicity of cultural and racial positions of which only some may conform to the widely held Anglo-Australian notions of what an Aborigine 'should' be. At the same time, Mundine as the antithesis of Freeman, provides a frequent and useful notoriety function in the media and wider society.

Hanold, Maylon, Seattle University ([email protected])

Female Ultrarunners and the Production of Perseverance, Pleasure and Competition

Ultrarunning fits well within the context of "extreme" sport due to the fact that athletes push their bodies to physical limits by running distances longer than the marathon, ranging from 50k to multi-day events. This paper examines how high-performance female ultrarunners employ the discourses of perseverance and pleasure to construct specific meanings of competition. Semi-

2010 NASSS Conference Abstracts Page 30 structured interviews were conducted with eight high-performance female ultrarunners. Utilizing Foucauldian theorizing, the discourses of perseverance and pleasure can be understood as both technologies of dominance and of self. Findings reveal that the discourse of perseverance gives rise to specific competition practices that have practical implications for how these women view competition. In addition, the discourse of pleasure with respect to the bodily experience of running and being with other women becomes an integral component of competition, which emerges as complex and multi-layered. Specifically, their definitions of competition normalize participation for women as well as give rise to multiple subjectivities within this "extreme" sport context.

Hardes, Jennifer, University of Alberta ([email protected])

Rethinking the Female Sporting Community with Hannah Arendt

As Helstein writes, community “is a powerful construct in the discourses of both feminism and sport” (2005, p. 1). Various theoretical perspectives have demonstrated that, in the attempt to articulate a female sporting community, the concepts “community” and “identity” are inextricably linked, which leaves community theorized as a positive and strong unification of identities (Helstein, 2005). A community, therefore, also has a necessarily exclusionary character whereby plurality and difference “threaten” unification forged through community. In this paper I ask what Hannah Arendt’s theorizing can offer sport studies’ understanding of the female sporting community, given that she has received a surge in feminist interest wider afield. I use Arendt’s concepts of “the who” and “inter-est” to analyze the recent events around Caster Semenya’s official “acceptance” into the female sporting community. I argue that an Arendtian non-identity based politics can rearticulate theoretical understandings of community in sport studies by pressing the importance of opening up spaces to discuss public issues, and to assert change through communication with others, by way of action in concert.

Harmon, Justin, J.D., Northwood University at West Palm Beach ([email protected])

Taking Sociology from the Classroom to the Boardroom: Making the Connection Between Sociology and Business

The purpose of this session is to recommend: (1) methods to ensure that sport management students value sociology in the scope of the sport business industry as well as the world in which we live, work, and play; (2) assignments that will help prepare students to apply the lessons they learn in sociology courses in a creative, practical, profitable, and ethical manner.); as well as (3) skills / outcomes that students can take away from sociology classes and bring to their organizations.

Harrison, C. Keith, University of Central Florida ([email protected]), Larry Proctor ([email protected]), Brandon E. Martin, Oklahoma University ([email protected]), and S. Malia Lawrence, Azusa Pacific University ([email protected])

Run Brother Run (Black Men Can Think): “Hooking-Up” Howard Gardiner’s Bodily-Kinesthetic Intelligence with the Black Male Baller/Performer in America

The irony with the success of African American male “athleticism” is that Black males are rarely given respectful attribute credit for their performances as intellectual and cognitive beings as a body in motion. Stereotypes about race and the body in society (Edwards, 1984; Lapchick, 1991) preclude assumptions, assessments etc. about Black male success in sports. Previous research about this racial schema includes broadcaster bias (Eastman & Billings, 2000; Rada, 1996; Rainville and McCormick, 1977), running/sprinting (Carter et al. 2010), athletic performance (Stone et al. 1999); and academics (Harrison et al 2010). Few research investigations and scholarly discourses position intelligence or the “presence of mind” about the African American male athlete in football and basketball as an important cultural trait that contributes to their success. Thus, by applying Howard Gardiner’s Bodily Kinesthetic Intelligence (1983) based on his broader framework(s) on multiple intelligence theories, this paper seeks to illuminate new understandings about the mind, body, and soul with the process of this successful baller/performer.

2010 NASSS Conference Abstracts Page 31 Hart, Algerian, University of Nevada ([email protected])

The Mentoring Gap for Women Pursuing Leadership positions in Sport

According to Bower in 2009, one of the most critical aspects of advancing women in leadership positions within sport is the mentoring relationship. As the number of women entering sport increases, a growing number of professionals recognize the inherent benefits and challenges with cultivating successful mentorship programs. Justifiably the mentoring relationship is instrumental to career development for both genders. However, it is particularly critical for women, especially those in male dominated professions akin to the sport industry. It has been well documented that women face different barriers than men when it comes to initiating a mentoring relationship. This presentation will discuss the mentorship paradigm and the potential challenges underrepresented groups face when pursuing leadership positions in the sport arena. Additionally, we will examine models for potential mentors, and organizations to consider when mentoring women for leadership positions in sport.

Hassan, David, University of Ulster ([email protected])

“Unified Gives Us a Chance”: An evaluation of Special Olympics Youth Unified Sports® Programme in Europe/Eurasia

The University of Ulster in Northern Ireland carried out an evaluation of Special Olympics Youth Unified Sports® Programme during a 15 month period in 2009-2010. Unified Sports provides the opportunity for young people with (athletes) and without (partners) intellectual disabilities to play, train and compete on the same sports teams. The most common sports played are football and basketball, and this growing programme aims to enable athletes to develop their sporting skills as well as to offer a platform for young athletes to socialize with peers and have the opportunity to develop new friendships, to experience inclusion and to take part in the life of their community. The project spanned five countries including Poland, Serbia, Ukraine, Hungary and Germany. Partnerships with academics in each participating country were forged as were close working relationships with key Special Olympics personnel. The research was qualitative in approach and extensive in range, as data was collected from over 220 stakeholders who included youth players, parents, coaches and representatives of the local community. This presentation will provide an overview of the projects methodology and describe the findings using illustrative quotations from the data. Finally the presentation will detail the conclusions of the study and highlight recommendations for the further development of the project.

Henrie, Kenneth M., Texas A&M University at San Antonio ([email protected])

Why They Watch: An Ethnographic Typology of American Tailgaters

This work was designed to develop a typology of Americans who engage in the pre-game rituals associated with popular American sport, commonly referred to as tailgating. Through ethnographic research involving both direct observation and in- depth interviews, the author has identified several distinct segments of tailgating sport fans. These sport consumer segments were identified based upon a number of distinguishing factors including their motivation for participation, the roles they play within the tailgating “tribe”, the outcomes they desire from the experience, and the degree to which they perceive the ritual to correlate with the sporting event itself. The respondents’ own accounts suggest several distinct segments. The author discusses these results and makes recommendations for future research into these sport consumer types, and their impact on tailgating tribes.

Hodler, Matt, University of Iowa, ([email protected])

Sport Films and Resistance

The messages of sport films generally act to maintain hegemonic norms and ideals about gender, race, sexuality, or class; they can also act as models for resistance. However, resistance through sport is far less likely to acquiescence through sport in the genre of sport film. Most sport films tend to follow a certain conservative theme in terms of support and maintenance of the status quo. Sport films typically de-contextualize the individual and, in this way, celebrate individual achievement. In doing so, these films devalue social identities (Baker 2003) in the process of elevating the value of individual effort. In this essay, I review three films that demonstrate a resistance to this convention of sport as a space for social mobility at the individual level through a redefinition of winning. These films could (and should) be discussed at other points of entry, but I focus primarily on the depiction

2010 NASSS Conference Abstracts Page 32 of resisting the conservative class messages inherent in sport films through a discussion of On the Edge (1986), The Hustler (1961), and The Loneliness of the Long Distance Runner (1962).

Hofmann, Annette R., Ludwigsburg University of Education ([email protected])

Ski Domes as Symbols of the Erlebnisgesellschaft

Parallel to growing wealth and individualism, a growing experience orientation can be noticed in Western societies within the last decades. The German sociologist Gerhard Schulze talks about the “Erlebnisgesellschaft” (adventure-orientated society). The orientation towards Erlebnisse, in the sense of excitement and adventure, can be observed in many facets of modern life, especially in sports and physical culture. Within the theoretical framework of Gerhard Schulze´s Erlebnisgesellschaft, this paper discusses the appearance of new spaces in skiing and snowboarding, which can be currently seen in the growing number of indoor skiing facilities. While the famous ski dome in Tokyo closed in 2003, all over the world new ones are being built. Presently there are about 50 ski domes. Six of them are located in Germany. The most famous indoor skiing facility is the “Sunny Mountain Ski Dome” in Dubai in the United Arab Emirates, a non-Western country. This facility is a multi-functional, large-scale recreation center. Besides skiing, it offers various restaurants, bars, shops and a movie theatre to its visitors. Through this variety of entertainment, it attracts not only skiers and snowboarders, but a larger group of customers.

Holman, Margery, University of Windsor ([email protected]), Vassil Girginov, Burnel University ([email protected]), Scott Martyn, University of Windsor ([email protected]), Marijke Taks, University of Windsor ([email protected]), Jess Dixon, University of Windsor ([email protected]), Bob Boucher, University of Windsor ([email protected]) and Jacqueline Beres, University of Windsor ([email protected])

Organizational Culture As a Determinant of Gender Composition of Leadership

The benefits of participation in sport have been documented by many. Yet, despite years of coordinated policy interventions, sport participation rates in many countries, including Canada, remain low (The Conference Board of Canada, 2005). Similarly, or perhaps logically, the number of women who occupy prime leadership positions within sport organizations fails to parallel the presence of men. A direct consequence of the 2002 Canadian Sport Policy, the Sport Participation Development Program (SPDP) was an attempt at producing a cultural change in the manner by which sport was being delivered to, and experienced by, participants. As part of a larger research initiative, the purpose of this presentation is to examine the gendered messages that are produced within the organizational cultures of nine selected National Sport Organizations (NSOs) and discuss how these may influence perceptions about their commitment to gender equity. The culture of organizations has long been identified as a barrier to women’s full participation as leaders (Connell, 1987, 1995; Kidd, 1990). The physical environment, the social climate, performance recognition and policy response are examples of cultural determinants that will be discussed in relation to achieving gender diversity.

Holmes, Paloma, Queen’s University ([email protected])

The Sweet Science: A sociological critique of Positive Youth Development (PYD)

This presentation adopts a pugilistic perspective to critically assess and reveal current contradictions within the 'health knowledges' and pedagogies as posited by positive youth development (PYD) in education. The bulk of PYD literature tends to emphasize the capacity of sport to contribute to character building among youth, particularly by mobilizing the theory and practice of sportsmanship to foster pro-social outcomes. Consistent with the predominant neoliberal moral agenda, PYD seeks to cultivate youth assets such as self-esteem, confidence, respect, initiative and improved health so that sports can instruct self- management techniques with the intent to improve social civic participation and inclusiveness. This paper identifies some key systemic problems in the mainstream PYD literature, which homogenizes sport experiences as generally 'healthy' and 'positive' vehicles for moral education. Boxing is used as a basis to critically examine the tendency to homogenize sport experiences as well as provide a contrast to the overemphasis on elite American sporting practices within PYD. By focusing exclusively on boxing, the paper explores the distinct values, images and 'bodily capital' that the theory and training of boxing provides for participants as well as serving as a unique vehicle to critically evaluate the dominant themes in the PYD literature.

2010 NASSS Conference Abstracts Page 33 Houghton, Emily J., University of Minnesota ([email protected])

How African American Male Athletes Wrote Black History

Little research exists regarding the collective memory of African American athletes during the Civil Rights Era (CRE). The purpose of the present study was to explore how African American male athletes wrote Black history during the CRE. This project extends Eyerman’s (2001) research on the formation of African American identity by analyzing the ways athletes express progressive and tragic/redemptive narratives in their autobiographies. A textual analysis was completed by comparing and contrasting two of Jackie Robinson’s autobiographies, published in 1948 and 1972 with autobiographies published within a similar time frame by the following athletes: Joe Louis, Satchel Paige, Gale Sayers and Curt Flood. The analysis is framed around Robinson’s books because he is embedded in the collective memory of Americans as the athlete who integrated professional sports. Scholars such as Durkheim (1995), Halbwachs (1992) and Zerubavel (1996) posit that individual memories directly reflect collective memory. Analyses revealed the athletes recounted memories in two ways: 1) memories that are unique to them and, 2) memories linked to the collective memory of the African American community. The findings support Eyerman’s (2001) assertions that the collective memory and identity of African Americans was tied to the progressive and tragic/redemptive narratives.

Ivan, Emese, St. John's University ([email protected]) and Ted Fay, SUNY-Cortland ([email protected])

The Youth Olympic Games: The Students’ Perspective

The 1st Youth Olympic Games took place in Singapore this summer. About 3,000 young athletes from all around the world competed in 26 sports disciplines. This newest initiative of the IOC got publicized as the ‘the IOC’s Flagship initiative to enhance Social Responsibility for next generation of athletes.’ At the same time, this new Olympic mega event creates opportunities and challenges for future sport managers, too. How to read and understand a new Olympic institution? What is the role of a young professional responsible for the organization of a high performance youth sport event? How to accept or why to reject a new Olympic initiative – based on one’s social and professional stand? How to formulate and communicate the young managers’ opinion about such an important event critically but professionally? This presentation would like to examine graduate students’ research projects on the Youth Olympic Games – as an avenue for understanding their social responsibility in the future. While demonstrating and analyzing the students’ perspective on this Olympic initiative the presenters also would like to engage academics, practitioners, and advocates to discuss and analyze the role and place of the YOG among Olympic events.

Jamieson, Katherine M., University of North Carolina at Greensboro ([email protected])

“Re-Assembling the LPGA Tour: Drafting Global Bodies and Crafting Comfort Women”

Throughout the past ten years of LPGA tour seasons, the number of annual tour events has diminished, the Commissioner spot has been held by no less than 4 persons, and an increasing number of tour events are now played outside of the US. Moreover, the LPGA’s “internal” policies regarding marketing, player conduct policies, and a more currently espoused desire to “globalize” the tour have made for a very interesting decade of professional women’s golf. In this paper, I analyze the contradictory arguments upon which the LPGA relies to ensure the exportability and profitability of this “American” tour. Among the contradictions are the nationalistic/global flexibility of some tour players (read White, English-speaking) serves to “Americanize” some while crafting “others” in undesirable relief to such acceptable im/migrants. Such contradictions illuminate the LPGA’s desires for global appeal and its simultaneous inability to let go of its “American” product.

Jette, Shannon, Concordia University ([email protected]) and Geneviève Rail, Concordia University ([email protected])

Resisting, Reproducing, Resigned? Pregnant Women’s Discursive Constructions of a ‘Healthy’ Pregnancy and ‘Proper’ Weight Gain

Within contemporary Western society, there is a confusing mix of messages in circulation regarding weight gain during pregnancy. Long-standing advice to 'eat for two' lingers yet encounters a growing number of prohibitions against eating too

2010 NASSS Conference Abstracts Page 34 much, the latter appearing to stem from new concerns within the health community that pregnancy is a major contributor to the 'obesity epidemic.' The conflicting messages are potentially confusing and anxiety-arousing for expectant women who, in an era of ‘intensive motherhood,’ are already under pressure to regulate their behaviours and avoid numerous pregnancy risks in order to have not only a healthy baby, but a better, smarter one. In this paper, we draw upon a poststructuralist discourse analysis of ‘inter-views’ with 15 pregnant Montreal women to explore their discursive constructions of a ‘healthy’ pregnancy and ‘proper’ weight gain, as well as to examine whether and how they are subject of (and position themselves within) the dominant motherhood discourse and the dominant obesity discourse. While doing so, we discuss how power and ideologies are reproduced through the women’s narratives. Finally, we comment on how such narratives provide a view to the ways in which these women constitute themselves at times as self-authored, neo-liberal subjects, and at times as agentic subjects aware of the processes through which they are governed and able to turn a reflexive and critical gaze on the dominant bodily discourses shaping their experiences of embodiment.

Johnson, Jay, San José State University ([email protected]), Matthew A. Masucci, San José State University ([email protected]) and Ted M. Butryn, San José State University ([email protected])

A Qualitative Examination of Doping Knowledge Among Elite Female Triathletes

Although triathlon is still in its infancy as an Olympic sport, in the past 5 years triathletes have been identified in the World Anti Doping Agency’s (WADA) annual doping summary as being among the top 5 sports returning "adverse analytical findings” or positive doping results. As reported in various media outlets, since the inaugural 2000 Olympic event, there have been several high-profile female competitors under suspicion of doping or returning positive doping tests including; Rebekah Keat, Nina Kraft, Olga Selekhova, Katja Schumacher, Brigitte McMahon, and Kate Allen-the later two, both Olympic medalists under investigation for doping allegations. In order to craft effective anti-doping measures, it is important to understand where future top-level athletes acquire information about doping. Therefore, the primary aim of this WADA-sponsored study was to qualitatively explore the sources of knowledge regarding doping practices among Canadian and American elite female triathletes. Focus group and individual interviews were conducted with 6 US and 8 Canadian female triathletes. Thematic analysis revealed that the athletes had a widely varied knowledge of doping gained through several sources, including the media. The results may be used to inform anti-doping education programs that are targeted toward elite female triathletes.

Joo, Sang Uk, University of Iowa ([email protected])

Gender and Nation in Women's Sport Film

There is more coverage of and commentary on women’s sports than ever before. Many scholars have exposed overtly gender- biased representation, and it is not difficult to find many cases representing women participating in sports as disempowered and sexualized objects. As a social practice, film is “not even the final target of enquiry, but part of a wider argument about representation” (Turner, 2008, p. 69). This paper critically explores the narratives of three women’s sport films: “A League of Their Own,” “Chak De India,” and “Forever the Moment.” Specific attention is paid to the cinematic themes and dominant discourses surrounding the narratives. These three films, which were released in different countries (USA, India, and South Korea), are about the women’s national team or women’s involvement in the national pastime. Thus, this paper intends to explore the narratives articulated with gender and nationality. Analysis of these films indicates that women’s sports and female athletes continue to be represented in a manner that reproduces masculine hegemony. In addition, these three narratives articulate gender and nationality by representing women’s national teams and female athletes as substitutions for men’s teams and male athletes.

Joseph, Janelle, University of Otago ([email protected])

Performative Dimensions of Gender, Sport and Race in Canada

Gender scholars have long showed that masculinity and femininity are not based on innate biological categories; rather, they are performances based on shared cultural scripts. Staged gender drag performances highlight ways of "doing gender." Descriptors of racial categories still often rely on biological markers; however, race is as equally socially constructed and performed as gender. The performativity of race is underexplored in Canadian sport, yet sports provide a stage for performances of gender and race. This presentation draws on ethnographic research with Afro-Brazilian and Afro-Caribbean men in capoeira (martial

2010 NASSS Conference Abstracts Page 35 arts) and cricket, respectively. I show that through teaching and performing martial arts, Afro-Brazilian men use their physical capital (strength, flexibility, acrobatic grace and martial acumen) to educate their non-Brazilian students and audiences about authentic Black masculinities. Afro-Caribbean men who play cricket in the greater Toronto Area use their social capital (verbal virtuosity, friendship networks, class status and age) to perform Blackness, not for a formal audience, but for each other. Their interactions with other Caribbean men from the U.S., U.K. and the Caribbean itself give their racialized performances a distinctly Canadian twist. This presentation ends by discussing the importance of analyses of racial performativity for Canadian sport studies.

Judge, Lawrence W., Ball State University ([email protected]), Jeffrey C. Petersen, Baylor University ([email protected]), David Bellar, University of Louisiana at Lafayette ([email protected]) and Elizabeth Wanless, Ball State University ([email protected])

An Analysis of the Inaugural Youth Olympic Games Awareness and Consumption

The Youth Olympic Games (YOG) is the latest global sport mega-event to be launched by the International Olympic Committee (IOC); the inaugural event will be the 2010 summer YOG hosted in Singapore. This event greatly expands the direct influence of the Olympic movement to youth sport, and has the potential for both significant positive and negative youth impact. Despite this potential, prior research has noted low levels of event awareness in American youth coaches (Judge, Petersen, & Lydum, 2009), in figure skating coaches (Judge, Petersen, & Bellar, 2010), and in Greek athletes and coaches (Judge, Kantzidou, Bellar, & Petersen, 2010). A survey of physical education and sport practitioners (n = 215), conducted in Singapore approximately 90 days prior to the YOG, found significant differences in four factors related to the YOG awareness and perceived impact (personal awareness, public awareness, planned YOG attendance, and planned YOG television consumption) based upon the variables of gender, nation of residency, coaching background, athletic experience, and parental status. Although the initiative has claimed to be potentially beneficial to the development of youth sport, the data is self-evident that a discrepancy still exists in awareness and attitudes levels amongst the representative international sample.

Kaiser, Kent, Northwestern College ([email protected])

Dual Longitudinal Study of Title IX Reporting by Journalist Gender

This two-part longitudinal study uses quantitative content analysis of three national newspapers to investigate gender dynamics in producing news on equality in sports. Specifically, it analyzes differences in Title IX coverage by reporter gender over the course of the law’s history to determine whether female journalists seized the opportunity—or were allowed the opportunity—to advocate more aggressively than their male counterparts for women’s equality. The study’s first part uses simple content analysis of volume and placement of articles about Title IX and women in sports, by journalist gender, and discusses the implications of how patterns of volume and placement have changed over time; its second part identifies advocacy and opposition frames used in the conflict over Title IX and applies content analysis of frames used, by journalist gender, and discusses implications of reporting differences and changes over time for women’s equality. Evidence from both parts of the study suggests that social control was operative among female journalists in the early years of Title IX, a feminist perspective among female journalists dominated in the middle years of the law’s history, and, most recently, a post-feminist worldview among female journalists may have come to influence newspaper coverage of the law.

Karadakis, Kostas, University of Florida ([email protected]) and Kyriaki Kaplanidou, University of Florida ([email protected])

Host and Non-host Residents’ Perceptions of the Vancouver Olympic Games Legacy

Understanding which legacies host and non-host residents identify as prominent and recognize as important as it relates to their quality of life can help organizers manage legacy programs. Using social exchange theory this study aimed to understand host and non-host residents’ perceptions regarding the importance of legacies six month prior to; and, during the 2010 Vancouver Olympic Games. A telephone survey was used to interview randomly selected residents from Vancouver (N=48) and Ottawa (N=54). The research questions were: (i) what are the dominant legacy themes among host and non-host residents; and, (ii) which characteristics are important for their quality of life? Results were analyzed using frequency analysis and paired t-tests. Legacy themes prior to the event revealed, Vancouver residents focused on Economic and Organizational Legacies. Ottawa

2010 NASSS Conference Abstracts Page 36 residents focused on Event Prestige and Emotional Legacies. During the event, both Vancouver and Ottawa residents focused on Psychological and Sport Legacies. Looking at what legacy aspects are important to residents relating to their quality of life, Vancouver and Ottawa residents indicated the avoidance of pollution was most important pre-event. During the event, Vancouver residents indicated a lack of environmental damage was most important and Ottawa residents indicated avoiding pollution was most important.

Karen, David, Bryn Mawr College ([email protected])

Author Meets Critics: Gaming the World

This Author-Meets-Critics session provides a forum for the discussion of the important issues raised by Gaming the World. Dealing both with globalization of sport and the globalization by sport, the book features soccer, football, baseball, basketball, and hockey in the context of the formation and spread of local, national, and international identities, allegiances, and conflicts. In a wide-ranging session, Robert Edelman, an historian of sport, Scott Cederbaum, a political scientist, and David Karen, a sociologist, will each bring their disciplinary perspectives to bear on the arguments made by Markovits and Rensmann. Markovits will respond to their criticisms and the audience will be encouraged to participate at the end of the session.

Kauer, Kerrie J., California State University, Long Beach ([email protected])

Embodied Social Justice: Yoga in Action

This paper is a part of an exploratory project that examines embodied forms of social justice. I argue that our bodies and embodied movement can be a gateway for service and activism, specifically through the practice of yoga. The pilot research I will discuss was collected through embodied ethnographic methods, interviews, participant observations, and textual analysis with “Off the Mat, Into the World ™”, a non-profit organization that uses the “power of yoga to inspire conscious, sustainable activism and to ignite grass roots social change (http://www.offthematintotheworld.org). Further, I explore how yoga has the capacity to challenge the ways in which “Western, hetero-patriarchal culture deadens conscious awareness and bodily intelligence” (Lea, 2009, p.58) and can potentially create positive social change with local and global communities. As Markula (2004) argued, mindful forms of movement that are grounded in critical awareness shift the focus from “body shaping” and disciplining of bodies to less biomedical effects, such as community service, sense of self-awareness, and reflexive mind- body connections. Yoga can help develop alternative models of knowledge production that dismantle interconnected dualisms and hierarchies in an embodied way (Wilcox, 2009) that differs from disembodied and paternalistic forms of service to create more conscious, socially just activism.

Kerr, Roslyn, University of Canterbury ([email protected])

Extending Deleuze's Rhizome: Bruno Latour and Gymnastics in New Zealand

This paper describes an Actor Network Theory study of the workings of elite gymnastics in New Zealand. Using the notion of the "rhizome", first conceptualised by Deleuze and more recently utilised by Bruno Latour and other Actor Network theorists, it proposes an alternative way of examining non-human technologies in sport that moves beyond the natural/artificial binary. Both Deleuze and Latour argue that through following the rhizome, the "in-between" mediators that allow action to take place are revealed. This ethnographic study shows how the sport of gymnastics only works through the inclusion of numerous non-human mediators in both training and in competition. Far from these non-human technologies being considered foreign and in opposition to the body, these are accepted and acknowledged as necessary and crucial parts of the gymnastics network. It is argued that gymnastics only ever exists as a multiplicity or assemblage of both human and non-humans working together, and that examining the sport as a rhizome allows the workings between the different parts to be understood.

2010 NASSS Conference Abstracts Page 37 Kian, Edward (Ted) M., University of Central Florida ([email protected]) and John Vincent, University of Alabama ([email protected])

Uncovering Reasons Marquee Newspaper Sport Reporters Have Fled for the Internet

At least 72,000 U.S. media members lost their jobs from mid-2000 through mid-2010 (IWantMedia). No industry within media has been hit harder during that span than newspapers. For example, the daily circulation of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution dropped from roughly 640,000 in 2001 to less than 200,000 in 2010 (AJC, New Georgia Encyclopedia). These types of figures are commonplace, resulting in a plethora of unemployed sports writers. However, some former newspaper sports employees are still writing fulltime and are now even more visible, as they jumped ship for the Internet. In this exploratory phenomenology, interviews were conducted with former successful newspaper reporters who now write for prominent Internet sport sites, such as AOL Fanhouse, ESPN.com. and Yahoo! Sports. A semi-structured interview guide was designed to gauge such topic areas as reasons for leaving newspapers, job satisfaction, differences in work environments, and perspectives on the future of both newspapers and Internet sites. Data from interviews were fully transcribed and coded. In the search for primary themes, theoretical and definitional memos were written on reoccurring concepts, and the constant comparative method was employed. Primary themes emerging from the data and their implications will be discussed in detail.

Kim, Chanryong, Dongeui University, South Korea ([email protected])

Social Capital and Sports Participation in Korean Society

Recently, social capital was being important issues to solve diverse social problem in modern society. This study was to investigate general a relationship between sports participation and social capital in Korean society. Major findings of this study were as follows; First, regular sports participation could generally form strong tie - closure networks in elite sports and weak tie - open networks in sport for all. Second, regular sports participation could form a personal/social trust in among networks and new norms of networks. And the networks help to exchange information about sports, business, life etc on.

Kim, Ji-Ho, George Mason University ([email protected]), Joy T. DeSensi, University of Tennessee ([email protected]) and Lars Dzikus, University of Tennessee ([email protected])

The Relationship Between Adaptation Patterns of Recent Korean Immigrants and Team Identification with the Atlanta Braves Major League Baseball Team: A Mixed-methods Study

The purpose of this explanatory mixed-methods study was to understand how Korean immigrants develop team identification with the Atlanta Braves and MLB teams with Korean players. This study involved two research phases. In the quantitative phase, the relationships between variables in the conceptual framework were tested based on quantitative data. The data were collected at Korean ethnic churches in Atlanta and at the championship game of the Atlanta Korean Adult Baseball League. The primary purpose of the follow-up qualitative research in the second phase was to elaborate and explain the results of the quantitative data analysis in the first phase. Acculturation theory and social identity theory provide the theoretical framework of this study. Both the results of the quantitative and qualitative research showed that the adaptation patterns of Korean immigrants with involvement in sports and MLB games were significant predictors in explaining team identification of Korean immigrants with the Atlanta Braves and MLB teams with Korean players. At the same time, however, the results of the quantitative and qualitative research suggested that a holistic understanding of Korean immigrants’ lives in Atlanta should be required for a better comprehension of their team identification with the Atlanta Braves and MLB teams with Korean players.

Kim, Kayoung, University of Florida ([email protected]) and Michael Sagas, University of Florida ([email protected])

Athletes’ Body Images in Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issues

Given the increasing number of athlete models appearing in the Sports Illustrated swimsuit issues, it is worth examining the content and context in which they appear, as well as the potential problematic representations of the athlete body as it infiltrates into athletics. This study, framed in hegemonic masculinity, aimed to reveal and understand to what extent this media utilizes gender and the sexuality of athlete models to sustain gender stereotypes in print media. The first purpose of this study was to

2010 NASSS Conference Abstracts Page 38 investigate to what extent athletes’ body images have changed from athletic to sexy in Sports Illustrated swimsuit issues from 1997 to 2009. Secondly, we sought to investigate sexualized female body images by examining and comparing athlete models with the fashion models in Sports Illustrated. Following Duncan’s (1990) methodological framework, we conducted a content analysis of athlete and non-athlete models’ photographic images (n = 1049) in Sports Illustrated swimsuit issues. The findings revealed that there were little differences in sexual portrayals between female athletes and female fashion models across numerous categories. The results are helpful in understanding current trends of sexualized athletes’ body images in the main stream media.

Kim, Kyoung-Yim, University of Toronto ([email protected])

Transnational Mobility and Flexibility in Context of Golf Talent Migration and Korean Women Golfers

Professional golf, especially in the (US) PGA (Professional Golf Association) and LPGA (Ladies Professional Golf Association), has forged transnational connections across its tournament destination sites, its transnational sponsors, and its multi-national members. These transnational connections are, however, uneven and unstable. For instance, despite the LPGA's numerous transnational connections and movements, only one nation in particular, South Korea, has actively engaged with the LPGA and became transnational. Among 122 active international players representing 27 different countries in the LPGA, Koreans account for 47 (39% of the international players in the 2009 season). It is, however, widely unknown why and how Korea has responded so enthusiastically to the LPGA's transnational movements or, to rephrase the question, why has Korean women's golf become transnational? As Shohat (2002) insists, globalization is not a completely new development; rather, it should be seen as continuum of (Eurocentric) colonialism. Adopting postcolonial and transnational feminist scholars' conceptual and analytical frames of mobility and flexibility, this paper interrogates the colonial and imperial interconnectivities of Korean golf with Japan and the US, and the various transnational capitals that shape the golf talents' flow in conjunction with how the sport of golf and the LPGA reshaped themselves into transnational agents.

Kim, Young Ho, Kent State University ([email protected]) and Kimberly S. Schimmel, Kent State University ([email protected])

Bids for 2018 Pyeongchang Winter Olympic Games: Why are Koreans Fanatical about Sports Mega-Events?

In this paper, I consider why Koreans are fanatical about mega-events with some doubts related to historical background and outcome through 88 Seoul Olympics Games and the 2002 Korea and Japan World Cup. The Korean government has bided for the 2018 winter Olympic Games over and over again in spite of two time failure for 2010 and 2014 winter Olympic games. The general public also longs for holding the Olympics in Pyeong-chang in Korea, which has become one of finalists for 2018 the winter Olympic Games. Korean nationalists have used various sports events and competitions as a means of bringing people together in order to heighten their national cohesion and confirm their patriotism. Sports have also been used as a way of expressing Koreans’ anti-Japanese feelings (Lee, 2002). During the fifth Republic the government utilized the propaganda and prestige benefits of hosting the 1988 Olympic Games for purposes of gaining international recognition, which in turn seemed to produce the more concrete benefits of national development and economic growth. Informed by a political-economic perspective, I examine these schemes, as well as the strategies used to gain public support for them, more fully.

King-White, Ryan, Towson University ([email protected]) and Joshua I. Newman, University of Otago ([email protected])

Obesity, Late Capitalism, and the Tautological Vortex of Bodily Accumulation

Studying fat has become lucrative enterprise within the corporatized university. Numerous scholars across varied fields have successfully galvanized exigent [public] pedagogies that ‘frame’ (Butler, 2009) the over-consuming body as a diseased, ‘epidemic’-spreading vessel in a state of perpetual crisis—thereby creating a compelling case for increased pecuniary support and institutional power. Incredulously, these same scholars tell us that in spite of significant public and private investment, things are getting worse. This paper unsettles the metaphysical foundations upon which this innocuous scientific tautology has evolved. Through various theoretical and empirical turns, we position bodies of overconsumption as dialectically subjected to, and subjugated by, broader market imperatives. Rather than cast (ab)normal bodies as the ‘individual’s problem,’ we discuss how health, cultural citizenship, and food politics have coalesce within the free market. We argue that scholars seeking to ‘cure’ the

2010 NASSS Conference Abstracts Page 39 ‘disease’ could benefit from articulating bodies in crisis to the systems (and symptoms) of accumulation from which they are produced. We thus call for critical rethinking(s) of the epistemological and ontological ‘frames’ of obesity science; encouraging scholars to engage regimes of accumulation not only in the pursuit of institutional capital, but in ways that might confront the core impulses of the emergent obesity-industrial-complex.

Knapp, Bobbi A., Southern Illinois University Carbondale ([email protected])

Fantasy Football? A Critical Examination of the Lingerie Football League

This study uses a critical cultural studies approach to explore the meanings created around issues of gender, race, and sexuality in the newly formed Lingerie Football League. The data were collected using a number of searchable databases, such as LexisNexis and ProQuest, and then coded using inductive and deductive themes. The findings indicate that a dominant white, heterosexy femininity infused the league and its representations. The researcher suggests that such representations are exactly why the LFL receives so much attention while the Independent Women’s Football League and the Women’s Football Alliance go pretty much unnoticed by the majority of mainstream America.

Kobayashi, Koji, University of Otago ([email protected])

Corporate Nationalism and Glocalization of Nike Advertising in Asia

This paper provides an in-depth case study of cultural production for a Nike advertising campaign in Asia, and Japan in particular, within the framework of corporate nationalism. Drawing from interviews with organizational representatives involved at different levels of the production process, the campaign is deconstructed by examining the multiple conditions, perspectives, and codes of cultural intermediation at the global-local nexus. The analysis reveals the complexity of the corporate glocalization process in which the work roles and practices of cultural intermediaries serve to: (a) encode television commercial content, and (b) develop media strategies to account for local sensibilities within a national market. As opposed to treating cultural production as a homogeneous entity, the findings suggest that there is a need to be more precise with respect to the roles of cultural intermediaries and the processes in which cultural artifacts, such as advertisements, are produced, represented, and circulated. Overall, the study illuminates the cultural codes negotiated among 'multiple regimes of mediation' (Cronin, 2004), articulating complex and intricate relationships between production and consumption, in and through which 'the nation' is re-imagined, represented, and reproduced as part of cultural circulation.

Koch, Jordan R., University of Alberta ([email protected])

Preventing “Street Gangs” and Performing “Traditions”: Approaching Race from the Perspective of Density

This paper considers a youth lacrosse program and a youth Cadet Corps that have been introduced to a First Nation in Alberta, Canada, in response to concerns over a number of adolescent street gangs. Both initiatives seek to use sport as a means of fostering positive social change, and were initiated by members of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP). In addition, both have been advertised so as to emphasize their possessing some kind of “traditional” Native distinctiveness. The origins and angling of these programs in such a fashion has been the subject of some contestation. While many embrace the appeal to an “authentic” identity, others criticize the manipulation of a “warrior” ethic. This raises several interesting paradoxes. First, it raises questions about the very concept of “tradition.” Second, it raises questions about the relations of power that inform the authorization of “tradition.” Lastly, it raises questions about the drawbacks and/or praxis of essentializing Native “tradition” for specific purposes. Drawing on literature that considers race from an epistemological position of density – mainly the work of Robin Kelley - I interpret these programs for their articulation of “tradition” within a sensitive social context. I argue that embracing epistemological density enables a more fluid understanding of race that extends the multiple subject positions shaping contemporary indigeneity.

2010 NASSS Conference Abstracts Page 40 Kwon, Sun-Yong, Seoul National University ([email protected])

The State and Sport Industry in Korea: The Paradox of Korean Globalization

This paper examines structural processes in which sport has recently become a promising business sector in South Korea, and offers a critical observation that the sport industry has been strategically promoted as a state-driven globalization project. First, it reviews the Korean government’s role in engineering the business sector of sport during the last decade. A range of policy and institutional interventions have supported the state’s drive to develop the nation’s sport industry with the aim of building Korea’s reputation as the preeminent sporting nation in the world. Second, the paper argues that the state’s role in promoting the sport industry can be viewed as a nationalistic project induced by Korea’s government-driven globalization. The nation-state has been an active promoter of industrial and cultural policies that advantages and protects the nation’s sport industry with the purpose of meeting the challenge of globalization. It highlights the paradox that the rationale of Korea’s government-driven globalization has been grounded within the enduring notion of developmental state which obviously stands at odd with globalization processes. The state-driven interventions for the sport industry are reflecting this paradox of the nation’s experiences in restructuring its economic leadership and development.

Laucella, Pamela C., Indiana University ([email protected]) and Kathryn E. Shea, Indiana University ([email protected])

Sheryl Swoopes and Rosie Jones: Coming Out in Mainstream Media

Sheryl Swoopes was a three-time MVP and winner of four WNBA championships with the Houston Comets. She is an outstanding athlete and role model, yet is known more for coming out than her WNBA records and three Olympic gold medals. Rosie Jones had 13 career victories on the LPGA tour and came out in a New York Times column. This research examines media coverage of Jones’ 2004 and Swoopes’ 2005 announcements and the intersection between race, gender, sexual orientation, and sport. According to Birrell and McDonald (2000), “Too often mainstream accounts frame narratives in terms that privilege one’s identity while ignoring others” (p. 3). This qualitative media analysis addresses symbolic annihilation, masculine hegemony, heteronormativity, and framing. Questions include: How did journalists frame Jones’ and Swoopes’ announcements? How did stories reflect sport culture and its heterosexual bias? How did journalists portray women’s sport, and specifically Jones and Swoopes? This research contributes to gender studies, GLBT, and media research since it studies the most famous athlete to come out in a team sport. It reinforces the gender divide and the power of sport media to create frameworks of meaning that selectively interpret individuals, events and issues. Absence, oppression, and marginalization of women athletes pervade messages in the 21st century. Unfortunately, the syndrome of “the other” still exists within patriarchal agendas and a society that privileges men.

LaVoi, Nicole M., University of Minnesota ([email protected])

Sport Sociologists “Off the Bench”: The Many Uses of Blogs

Blogs offer an accessible digital media tool that can help sport sociologists "get off the bench" and fulfill our roles as “professional debunkers of accepted truths” (Zirin, 2008). This interactive, applied panel will share knowledge and discuss three dimensions of using blogs to promote sport sociology within the larger world: 1) the instructional technology and pedagogy of digital media platforms, 2) potential outcomes of blogging for individuals and centers, and 3) public scholarship connecting students to social media creators in sport. From an instructional technology standpoint, social media and web 2.0 tools offer pedagogical application to sport scholars and their students. Blogs, wikis, social media platforms (i.e. Twitter, YouTube) allow for the construction of critical thought, peer and group collaboration, and the foundations for digital literacy. Similar to Title IX, many intended and unintended consequences of entering the blogosphere exist. Examples and best practices of how to enhance scholarship and teaching, improve advocacy and one’s ability to strive for creating social change and justice, and what to avoid, will be discussed. Establishing productive relationships between students and bloggers to discuss issues and produce useful scholarship will also be discussed.

2010 NASSS Conference Abstracts Page 41 Lefebvre, Kelley, University of Alberta ([email protected])

Sport Within Development: Negotiating an Appropriate Role

Sport, within the international development community, has evolved within the past 10 years from a place of informal implementation, ad hoc employment and sporadic use into an integrated reality, adopted into current development practice (Levermore & Beacom, 2009; United Nations, 2003). While development initiatives and international aid efforts are no new players on the international stage, the role of the foreigner within this relationship has yet to be teased out for all its complexities to the development situation. (Kidd, 2007; Sugden, 2006). The transformation of space and place (with respect to practices of domination and subordination) through the presence of foreign volunteers is, as Razack (2005) argues, never innocent. This paper explores how volunteers in Right to Play negotiate the discursive trends and ideologies underpinning SDP. Framed by the work of cultural theorists such as Gramsci (1971) and Williams (1977; 1980) to consider the complexities inherent in the mobilization of a cultural phenomenon like sport within development, I discuss SDP as an entity that operates within cultural, political and economic power relations (Darnell, 2009). Using interviews with Right to Play Olympic athletes ambassadors conducted at the 2010 Olympics in Vancouver, contrasted with my own interviews with volunteers, I explore how these individuals negotiate their experiences in relation to the official Sport for Development policy hegemonically produced by the IOC and the UN.

Leonard, Wib, Illinois State University ([email protected])

The Postself in the Social World of Sport

I use the sociological concept of the postself to demonstrate how, why and the ways in which sports can be viewed from this viewpoint. The postself refers to how persons want to think of themselves or how they would like others to think of them when their playing days are over. Baseball great Ted Williams aptly conveys this idea when he said, “All I want out of life is that when I walk down the street folks will say, there goes the greatest hitter who ever lived.” When athletes are inducted into a sports hall of fame or their jerseys or numbers are retired or their likenesses are bronzed they live-on indefinitely, in the symbolic sense. The processes and dynamics through which individuals seek to leave their mark through achievements in sports are explored. Using an unobtrusive method of qualitative secondary data collection a potpourri of accounts in the social world of sport were gathered, systematized, analyzed and interpreted using content analysis of various mass media documents. The perspectives and feelings of athletes and their audiences, relationships between selves and others, different sport acts, and the situational contexts in which these natural acts occurred were paramount in the outcomes reported.

Lindemann, Kurt, San Diego State University ([email protected])

Rehabilitation and Enculturation: International Wheelchair Rugby Participation and Cultural Tensions

Wheelchair rugby, or "Murderball," has gained notoriety from its portrayal on television and the Oscar-winning documentary of the same name. While most viewers are shocked by the sport's hard-hitting, physically-demanding play, wheelchair rugby offers its players much more than a workout. The international sport also provides a window into cultural norms surrounding disability and how participation in the sport reinforces and resists these norms. Drawing on 30 interviews with players from the United States, Great Britain, and New Zealand, this study examines the way players' talk discursively frames their participation in the sport as rehabilitative, enabling them to form social networks with other more experienced players. From these social networks, participants learn how to better function in their everyday lives with a physical disability. In countries like Great Britain and New Zealand, where able-bodied rugby is the cause of many of the spinal cord injuries of current wheelchair rugby players, these social networks surprisingly reinforce the sort of idealized masculinity fostered by able-bodied rugby. While some discursive frames are consistent among player nationalities, the biggest differences emerge in non-US players' descriptions of tensions between cultural norms and accepted attitudes toward disability and persons with disabilities.

2010 NASSS Conference Abstracts Page 42 Lisec, John Phillip S., University of Minnesota ([email protected])

New Media Gender Inequality: WNBA Blog Narratives as Replication/Resistance

In order to understand the content of new media sources, common traditional media themes surrounding gender and sport are examined through a narrative analysis of WNBA representations within Deadspin, Women Talk Sports, and Women’s Hoops Blog. As new media has emerged to rival and at times replace traditional media as an important source of information and knowledge regarding sport and gender, themes of under-representation of women’s sport; women athletes as inferior; sexualization/heterosexualization of female athletes; and homophobia/fear of lesbian athletes are analyzed within popular sport blogs. In order to better contextualize this analysis, this research also discusses the dynamic relationships of producers, readers, and texts in meaning making and interpretation. By combining the frameworks of Hall’s (1980) Encoding-Decoding Model, Jhally’s (1989) Sport-Media Complex and new media scholarship, this research proposes a new way to conceptualize the power of emerging forms of media: the Sport-New Media Complex. Analysis further reveals that while sport news blogs such as Deadspin often perpetuate common ideologies surrounding women’s sport that serve to marginalize the interests and legitimacy of the WNBA, blogs such as Women Talk Sports and Women’s Hoops Blog also provide counter-narratives to challenge and negotiate meaning regarding dominant gender ideologies and sport.

Lock, Rebecca, University of Alberta ([email protected])

Acknowledging Pain: Re-thinking How Athletes and Researcher’s Know Pain

In what way(s) can we know others’ experiences of pain? Do those who engage in research on risk, pain, and injury in sport answer that question too quickly or too easily? In this paper I argue that the claim that we can know others’ relationships to pain relies too simply on explanatory discourses. Working with Cavell’s (1976) ideas on acknowledgement I suggest that, rather than knowing being secured though cognitive discourses, we regard our understanding of experiences of pain to emerge through different modes of acknowledgment. To articulate this, I draw upon interview excerpts from Ginger, a female soccer player. Ginger expresses her experiences of pain both within the terms of prevailing discourses and from the place where these discourses reach their explanatory limit. Both of us find ourselves not knowing why she tolerates pain. From this “state” of not knowing Ginger begins to express some of what her pain means by articulating how she engages her pain, and I interpret her pain as something she does not simply know but with which she has an ambivalent relationship. Moreover, I argue that Ginger comes to acknowledge her relationship to pain by bringing into question her own use of pain-justifying discourses.

Lodge, Vanessa, University of Ottawa ([email protected]), Audrey Giles, University of Ottawa ([email protected]) and Janice Forsyth, University of Western Ontario ([email protected])

A Series of Compromises: Native Sporting Experiences in Eastern Canada

Established in 1951, the Tom Longboat Awards (TLA) are the longest standing and highest award given to Aboriginal athletes in Canada. More than 800 people have been named as recipients since 1951; and despite the fact that they rank among the very best athletes, little is known about their involvement in sport. Additionally, in 1998, the TLA was divided into two categories - one for males and one for females. Before that distinction was institutionalized, only 24 females had been named a recipient. This paper, which is part of a larger SSHRC-funded project, will use a post-colonial framework informed by post-structural theory to examine the experiences of TLA winners from the Maritimes. Two central questions guide this research: 1) what are the experiences of Aboriginal athletes in the Maritimes, and 2) how do the sporting experiences of male and female recipients differ? Data from oral interviews conducted with 11 recipients, four female and seven male, and archival research will be considered in order to answer these questions. In doing so, this research will illuminate the compromises - along lines of race and gender - that Aboriginal athletes have made in order to participate in, and benefit from, sport.

2010 NASSS Conference Abstracts Page 43 Love, Adam, Mississippi State University ([email protected]) and Kimberly Kelly, Mississippi State University ([email protected])

U.S. Courts and Female-Only Teams in High School Sport

Feminist scholars have critically analyzed the effects of sex segregation in numerous social institutions, yet sex-segregated sport often remains unchallenged. Even critics of sex-segregated sport have tended to accept the merits of female-only teams at face value. In this paper, we revisit this issue by examining the underlying assumptions supporting female-only teams and how they perpetuate gender inequity. Specifically, we analyze the 14 U.S. court cases wherein adolescent boys have sought to play on female-only teams in their respective high schools. The majority of these cases were not resolved in the plaintiffs’ favor, thus preserving a form of sex segregation in sport. A closer look at the bases for the courts’ decisions reveals taken-for-granted, essentialist assumptions about girls’ innate fragility and inferiority. While maintaining female-only teams is seen as a solution to the problem of male dominance in sport, the logic supporting this form of segregation may further entrench female subordinacy.

Ma, Bryan, York University ([email protected])

Exploring the State of Sports Medicine in Toronto

Despite the growth of the study of sports medicine (SM) in the socio-cultural study of sport, there is a relative lack of research regarding the experiences of the various healthcare providers within the field in Canada. Existing research in this area, albeit limited, has focused predominately on the development, social organization and experiences of sports medicine clinicians working with high-level athletes (e.g., Olympic, varsity, semi-professional, professional). Using qualitative methods, the aim of the proposed study will be to explore the state of SM in Toronto through the lived experiences of health providers in SM clinics. The main goal of this study is to gain a better understanding of the state of sports medicine in Toronto beyond high-performance sport. What are the current issues, obstacles and opportunities within the field of SM in Canada? The aim of this study is to gain a better understanding of the backgrounds and experiences of clinicians who are or claim to be a part of SM in Toronto.

MacKay, Steph, University of Ottawa ([email protected])

Skirtboarder Net-a-Narratives: Challenging Mass Media (Re)presentations

Current findings suggest that the (re)presentation of sportswomen in the mass media, which is characterized by (hetero)sexualization, under(re)presentation and marginalization of women’s bodies, is one of the means through which masculine dominance is reproduced in sport. One way women challenge these sexist discursive constructions is by creating and posting their own stories on Web 2.0. Through an in-depth poststructural discourse analysis of 262 posts, (including comments) of one Web 2.0 (Internet) site – a blog produced by the Skirtboarders, a crew of female skateboarders based in Montreal, Canada – I examine how the Skirtboarders challenge normative discourses of femininity deployed in mass media (re)presentations of sportswomen through the use of alternative discourses. Although the Skirtboarders reproduce some of the normative discourses commonly found in mass media (re)presentations of sportswomen in their blog, such as when they refer to their feminine appearance, they predominantly challenge these discourses. For example, in numerous videos, they spit, fart and move (without apology or explanation) in ways that defy stereotypical femininity presented in mass media (re)presentations. This suggests that some sportswomen can and want to be (re)presented in ways that significantly differ from mass media coverage and are accomplishing this on platforms such as Internet blog sites.

Mansfield, Louise, Canterbury Christ Church University ([email protected]) and Lara Killick, University of the Pacific ([email protected])

“Higher, Faster, Stronger”: Exploring Commercial Potential for UK’s Netball Superleague”

This paper draws on theoretical perspectives connected to the governance, and media and marketing of sport in examining the commercial potential of the Netball Superleague in the UK. It presents the findings from 21 depth interviews conducted during 2009 with administrative, coaching and media/marketing personnel from eight of the nine superleague teams (2008/09 season) including media/marketing consultants working for England Netball. The paper discusses the potential for Superleague

2010 NASSS Conference Abstracts Page 44 franchises and individual players to attract commercial interest in the form of media visibility, sponsorship and advertising, labor migration and player payment, and merchandising and branding. It explores the cross currents of gender and local/national identities within the differential franchise framework designed to attract excellence in players, coaches and administrators and develop commercial imperatives. The project brings the voices of those involved at the elite level to the fore in understanding the production of commercial knowledge about the UK Superleague and the global expansion of netball.

Marchi Jr., Wanderley, Universidade Federal do Paraná, Brazil ([email protected])

Then and Now: Sociology of Sport in Brazil, 2000 and 2010

Our research at the Federal University of Paraná attempts to empirically document changes and overall growth in research and the paradigms that guide sociology of sport knowledge production and professional development in Brazil over the last 10 years. We have used support from the humanities and social sciences to conduct surveys and collect data that identify moments of emergence, integration, and consolidation of the socio-cultural studies of sport. In this paper we use our analysis of these data to provide a description of the early development of the sociology of sport in Brazil. The main goal of the paper is to initiate a dialogue related to our analysis of the field. Our findings focus on the following factors: (1) the central topics of study during the years 2000-2010; (2) the scholars most frequently cited in journal articles, theses, and conference presentations; (3) the theoretical frameworks most frequently used in these sources; (4) the actions taken by university departments to incorporate the socio-cultural studies of physical activity and sports in their curriculum and research programs; and (5) a comparison of the academic dimensions of socio-cultural studies of sports in Brazil in 2010 with what existed in the year 2000. Based on this study, which is part of an ongoing larger research project, we describe the sociology of sport in Brazil today and identify its emerging connections with the field as it currently exists in Latin America, North America, and Europe.

Markovits, Andrei S., University of Michigan ([email protected])

Violence Among Europe's Spectators And Its Virtual Absence Among America's

Here is the puzzle: Soccer stadiums in many European countries continue to remain cauldrons of racism, xenophobia and physical assault whereas comparable phenomena remain virtually unknown among American spectators. What renders this discrepancy so interesting is the fact that by virtually all statistical measures, these European countries exhibit a much lower level of violence than does the United States. The question, of course, is why do we see such a sports exception in terms of the norms of violence governing the public cultures on these two continents? Clearly, in all competitive endeavors such as agonistic team sports, every team's supporters will do their best to become the twelfth man to use the world of football and soccer, or the sixth man in basketball and ice hockey. One will do pretty much everything to get into one's opponents head, to get under her/his skin, to render her/him insecure. This constitutes the very essence of fandom. But why has such partisanship come to include violence as routine in Europe and not in the United States, an otherwise more violent society? In a historically informed comparison, I will propose a few hypotheses as plausible reasons for this fascinating discrepancy.

Markula, Pirkko, University of Alberta ([email protected])

Publishing in SSJ: Tips from the Editors

Publishing in peer reviewed journals is an integral part of knowledge production in the field of sport sociology. As past and present editors of SSJ, we know that submitting one’s work to a journal such as the Sociology of Sport Journal can be challenging because authors may not fully understand the review process and rationale for decisions. In this panel, we aim to shed light on this process by explaining what, from our experiences, makes a good, publishable paper and by offering advice that might make the review process a smoother journey for aspiring authors. Panelists will include Annelies Knoppers (past editor of SSJ), Pirkko Markula (present editor of SSJ), Nancy Theberge (past editor of SSJ), and Mary Louise Adams (up-coming book review editor for SSJ). The panel presider will be Michael Giardina (present associate editor for SSJ).

2010 NASSS Conference Abstracts Page 45 Mason, Courtney, University of Alberta ([email protected])

The Repression of Aboriginal Cultures in the Formation of Banff National Park

This paper traces the emergence of Canada’s iconic Banff National Park and the consequences of the protected areas for local Aboriginal communities. Content concentrates on how these new regional developments implicated the lives of Nakoda First Nations. The primary objective of this inquiry is to examine the discourses of conservation that were produced from the 1870s until the 1920s. These discourses were central to the creation of the parks system, the development of early forms of recreation and the extension of restrictions placed on the subsistence land uses of Nakoda communities. Discourses of conservation were also intricately linked to the implementation of levels of discipline that forwarded government policies designed to foster the assimilation of Aboriginal peoples. In this manner, certain knowledges informed dividing practices that tended to exclude and repress Nakoda cultures as part of broader processes of colonial power relations. This research relies on primary evidence collected from oral history interviews with Nakoda peoples and government archival materials. Foucault’s concepts of panopticism and correct training (1975) are considered as tools to theorize how race was utilized as a dividing and normalizing practice to repress the cultures of Nakoda peoples.

Masucci, Matthew A., San José State University ([email protected]) and Jay Johnson, San José State University ([email protected])

A Qualitative Exploration of the San José Bike Party

The San José Bike Party (SJBP), originated in 2004-2005 as a loose collection of cyclists joining together for group-rides around the urban center of San José, California. While the inspiration for the SJBP was varied, by 2007, a core group of organizers intentionally eschewed the overt political overtones of the often controversial Critical Mass ride - founded in nearby San Francisco in 1992 - for a more benign gathering. By leveraging a myriad of social networking services, SJBP clandestinely announces the route just prior to hitting the pavement on the 3rd Friday of each month. The ride, which currently attracts between 2000-4000 cyclists, is often organized around specific themes, such as “the World Cup” and “ride as your favorite deity.” Thus, in contrast to quazi-anarchical movements like Critical Mass, the SJBP promotes a more civil atmosphere and encourages respect for the laws governing bicycle operation. Upon closer examination however, there seem to be contradictory experiential texts that do not necessarily align with the organizers mission statement. The purpose of this paper is to present preliminary results from an ethnographic exploration of the SJBP as we endeavor to articulate the nuanced complexities of the meanings assigned to the event by SJBP participants.

McBean, James, University of Maryland ([email protected]) and Michael Friedman, University of Maryland

Usain Bolt: Crossing the Line

In the 2008 Beijing Olympics, Jamaican sprinter Usain Bolt set a new world record in the 100M race at 9.69 seconds despite slowing down and beginning his victory celebration before crossing the finish line. Rather than being praised for his victories and feats, Bolt’s exuberance was criticized by IOC President Joque Rogge, who stated “you can’t do that. That’s not the way we perceive being a champion.” In this reaction, Rogge deemed Bolt to be in violation of the laws of the conceived space of the IOC and athletic competition. Through the works of French social theorist Henri Lefebvre, this paper analyses the 2008 Beijing Olympics men’s 100M final as a moment in which spatial understandings of the sporting space and race were produced, challenged, and reinscribed through the actions of Bolt, the reaction of Rogge, and media discourses. To do so, this paper deconstructs the relationship between representational spaces, spatial practices and representations of space as postcolonial, black bodies are produced to be suitable for public consumption.

McCree, Roy, University of the West Indies ([email protected])

Black, British and Trinidadian: Media Constructions of Olympian McDonald Bailey

The media play a critical role in marking human bodies and constructing social identities consistent with particular hegemonic ideologies and interests in society through its impact on discursive and practical consciousness. This role can also be

2010 NASSS Conference Abstracts Page 46 contradictory for the media are often involved “… in the simultaneous articulation of national unity and difference...” (Rowe, McKay & Miller, 1998, p. 125). The explosion of studies, however, on the role of sports media in the process of identity formation has been both today-centered and first world centric. Going against this dominant trend, this paper examines media narratives surrounding former Trinidadian-British sprint Olympian McDonald Bailey in the colonial period 1946-1953, based on a content analysis of 536 reports in British and Trinidad newspapers for the same period. The examination found that representations of Bailey were pluralized and racialized consistent with the character of relations between Britain and its colony Trinidad at the time. They were also contradictory for there was no necessary isomorphic relationship between media reporting and public perceptions of Bailey as well as other social conditions in which he was enmeshed as a colored man. The paper also discusses the implications of study for more Caribbean oriented studies of the sport media.

McDermott, Lisa, University of Alberta ([email protected])

Doing Something That’s Good for Me: Understanding Articulations Amongst Exercise, Health and the Self

New public health and neo-liberal discourses began to emerge in Canada in the early 1990s. Corresponding with these discursive developments was a data collection occurring in 1995 that focused on exploring a group of women’s physical activity experiences; time-wise this collection also coincided with: the first occasion the terms ‘obesity’ and ‘epidemic’ were articulated in both scientific and public discourses (Saguy and Riley, 2005); and when the amount of print media discourse devoted to discussing women, exercise and health were escalating. Materializing in the data was an unanticipated theme in which the women articulated their activity experiences to health considerations in terms of ‘doing something that’s good for me’. Suggestively, more than just exercise and health were being articulated to each other, as the self was also being stitched into this fabric of understanding, bringing to the fore the relevance of subjectivity to understanding the exercise-health relationship. Using a Foucauldian understanding of government, self and bio-power, I unpack the associations the women conceived amongst exercise, health and the self, in light of these nascent contextual discourses, in an effort to problematize the relations between the self and power within the women exercise practices.

McDonald, Mary G., Miami University ([email protected])

Constructing Deviance via Representations of the WNBA’s “Bad Girls”

Despite the Women’s National Basketball Association’s (WNBA) efforts to promote its players as socially responsible, recently publicized cases have countered this image of ideal womanhood. This paper interrogates two such incidents: the 2008 fight between the Detroit Shock and Los Angeles Sparks, and Phoenix Mercury player Diana Taurasi’s 2009 driving under the influence (DUI) conviction. Media coverage of these cases resonates with other popular cultural images of sensationalized deviance that also mobilize particular narratives of gender, whiteness and commodification to promote a historically specific and culturally salient version of “bad girls.”

McGovern, Jen, Temple University ([email protected])

The Promotion of Baseball Players in a Global Market

Since 1980 there has been a dramatic rise in the number of foreign-born athletes in U.S. professional baseball leagues. Over a quarter of major leaguers and approximately half of all minor league players are foreign born, the great majority hailing from either the Dominican Republic or Venezuela. World-system theory shows how the combination of escalating player costs in core nations and limited alternatives of young men from peripheral nations created a global market where baseball organizations could recruit, train, and hire Latino players at low cost. Existing scholarship explains Latinos’ entrance into this global market, but pays less attention to their experiences within that market. This project asserts that the global world system continues to have an effect on Latino players’ rates of promotion in the U.S minor league baseball system. I use players’ career statistics to construct logistic regression models comparing the likelihood of promotion for foreign-born Latino players and for native-born players. I find that Latinos in low level minor leagues are not promoted as often as their domestic counterparts, even when considering fielding position and playing statistics. This research adds to current scholarship on sport labor migrants and on Latinos in sport.

2010 NASSS Conference Abstracts Page 47 Meân, Lindsey J., Arizona State University ([email protected]) and Jeffrey W. Kassing, Arizona State University ([email protected])

Heroism and Disgrace: Commodifying Performance in Nike’s World Cup Narratives

As the dominant global sport, soccer is a powerful socio-economic and cultural force that significantly impacts identities, practices and wider understandings. Yet soccer’s audiences are increasingly unrestricted by traditional national and geographic boundaries, especially with the wider availability and importance of consumption via digital media. Thus soccer provides an ideal site for promotional texts designed for unified global audiences, and FIFA’s World Cup tournament is the ideal promotional vehicle given its global significance and familiarity. Yet such texts typically enact narrow versions of soccer, re/producing dominant western discourses for consumption by global audiences. As a main competitor for the global soccer market, Nike’s 2010 World Cup promotional campaign “Write the Future” provides a key global, promotional text for analysis. Featuring many top international players, at just over 3 minutes in length, this text was consumed as a digital ‘viral’ video specifically designed for YouTube.com (shorter versions were broadcast as advertisements during live World Cup television coverage). Using CDA, we explore the rhetorical and discursive construction of heroic and ordinary masculinities and nation within the narratives of success and failure in Nike’s text and their implications for wider global identities, practices and understandings.

Menaker, Brian, University of Florida ([email protected]) and Nefertiti Walker, University of Florida ([email protected])

Impact of Hegemonic Masculinity on Collegiate Coaching Perceptions

Workplace discrimination in managerial and leadership roles is commonplace in early 21st Century United States as manifested by underrepresentation of women in senior level management positions in private sector companies. The college basketball coaching profession mirrors the inadequate representation of female leaders in corporate America. A literature review focused on hegemonic masculinity and sport coaching shows that men are favored in positions of leadership, while women are viewed as less capable leaders in relation to males. The purpose of the study is to assess perceptions of women coaching in men’s collegiate basketball. Undergraduate sport management students at a major Southeastern university were surveyed with the hypothetical responsibility of hiring a men’s basketball assistant coach. They were then given a fictitious job listing for an assistant men’s basketball coach at the collegiate level which included both male and female candidates. The job listing contained the position announcement, responsibilities, and requirements for the position. The trend of the responses show that participants believe that men are equipped to fill women’s basketball positions, but women are not appropriate candidates to lead men’s teams. Overall, respondents reiterate past emphasis on hegemonic masculinity in the collegiate coaching profession.

Metz, Jennifer L., University of Iowa ([email protected])

Redefining “Athlete”: Gatorade “G” Series and So You Think You Dance

Gatorade’s latest product is a three-part “scientific” program for athletic performance. Aligning itself with sport superstars, and the winner of the reality dance competition, “So You Think You Can Dance” (SYTYCD) Gatorade aims for a foothold within the dance community. The SYTYCD winner will be featured in the “G” series internet and print campaign. Further, Gatorade sponsored SYTYCD’s penultimate result show and took the dancers through a series of tests at Gatorade Laboratories. These "tests" found the dancers to be "scientifically" elite athletes. In recent years, we have seen a spate of dance movies (Step Up Trilogy) and related television programming (Dancing with the Stars) that have (re)produced and challenged hegemonic notions of race, class, sexuality and gender within dance and popular culture. They have blurred the line between “art” and “athletics” and the attendant discussion of high and low culture. The relationship between Gatorade and SYTYCD is an example of the "sportification "of high culture activities such as dance, food and art. Using a critical cultural analysis of the 2010 SYTYCD and the Gatorade ‘G’ campaign will provide insight into the fading lines between high and low and "athlete" and "artist" in the US popular landscape.

2010 NASSS Conference Abstracts Page 48 Mezzadri, Fernando Marino, Universidade Federal do Paraná, Brazil ([email protected])

The Challenge of Influencing Sport-Related Public Policy in Latin America

The primary objective of first Latin American congress on public policies that integrate leisure, sport and education was to create a continent-wide network for producing, communicating, and using knowledge to inform public policies. The objectives and planned actions of the congress were achieved. We also succeeded in selectively choosing participants based on criteria defined by the organizing committee, which favored the participation of teachers with expertise on social, educational and research approaches to sport, leisure and education. The most important aspect of the congress was the conceptual discussion of the sport during which teachers and researchers learned about multiple concepts of sport and the need to focus on public policies when producing knowledge related to sports and leisure activities in Latin America. Proposed new policies based on the sociology of sport emphasized the use of sport to design a more balanced society and the creation of a participation-based sporting culture in society. Finally, there was general agreement that sport should be included in schools as an element in citizenship training and to integrate young people into a sporting culture that emphasizes participation over training for performance only.

Millington, Rob, Queen’s University ([email protected])

An Unequal Playing Field? The 2016 Brazil Olympics, Modernity, and Underdevelopment

Mexico City’s successful bid for the 1968 Olympic Games marked an unprecedented feat for a nation of the global South: for the first time, a “developing” country would host the Games. The Olympics, it was argued, would symbolize Mexico’s political, economic, and social advancement to the endpoint of development. However, given the lack of historical precedence, and drawing on (neo)colonial perceptions, many doubted the ability of a developing nation to host an event to the scale of the Games (Zolov, 2005). Over 50 years later, with the announcement Brazil as the host of the 2016 Olympics, themes of development, modernity, and (neo)colonialism have re-emerged. The Olympics, with a global audience and multi-million dollar corporate sponsorships will showcase a “developed”, “modern” Brazil. Yet, the Games also have the potential to reproduce underdevelopment through neoliberal policies which prioritize free-market capitalism over social welfare. Utilizing post-colonial theory and discourse analysis of popular media sources, I explore how discourse around the Olympics is implicated in the teleology of modernity. I also discuss how hosting the Games might serve to reaffirm the global North/South, developed/developing divides and contribute to uneven development through the shrinking of social welfare, diversion of funds, and uneven participation in the global economy.

Mills, Cathy, University of British Columbia ([email protected]) and Larena Hoeber, University of Regina ([email protected])

Analysis of Dressing Rooms: Insight into a Frequently Used Space

Fusco (2009) noted that the organization of space in the realm of sport warrants more research. As Schein (1992) suggested, studying “the constructed environment of the organization” (p. 238) may give insight into the values and basic assumptions of an organization and its members. This, in turn, may expand our understandings of member experiences and highlight aspects of involvement including power dynamics, control, and inclusion/exclusion. The purpose of this presentation is to examine members’ perceptions of dressing rooms in a sport club. Eight figure skaters and seven adults from one club discussed the dressing rooms using photo-elicited interviews. The findings illustrated areas of integration, differentiation, and fragmentation in their perceptions (Martin, 1992; 2002). There was general consensus on the primary function of the dressing rooms. However, perceptions differed between competitive and recreational participants on access to the rooms. There were fragmented perspectives on the secondary functions of and control over the rooms. The findings revealed multiple and sometimes conflicting impressions of the organization of this sport club space stimulating a number of questions for further discussion. Who has access to the space? Who controls the space? How should the space be used?

2010 NASSS Conference Abstracts Page 49 Misener, Katie, Ryerson University ([email protected]), Alanna Harman, University of Western Ontario ([email protected]), Alison Doherty, University of Western Ontario ([email protected])

The Duality of Healthy Citizenship and Self-interest in a Local Sports Council

Local sports councils are nonprofit and voluntary organizations that provide local knowledge, advocacy, and support for sport at the community or grassroots level. They also have the potential to act as information conduits for policy and sport-related initiatives from all levels of government. The purpose of this paper is to explore factors that impact the ability of the sports council to contribute to community sport development. The study follows constructivist grounded theory methods where in-depth interviews (N = 16) were conducted with Board Chairs and Executive Directors of the council as well as member and non- member sport clubs in the community. The findings revealed that while the sports council is a unique site for citizen-based leadership in community sport, the council must balance the duality of active involvement with the self-interest of individuals and organizations in order to remain a viable and effective site for sport and health promotion. The findings also showed that self- interest may compromise the ability of the council to represent the collective and address common needs. This presentation will discuss the complexity and implications of managing these tensions within the context of a voluntary organization.

Mmbaha, Janet, University of Georgia ([email protected]) and Joo Yeon Esther Lee, University of Georgia ([email protected])

Giving Back to Society: Athlete Philanthropy in Africa

Athletes are considered role models and as such they are expected to behave in a certain manner that befits their status and also uphold to certain social expectations. The 1990’s saw some of the highest sports endorsement and earnings by sports personalities such as Michael Jordan’s earnings $45 million in endorsements in 1998, which was more than his salary of $34 million that year (McDonald& Andrews, 2001). Media reports abounds with catchy headlines on athlete transgressions including sexual harassment, infidelity and use of performance enhancing drugs or sensationalized sexist or racial representations of athletes. In spite of the overwhelming coverage during the sports competitions and reports on their earnings and sometimes transgression, a number of athletes dedicate time off the field and donated their money to worthwhile causes. The structural functional theory is used to analyze the role of sport in society and the athletes’ philanthropic activities in community development in post-colonial Africa. This theory assumes that various parts of the society contribute to its social stability and the survival of the society and thus, the athlete’s actions as role models and agents for social change. This paper highlights some of the philanthropic programs started by African athletes.

Mobley, Alex, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign ([email protected]) and CL Cole, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign ([email protected])

Extremities of Sport and War: Traitors, Gimps, and Heroes

In an effort to map the new terrain of overlapping discourses of disability, masculinity, paralympism, and militarism, we consider two critically acclaimed documentary films, Murderball (Shapito, Mandel, & Rubin, 2005) and Body of War: The True Story of an Anti-War Hero (Spiro & Donahue, 2007). Murderball, framed through the conventions of a sport film, documents an American quad rugby team and its quest to win honor and the gold medal at the Athens Games. Body of War offers a realist account of disabled veteran Thomas Young’s bodily damage and his refusal of the traditional place of honor accorded to disabled heroes to collect medals. We suggest that by positioning the spectacularity of the quad rugby heroes, particularly Mark Zupan, in relation to anti-war and veteran right’s activist Thomas Young, we can complicate how we imagine masculinity and corporeality, as we locate the significant omissions and absences that displace bodily and national trauma with a recuperative masculinity and nationalism in the name of progressive disability politics.

2010 NASSS Conference Abstracts Page 50 Montez de Oca, Jeffrey, University of Colorado, Colorado Springs ([email protected])

Bringing History to Sport Sociology and Physical Cultural Studies

Sport scholars are paying increasing attention to the problematic relationship between militarism and sport. Militarism describes a set of inter-locking institutions both within and outside of the state as well as an ideology that makes warfare a seemingly normal, logical aspect of life. The recent scholarship uses September 11, 2001 (9/11) as a touchstone since sport became a tool to further the Bush Administration’s prosecution of the “War on Terror”. As one scholar commented, “sport culture moved beyond its customary role as an ideological support to the state”. It will be argued that sport was never merely an ideological support to the state and the symbiotic relationship between the NFL and the state exemplifies one of the most important developments in industrial organization over the past quarter century, the strategic alliance. However, this particular strategic alliance is not wholesale different from the military’s broader relationship with the U.S. media or the historical relationship between sport and the state. Over-emphasis on 9/11 flattens a longer imperialist history and gives too much agency to historical actors like George Bush. Ultimately, the paper argues that sport and physical cultural studies scholars need to be rigorously historical to adequately analyze current social formations.

Moola, Fiona, University of Toronto ([email protected]), Caroline Fusco, University of Toronto ([email protected]) and Joel A. Kirsh, The Labatt Family Heart Centre, The Hospital for Sick Children ([email protected])

"Constructing the Cardiac Cripple?" : The Perceptions of Caregivers Toward Physical Activity and Health in Youth with Congenital Heart Disease

Medical advances have reduced mortality in youth with congenital heart disease (CHD). Although physical activity is associated with enhanced quality of life, most patients are inactive. By addressing medical and psychological barriers, previous literature has reproduced discourses of individualism which position cardiac youth as personally responsible for physical inactivity. Few sociological investigations have sought to address the influence of social barriers to physical activity, and the insights of caregivers are absent from the literature. Informed by social constructivist grounded theory, this qualitative study explored caregiver perceptions toward physical activity for youth with CHD at a Canadian hospital. Media representations, school liability, and parental overprotection construct cardiac youth as "at risk" during physical activity and position their health precariously. Socio-cultural notions of risk and illness representations are drawn upon in order to interpret and analyze the findings. Indeed, from the perspective of hospital staff, the findings indicate the centrality of sociological factors to the physical activity experiences of youth with CHD, and the importance of attending to the contextual barriers that constrain their health and physical activity.

Morgan, William J., University of Southern California ([email protected])

Why Critical Sports Theorists Should Take Social Conventions Seriously

It is no secret that critical theorists of sport have always been suspicious of the reigning social conventions of the cultures and societies they scrutinize. At first blush, this seems odd since the central purpose of conventions is to set out norms to guide our actions in and outside of social practices like sports, and norm-setting, of the right kind, of course, is an important part of the social critic’s task. The problem with conventions, therefore, must lie elsewhere, perhaps with the further fact that the actions conventions authorize are the product of widespread social agreements. Here Marx can be counted as a likely source of inspiration given his thesis that whatever ideas manage to capture the fancy of the masses can be explained by the fact they mirror “the ideas of the ruling class.” The problem with this claim, however, is that it has been widely discredited in critical circles for blithely discounting the capacity of subordinate groups to push their ideas on their “superiors.” Yet, critical theorists remain undeterred in their conviction conventions are their normative enemy rather than ally. The aim of my paper is, first, to explain why this is so, in which I will argue that it is the arbitrary character of conventional norms that is the real source of critical theory’s antipathy toward them (to take a non-sporting example, the convention of driving on the right side of road, which is a norm intended to guide our actions on the roadways in order to make them safe, is utterly arbitrary since driving on the left side of the road is an equally effective way of achieving this goal). The second, and final, aim of my paper is to show that it is a serious mistake to tar all conventions with this same arbitrary brush, since there is at least one species of conventions whose critical import is substantive rather than arbitrary.

2010 NASSS Conference Abstracts Page 51 Morimoto, Lauren S., Sonoma State University ([email protected])

The Karate Kid? Orientalizing Asian Physical Culture on Film

In 2010, a remake of the 1984 film “The Karate Kid” hit the big screen. The original film shows how a bullied teenager Daniel learns the practice of karate from a Japanese American handyman Mr. Miyage (Pat Morita). The success of the first film spawned “The Karate Kid II,” in which Daniel and Mr. Miyage travel to Japan. The 2010 remake shifts the action to China, where Dre, an African American 12-year old, defends himself against a classmate by learning kung fu from a handyman (Jackie Chan). This paper “reads” the three films using the ideas articulated in Edward Said’s Orientalism. Said contends the “Orient” is a Western European construction that exoticizes and otherizes Asian cultures. In addition, Orientalism perpetuates gender and racial stereotypes (e.g. Oriental women are enticing and passive; Oriental men are weak or kung fu masters; Orientals are inscrutable). “The Karate Kid” films display contemporary Orientalism in that they appear to embrace Asian culture, while concomitantly perpetuating generalizations and stereotypes. For example, while it is understandable that the filmmakers would choose to capitalize on the familiar film title, karate and kung fu become inter-changeable, which monolithizes Asian physical culture by erasing their distinct characteristics and histories.

Morris, Sam, Independent Scholar ([email protected] or [email protected])

The Ethics of Crowd Noise

In this paper I take a critical position towards crowd noise. Relying on Kreider’s (2003) discussion of prayers for assistance I argue that attempts to incorporate crowd noise into the central lusory project of a given sport is (at best) unsporting and ought to be discouraged. Because such a position is at odds with the apparent ethos of modern sport spectatorship I anticipate some resistance to my thesis and attempt to guard against several potential objections. Primary among these is the objection that supposed alternatives to crowd noise (e.g., crowd silence) would compromise an important social fabric of modern sport spectatorship and potentially drive spectators, and their much-coveted dollars, away from the contest. This objection, however, is a whip-saw to its proponent because it highlights an important motive behind efforts to promote crowd noise, a motive that should surprise no one with a keen sense of sports markets; that is, profit. As I argue in response, defending crowd noise by appeal to profit highlights a strong point, rather than a weakness, of my argument. Namely, that once again the market has compromised a central value of all sporting contests; that is, fairness.

Mower, Ronald L., University of Maryland ([email protected])

‘BMore Fit’: (Re)Producing Virulent (Neoliberal) Bodies Within a Polarized Polis

Sardonically dubbed “the city that bleeds,” Baltimore is consistently ranked in national and statewide measures of homicide, crime, poverty, disease, and overall ill health. Within the context of shifting political economic priorities, the facilitation of a healthy citizenry, undoubtedly informed via a pervasive neoliberal “self-help” ideology, has been conspicuously reassigned to the private sphere wherein individual philanthropists compete for grant money to create compensatory quasi-social programs, some of which specifically address health crises through the production and dissemination of “healthist” knowledge cultures (scientized forms of fitness and health knowledge that normalize the fetishization of the body from its social context) to produce a self- governing body politic. In particular, this research entails an ethnographic engagement with one such program in Baltimore that recruits and trains “at-risk” urban youth to become fitness professionals and “ambassadors of health,” or leaders for healthy change, within their communities. This project considers the popular and politicized understandings of health and fitness; the modalities through which fitness ontology and idealized corporeality are mobilized across race, gender, and class, and the conflicting sensibilities, socio-spatial conditions, and positions of power observed between, and through qualitative interviews with, those governing the program and those participating in it.

2010 NASSS Conference Abstracts Page 52 Muir, Heather A., University of Northern Colorado ([email protected])

Gendered Skates: Are Hockey Skates Still Just for Boys?

In years gone by, sports like ice hockey were considered men’s sports while others were appropriate for women like figure skating. But as more and more women have taken up hockey, has this trickled down to recreational skaters? This observational study looked at male and female recreational skater’s choice of hockey or figure skates to see whether they consciously chose a particular skate based on their gender. The researcher recorded the skate choice of 382 skaters during 11 hours of public skating at four rinks in three states. Tallies showed a nearly even split in male and female skaters. Sixty percent of all skaters wore hockey skates. Of the male skaters, 85% wore hockey skates while 66% of the female skaters wore figure skates. Chi square analyses indicated that male skaters consciously chose hockey skates and female skaters consciously chose figure skates. Results from this pilot study showed that public skaters still choose their skates based on gender. However, other statistical analyses showed that women were more likely to choose hockey skates than men to choose figure skates. This suggests that perhaps the tide is changing, and hockey skates are becoming less gendered while figure skates remain gendered.

Murray, Melissa, University of Southern Mississippi ([email protected]) and Brian T. Gearity, University of Southern Mississippi ([email protected])

Integrating Social Issues into a Coaching Education Curriculum

The panel on social issues in coaching will be comprised of faculty members who are teaching in Coaching Education programs around the country. The purpose of the panel is to present pedagogical techniques for incorporating social issues into the curriculum. The National Standards for Sport Coaches (NASPE, 2006) outline the skills and knowledge a sport coach should possess, including the development of a coaching philosophy and ethical conduct. However, little information exists as to how to effectively teach pre-service coaches these concepts. The panel will present teaching strategies for social issues like ethical behavior, gender issues in coaching, political networks in elite athletics, hazing, and coach-athlete relationships. Each panelist will give a short synopsis of their teaching strategies and the learning activities associated with the above topics. Due to the variability in Coaching Education programs, faculty will present educational techniques for both undergraduate and graduate students as well as for face-to-face and online instruction. Following the presentation of teaching strategies, the floor will be open for discussion about other social issues in coaching and respective teaching strategies.

Musto, Michela, University of Southern California ([email protected])

What’s up with the ponytails? Female athleticism and the politics of appearance

According to sociologists and historians of sport, modern Western team sport arose in the late 1800s during a “crisis of masculinity.” As a result, contemporary sports are gender typed. This close link between sporting participation and heterosexual masculinity poses a problem for some female athletes. Researchers have documented the presence of apologetic behavior among female athletes, wherein athletes overemphasize signifiers of heterosexual femininity to offset sport’s masculinizing tendencies. However, others hypothesize that in the contemporary moment—post Title IX, post second-wave, post gay liberation—the social control effect of the lesbian stereotype has diminished. If female athletes are no longer as concerned about distancing themselves from lesbian stereotypes, we would expect to find diversity in the appearance of female athletes on signs of sexuality and gender such as hair length, make-up and jewelry. Yet some scholars document the use of heterosexual tropes in collegiate team photos. No research, however, has explored the appearance management of athletes in online roster photos. Using a random sample of Division I and III basketball, softball, soccer and volleyball teams in five schools in seven athletic conferences per division, this research explores depictions of female athletes on collegiate sports’ websites. Results are preliminary, as data is being collected.

2010 NASSS Conference Abstracts Page 53 Newhall, Kristine University of Iowa ([email protected])

Genderqueer Identity in Women's Softball

In the late 1990s, the Western Mass Women’s League,* an all-women softball league begun in the 1970s, addressed the issue of transgender individuals. Largely comprised of gay, bisexual, and queer women, some within the league saw that the issue of gender identity would be one the league would have to address. And so it added to its bylaws a statement that any person who identified as a woman would be allowed to participate. This presentation is the study of one gender queer individual who played softball in the league during the summer of 2010. Through his experience and those of the women who played with and against him, I explore issues of gender identity and how they coincide/clash with philosophies of women-only space, feminism (and its history), and recreational and women’s sport. (*name has been changed).

Norman, Mark, University of Toronto ([email protected])

Toward an Institutional Ethnography Approach to ‘Sport for Development’ Volunteerism

Institutional ethnography is a sociological theory that enables researchers to explore and map the social organization and relations of a particular institutional context. Pioneered by Dorothy Smith as ‘a sociology for people’ (2005), institutional ethnography takes as its starting point the everyday experiences of people in a particular setting and proceeds from these narratives to examine how the social is organized and power is implicated in the day-to-day operations of an organization. Despite its prominence in mainstream sociology, institutional ethnography has not been significantly utilized within the sociology of sport. This paper adopts Smith’s theoretical approach to examine the rapidly growing area of sport for development and peace (SDP). In particular, it problematizes the critical role that western volunteers play in the promotion and implementation of SDP initiatives in developing countries by exploring the experiences of Canadian SDP volunteers. The aim of this paper is twofold: to serve as an initial attempt to map the complex social relations, textual mediations, and practices of ruling that characterize SDP interventions across geographically and culturally diverse social settings; and to advocate for a greater deployment of institutional ethnography within the sociology of sport.

Norman, Moss E., Concordia University ([email protected])

Young Men and Biopedagogies of Parenting: Obesity Discourse and the Construction of “Healthy” Families

Critical obesity literature has recently started to unpack how obesity discourse constructs parents—mothers in particular—as primary agents in the “war on obesity” (see Burrows, 2009; Burrows and Wright, 2004; Warin, Turner, Moore and Davies, 2008). According to these critiques, healthy active living messaging may reproduce patriarchal power imbalances within the family. However, as of yet, little research has examined how children and youth construct their own families in relation to healthy eating and active living. Drawing on qualitative data collected from two Toronto, Canada locations, I examine how biomedically informed healthy active living messaging mediates and shapes young men’s (12-15 years) understandings and experiences of normative “family” relations and responsibilities. Using feminist-poststructural discourse analysis, I interrogate the narratives of the participants and arrive at three central points. First, I explore how the participants talk about “health” as a parental responsibility. Drawing on discourses of normative parenting, the participants suggest that their parent(s), especially mothers, are responsible for their health, including body weight and shape. Second, I demonstrate how the young men take up and talk about healthy eating and active living in ways that, perhaps unwittingly, entrench patriarchal familial relations. Third, I highlight how the discursive construction of parental responsibility within the context of the “obesity epidemic” has disproportionate affects across populations. Such universal constructions fail to consider the social positions and locations in which diverse families are located. In concluding the paper, I call for a rigorous deconstruction of how discursive constructions of the “family” play out and are materialized in and through dominant obesity discourse within the context of the “obesity epidemic”.

2010 NASSS Conference Abstracts Page 54 O’Neill, Sébastien C., University of Ottawa ([email protected])

Revisiting Thomas Kuhn: Foreign Influences and the NBA’s Paradigm Shift

Before the 1990’s, countries such as China, Argentina, France or Spain weren’t exactly recognized as hotbeds for international level basketball players. However, with the crossing over of a first generation of pioneers, such as Arvidas Sabonis or Tony Kukoc, the league witnessed it’s first generation of athletes trained with a different mentality. The next generation, characterized by such names as Ginobli, Parker, Gasol or Yao Ming came storming in the NBA with a style of play different form the one usually taught in the USA development schools. In his famous book, ‘The Structure of Scientific Revolutions’, Kuhn posited that the history of science advanced with the end of one paradigm and the beginning of another, a sort of leapfrog towards the advancement of science highlighted by the work of a genius considered a pariah by the previous generations. My intention with this paper, who’s a work in progress, is to show that there was indeed a paradigmatic change in NBA basketball during the end of the 1990’s and the beginning of the 2000’s. The paradigmatic shift was mainly due, in my opinion, to the advent of actual foreign superstars coupled by the poor performances of team USA in international competitions.

Obel, Camilla, University of Canterbury ([email protected])

Calling Female Shots: Popular Femininity in the 2007 Netball World Cup

This paper presents the finding of a research project produced by a graduate class on the New Zealand television broadcasting of the 2007 Netball World Cup. The game of netball in New Zealand is a prime case for assessing shifts and continuities in forms of acceptable physical femininity. The game is unique in attracting the highest participation numbers of any sport and it enjoys exceptionally high television ratings comparable with the predominant male sports. Historical research posits that netball’s popularity lies in its promotion of a form of physical activity for girls and women that was not too rough and conformed to an acceptable femininity (Nauright and Broomhall, 1995; Treagus, 2005). The graduate class focused on how the television commentary judged physical play and found that a discourse of acceptable femininity is challenged by demands for national sporting success and the desire by multi-ethnic audiences for teams to play with flair and physicality. The project extends research on gender and racial discourses in media representations which have predominantly focused on either male sport or compared media representations involving male and female athletes and teams (Denham, Billings and Halone, 2002; Eastman and Billings, 2001; Messner, Duncan and Jensen, 1993).

Padeski Ferreira, Ana Leticia, Universidade Federal do Paraná, Brazil ([email protected]), Juliano de Souza, Universidade Federal do Paraná, Brazil ([email protected]), Wanderley Marchi Jr., Universidade Federal do Paraná, Brazil ([email protected])

Sport Sociology in Latin America: A Recent Panorama

This paper provides a panorama of current sport sociology constructed on the basis of information conveyed in post-graduation programs, study groups and professional associations. We focus on two specific sources: the Asociación Latinoamericana de Estudios Socioculturales del Deporte (ALESDE) and the Asociación Latinoamericana de Sociología (ALAS), in which the subdiscipline was first represented as a study group which was part of an event that dealt with many subdisciplines of sociology. From these events we analyzed the papers presented at the 2008 and 2009 conferences. We identified the major substantive themes in the papers, study profiles, author profiles, and the theoretical approach used in each paper. Findings indicated that most studies focused on the sociology of sport were done by a sole author/researcher; the most research topic was soccer; and the most often used theoretical approaches were those of Bourdieu and Elias. Most of the authors were from Brazil; they held multiple degrees and titles and were most often affiliated with physical education programs. Overall, our data allowed us to construct profiles of ALESDE and ALAS events and, in broader terms, a profile of the sociology of sport in Latin American.

2010 NASSS Conference Abstracts Page 55 Palomino, Alejandra, Franklin & Marshall College ([email protected])

Latina Identity and F&M’s Women’s Rugby

This paper presents on-going ethnographic research on the Franklin and Marshall College (F&M) Women’s Rugby Club that I conducted since the fall of 2009. This research takes an intersectional approach to the dynamics of race and gender within the F&M community. Specifically, my research asks why do Latinas join the Women’s Rugby Club at such a high rate and not other organizations, in particular minority and "ethnic" oriented organizations. I further ask how the racial climate at a primarily white institution (PWI) like F&M leads Latinas to negotiate their race by engaging in protective strategies of action. Implicitly, my research question is: why these Latinas who predominately have little athletic background before college choose to play a rough, "unfeminine" sport like rugby? I suspect that the bonding rituals between rookies and "older" Latina rugby players creates a sense of community and comfort that the "younger" players need when they experience a sense of isolation and social dislocation that comes from attending a primarily white residential college far from their homes. I address this research to two specific literatures. The first literature focuses on minority students in PWIs and the second studies women in contact sports. Ultimately, I find that the Latina rugby players construct a negative dialectic by engaging in self-performances in opposition to both the dominant white culture and the expected stereotypical Latina identity.

Paraschak, Victoria, University of Windsor ([email protected])

Canada Games Health Legacy: Prioritizing Individual over Public Health Risks

Sport was first identified by Howard Nixon as a ‘culture of risk’ in 1992 (Donnelly, 2004). Parissa Safai (2003) complicated this concept through her work with sport medicine professionals, who also worked within a ‘culture of precaution’ as well as the ‘promotion of sensible risks”. In a case study looking at the social construction of medical and pubic health services tied to the 2007 Canada Winter Games, I explored a different relationship: the interplay (or not) between medical services tied to individual elite athletes and ‘others’, such as coaches, volunteers, mission staff and the broader community. Using participant observation, interviews and document analysis, I found that extensive rules were created and resources directed towards individual ‘participants’ within the Games, ostensibly to mitigate the perceived ‘culture of risk’ but concomitantly reinforcing a high tolerance for individual risk by the athletes. Meanwhile, public health risks that could jeopardize athletes, volunteers and the community were not systematically addressed by the Organizing Committee. By downplaying or ignoring ‘good’ public health practices, such as prevention, surveillance and early intervention, the Games organization extended the ‘culture of risk’ well beyond the athletes and missed an opportunity to proactively create a ‘health(ier) legacy’ through the Games.

Park, Meungguk, Southern Illinois University ([email protected]), Doyeon Won, Yonsei University ([email protected]), Taeho Yoh, Southern Illinois University ([email protected]) and Phil Anton, Southern Illinois University ([email protected])

Examining Constraint Factors that Limit Participation in Charity Sporting Events

Charity sporting events (CSEs), which involve some kind of physical activity, have emerged as one of the most popular fundraising programs for non-profit organizations in the recent years (e.g., Race for the Cure). The purpose of this study was to investigate constraint factors that prevent potential donors from participating in CSEs. Data were collected from 236 college students in a Midwestern University. Based on an extensive review of the academic literature on donor behavior and expert interviews, the researchers identified nine constraint factors, and all of the factors demonstrated good reliability. The descriptive statistics revealed that the most important constraints included lack of awareness, time constraint, and lack of financial resource. In addition, multiple regression analysis showed a significant effect of the nine constraint factors on the behavioral intention (R- square = .250). Multivariate analysis of variance indicated that there were demographic and personality differences in the constraint factors. The findings of this research will contribute to an emerging body of knowledge on CSEs, which has been largely ignored in the area of sport sociology. Furthermore, the results of this study will help CSE event mangers develop effective fundraising campaigns to increase charitable donations and raise awareness for a specific cause(s).

2010 NASSS Conference Abstracts Page 56 Parks Pieper, Lindsay, Ohio State University ([email protected]) and Melissa C. Wiser, Ohio State University ([email protected])

Complex Allegiances: The Limits of Community Within Lacrosse

Recently, the sport of lacrosse has been newsworthy for reasons outside the scope of competition. In March 2006, members of the Duke men’s lacrosse team hired a female stripper for a party, after which the worker accused three players of rape. Four years later, a men’s University of Virginia (UVA) lacrosse player allegedly murdered a player on the women’s team. The national media instantly compared the two incidents and constructed lacrosse athletes as part of an elite, albeit deviant, “community.” Lacrosse-specific media also depicted the community as a tight-knit group, but elucidated different tensions. Men’s and women’s lacrosse coaches, officials and players—simultaneously united and divided over the two incidences—strive to embrace elements of the community while concurrently attempt to disassociate from certain criminal allegations. As lacrosse participants, an official, a coach and former collegiate player, the presenters use the UVA and Duke cases as access points to deconstruct the meaning of “community.” Specifically, we consider Anderson’s “Imagined Communities,” and the work of those who utilize his framework within sport, to identify the limits of the “lacrosse community,” how the notion of community is deployed at varying moments, and how ideas of community shift and reconfigure.

Parris, Denise Linda, Texas A&M University ([email protected]) and Jon Welty Peachey, Texas A&M University ([email protected])

Transition Stages for Action Sports Athletes: A Case Study of Female Professional Wakeboarding

The extraordinary growth of action sports indicates a fundamental shift towards activities that either ideologically or practically provide alternatives to mainstream sports and mainstream sport values. One of the areas previously unexplored empirically is how action sport athletes manage their career transitions. In general, action sports athletes are challenged by three transition stages: 1) amateur to professional, 2) professional to building a brand name, and 3) professional to what is next. This study investigated the challenges and opportunities female action sports athletes face during career transitions through a case study of the female professional wakeboarding industry. Additionally, this investigation examined how female wakeboarders negotiated a male-dominated action sports industry. Data include personal observations made by the principal investigator, who is a past professional female wakeboarder, and personal interviews conducted with 12 female wakeboarder professionals who were in various stages of their careers. Findings indicate that a high level of entrepreneurship assists women in transitioning through these multiple stages, with sponsorship relationship cultivation being a key to long-term success.

Paule, Amanda L., Bowling Green State University ([email protected])

Is Academic Clustering Continuing to Grow in Women’s Division I Basketball?

Case, Greer, & Brown (1987) defined clustering as when 25% or more of athletes on the same athletic team are in the same academic major. Recent studies that examined academic clustering in NCAA football have shown that clustering is occurring in ACC (Fountain & Finley, 2009) and in SEC and Pac-10 (Otto, 2010) football. However, there has been very little research into whether clustering is occurring in women’s sports. The purpose of this study was to examine if female basketball players are being clustered into specific majors. Women’s basketball has become on par with other “revenue producing” sports at some universities with the amount of money generated from their teams and the Women’s March Madness basketball tournament. The 2008-09 and 2009-10 media guides from all of the Division I women’s basketball teams were used to determine the academic majors of the athletes. Results of this study showed that academic clustering is occurring at all levels of Division I women’s basketball. Thus, in striving for equality between men’s and women’s sports, it seems that women’s sports are also gaining equality in unintended areas.

2010 NASSS Conference Abstracts Page 57 Pegoraro, Ann, Laurentian University ([email protected])

Social Media, Nationalism and Olympic Hockey: “Go Canada Go”

It has been suggested that the Olympic Games are short-term mega sporting events that generate enthusiasm and national pride, which have the potential for long-term consequences for the host cities and citizens of the country (Waitt, 2001; Roche, 1994). Previous researchers have found a lot of evidence that sport is associated with national identity, including Bairner (2001) who indicated that in North America, ice hockey is recognized as crucial to the maintenance of Canadian identity. In recent times, social media has fast become an arena where individuals express their opinions on a wide variety of topics. This research used qualitative analysis to examine how Canadian hockey fans ultilized social media to express their nationalism, during the 2010 Winter Olympic Games. Data in the form of fan comments were gathered from several social media outlets during the period of the Games and analyzed for content relation to expressions of nationalism. The results indicate that while, there were differences in number of comments and content by gender of fan and by gender of the team being referred to (men’s of women’s), the overall level of the nationalism expressed by Canadians through social media increased from the start of the Games to the end.

Petherick, LeAnne, Memorial University ([email protected]), Natalie Beausoleil, Memorial University ([email protected]) and Cora McCloy, Memorial University ([email protected])

Body Image: Interrogating How Teachers and Students Respond to Health Messaging

The demise of the welfare state constructs both teachers and students as partners in assuming responsibility for ideas about health and health behaviours. Body image may not be a “biomedical” indicator of health or a behaviour, however, research demonstrates that body dissatisfaction and distortion may locate people in positions where greater anxieties about their bodies surface (Larkin & Rice, 2005). At this socio-historical moment how school cultures, through the implementation of health promotion campaigns, construct ideas of health and the body are important sites of interrogation in the production of the bio- citizen (Halse, 2009). Using Canada’s Vitality message (eat healthy, be active and feel good) the Body Image Network, which is a volunteer-based community group in St. John’s, Newfoundland, has attempted to support the feeling good component of Canada’s Vitality message, while also critically and empirically examining what gets taken up during health messaging (Rail, 2009). This presentation reveals the disciplinary and regulatory techniques of power operating in both the development and implementation of a school-based, curriculum-oriented resource. Data from interviews with 13 teachers and focus groups with 123 students illustrates the complexity of interpreting, delivering, and challenging dominant healthy living messages. Cultural meanings of health are embedded in various historical disciplinary practices, thus using a bio-pedagogical model (Harwood, 2010), this presentation critically uncovers how both students and elementary school teachers take up and use health promotion messaging.

Pike, Elizabeth C.J., University of Chichester ([email protected])

The Role of Fiction in (Mis)representing Later Life Sporting Activities

The study of ageing has becoming increasingly prominent in academic research, the media and policy debates with the rapid growth of the world’s ageing population. In particular is the perception that older people should engage in exercise to address the actual and perceived effects of the ageing process. However, there remains limited understanding of the experiences of ageing, longevity and lifestyle choices. This paper addresses this by drawing on fictional accounts of ageing, which are viewed as an important gerontological resource for understanding how ideas about ageing are shaped by culture, and how alternative images of ageing may be constructed and made possible through literary fiction (Hepworth, 2000). This paper is framed by a critical interactionist perspective. Fiction, whether written, sung or acted, is itself a form of symbolic interaction, since the audience uses their imagination to interpret the script according to their own sense of self and ideas about social life; in this way, fictional representation of ageing may develop understanding of the personal and social aspects of growing older. I will explore the ways in which fictional representations of older people might perpetuate and/or challenge stereotypes of ageing and influence involvement in sporting physical activities in later life.

2010 NASSS Conference Abstracts Page 58 Pitter, Robert, Acadia University ([email protected]), Chris Shields, Acadia University ([email protected]), Andrea Chircop, Daniel Rainham, Cindy Shearer, Laurene Rehman, Chris Blanchard, and Meredith Flannery (Dalhousie University)

I Think my Neighbourhood is Safe, So Why is Safety a Barrier to Physical Activity?

Several studies have identified various aspects of the built environment as influencing physical activity (PA). While safety is one factor that has been consistently identified, there is relatively little research on how safety is conceptualized and how perceptions of safety differ across different groups. Understanding different safety concerns may enhance the ability of policy makers to help people feel more comfortable in their communities, and their communities more appealing for PA. This paper reports data from 45 early adolescents in a larger study of PA and the built environment among adolescents living in urban, suburban and rural areas in Nova Scotia. We used qualitative and quantitative data to address 3 research questions: (1) How are PA safety issues conceptualized? (2) Do people living in various types of neighbourhoods have different safety concerns and do they have different perceptions of safety risks? (3) How do these concerns and perceptions relate to levels of PA? The children's survey responses indicate they generally feel safe in their communities but their responses in family interviews identify safety as a barrier to PA. These findings suggest safety in the built environment may be more salient to parents as opposed to their children.

Popovic, Megan, The University of Western Ontario ([email protected])

Sk8ing with the Feminine through Autoethnographic Spirals

This paper will be an affective, autoethnographic piece that blends reflexive narrative writing and poetic representation to discover how the sporting experiences of the past inform perceptions of Self in the present. I weave my struggle with writing about paradoxical experiences and finding meaning in the memories as a competitive figure skater, and the comprehension of feminine/ity within the sport and academic arenas. Using personal journals, photographs, and recorded performances from skating, I write through the process of searching for meaning in memory-work and the negotiation of academic identity within spaces of sport and gender research. Spiraling (hence the 8 in the title word ‘Sk8ing’) mental images with embodied memories, this paper explores feminine/ity of an athletic practice that is both sport and creative art form, and brings forth voIces, that have thrived and been wounded in both the competitive figure skating and the academic realms. I write literally and metaphorically and thereby challenge scholars to question their ways of being in their professional space and propose an alternative, co-active way to be in the academic rink.

Prouse, Carolyn, Queen’s University ([email protected])

South Africa(ns) on Display: Producing Bodies through World Cup Media

In this paper I examine how the 2010 FIFA World Cup discursively and materially produced a particular type of racialized body for consumption by a Canadian audience. Because South Africa was the first African nation to host the largest sporting mega- event in the world, there was significant Canadian media obsession with whether or not the World Cup would be a ‘successful’ event. In light of this rhetoric, I ask: what is defined as a ‘successful’ World Cup; who is positioned as a ‘threat’ to that success; and what implications does this have for how Canadian consumers understand racialized and classed South African bodies? Utilizing post-colonial theory and Foucauldian discourse analysis, I elucidate how impoverished black bodies were constructed and positioned as threats to the safety and smooth functioning of this event. These bodies were silenced through their removal by ‘modernizing’ beautification programs, compounded by the media’s lack of attention to these practices. The bodies that did appear were either constructed as primitive and unruly, or were palatably consumed through reporters’ visits to slums. Racial differences became reified through the media’s infatuation with a ‘post-apartheid’ state, while economic inequality was naturalized through the silencing of resistance coupled with inherently neoliberal rhetoric.

2010 NASSS Conference Abstracts Page 59 Rodgers, R. Pierre, George Mason University ([email protected]), Tiffany Reaves, Columbia University ([email protected]) and Courtney Exum, George Mason University ([email protected])

The Mason Womentoring Project

While the concept of mentoring generally refers to activities related to job/career counseling, shadowing, and networking, women's access to establishing and maintaining social support is not as widespread as it is for men. The equivalent to the "old boy" network for women is limited (Coakley, 2009). Women within a formal support system "offer and receive information and support from one another in a one-way or reciprocal manner" (Hill, Bahniuk, Dobos, & Rouner, 1989, p. 356). A unique mentor/protégé relationship was formed in 2007 at George Mason University. A venture between the women's head basketball coach and two female Sport Management Practicum students resulted in the Womentoring program. The goal was to pair women's basketball players with female faculty and staff. Thus, "a mentor can create a bond with an athlete so the player will feel comfortable asking for guidance and inquiring about what the mentor has accomplished and how she got to where she is today" (Doyle, 2007). The present essay reviews the impetus and implementation of Womentoring.

Rosenthal, Maura B., Bridgewater State University ([email protected]), Karen Richardson, Bridgewater State University ([email protected]) and Lydia Burak, Bridgewater State University ([email protected])

Producing Sporting Bodies Through Using Exercise as Punishment

Coaches and physical education teachers often discipline and control students and athletes by requiring them to do repetitive and painful physical tasks as forms of punishment (Burak, Rosenthal, & Richardson, 2009). This study was framed using the psycho-social Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB, Ajzen, 1991). One hundred and eighty nine teachers and coaches were surveyed at a state conference to analyze the understudied phenomena of using exercise as punishment or as a form of behavior management. The central question guiding the study was if the TPB was a sound predictor of the intention to use exercise as punishment and whether attitude, subjective norm, or perceived behavior control held the greatest weight in prediction. Although the 189 study participants did not hold overly positive attitudes about exercise as punishment, 61% admit to using the practice at some point. Attitude and subjective norm were both predictors of intention to use exercise as punishment or behavior management (p< .001). Attitude, underpinned by behavioral beliefs such as ‘exercise as punishment can lead to mental toughness,’ was the strongest predictor of intention to use exercise as punishment or behavior management. How might teachers and coaches form these beliefs? How might these beliefs be challenged?

Ross, Sally, University of Memphis ([email protected]), Carol Irwin, University of Memphis ([email protected]), Nathan Martin, University of Memphis ([email protected]) and Richard Irwin, University of Memphis ([email protected])

African American Drownings: Constraints Impacting Swimming Aptitude and Proposed Solutions

Hastings et al. (2006) contend that “being Black reduces the odds of participation in swimming by approximately 60%, even while adjusting for age, sex, and household income” (p. 908). This lack of participation translates into a drowning rate three times as high for African Americans aged 5-14 as compared to Caucasian children (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention [CDC], 2008). A recent study commissioned by USA Swimming found that 55% of Black/African American respondents self-reported low swimming skills and 14% were unable to swim (2010). To gain a deeper understanding about these findings, 12 focus groups were conducted in seven American cities with caregivers of young swimmers and non-swimmers. Interviewees were purposely selected because they utilized YMCAs in low socio-economic areas that had considerable numbers of minority members. Important to understand were reasons some parents/caregivers negotiated constraints and encouraged their children to swim while others did not. Chick and Dong (2005) proposed that culture, which is often described as beliefs and values, is learned and shared with others. Our research found a propensity for the impact of cultural constraints over present-day structural constraints such as lack of access to pools. Analysis of focus group transcripts resulted in four primary categories: (1) swimming access, (2) perceptions that hinder swimming participation, (3) perceptions that encourage swimming participation, and (4) strategies to increase minority participation in swimming. Our interviewees shared understandings and offered remedies to increase diversity in a physical activity/sport that would allow progress to a state of greater opportunity and resiliency.

2010 NASSS Conference Abstracts Page 60 Ruco, Arlinda, Queen’s University ([email protected]), Lindsey Griffith, Queen’s University ([email protected]), Meagan Heard, Queen’s University ([email protected]), Samantha King, Queen’s University ([email protected]) and Robert Millington, Queen’s University ([email protected])

Navigating the "Brawn Drain": Canadian Student-Athlete Experiences in the U.S. and Canada

There is an abundance of research on athletic scholarships and the experiences of college athletes (Duderstadt, 2000; Finney, 2007; Herbert, 2004; Miller & Kerr, 2002; Paskey, 2000; Sack & Staurowsky, 1998; Schofield, 2000; Shulman & Bowen, 2001). However, since much of this work has focused on the U.S. context, there is a scarcity of literature pertaining to the experiences of Canadian student-athletes. This study explores what is known as the "brawn drain"—the apparent movement of Canadian student-athletes to the U.S.--and compares their experiences with those who remain in Canada. In-depth, open-ended interviews with Canadian student-athletes at U.S. universities revealed that on the one hand, these athletes endured arduous training regimes, an increased pressure to perform athletically, and a higher value placed on athletic performance that at times compromised their academic priorities. On the other hand, interviewees noted their satisfaction with superior training facilities and the opportunity to continue to compete at a high level, benefits that they felt were not available in Canada. Our analysis is contextualized within the recent debates among and beyond Canadian Interuniversity Sport on the possibility of raising the annual cap on athletic scholarships in Canada and the lowering of the minimum grades necessary to receive these awards (Paskey, 2000).

Sabo, Don, D’Youville College ([email protected]) and Robert Pitter, Acadia University ([email protected])

Mixed Methods in Physical Cultural Studies: Mixing and Matching Traditional Strategies and Exploring New Technologies

This panel presentation and open discussion will explore the challenges and benefits of using mixed methods in physical cultural studies research. Each panelist will present their experience using mixed methods sometimes with new technologies in a specific research setting and discuss the rationales and strategies for combining various methods; qualitative and/or quantitative. The panel will discuss more established methods such as case study, interviews, ethnography, focus groups, questionnaires; emerging and technological based methods such as photo voice, accelerometers, computer-assisted qualitative data analysis; and new unexplored methods employing geographic information systems, and perhaps others not listed here.

Safai, Parissa, York University ([email protected]), Jean Harvey, University of Ottawa ([email protected]), and Philip White, McMaster University ([email protected])

The Social Determinants of Athletes’ Health: Understanding the Relationship between Health and High Performance Sport

There is extensive national and international research documenting the ways in which social determinants of health (SDOH) influence the health of individuals and communities and are directly related to the ways in which resources are organized and distributed among the members of a society. SDOH impact and influence participation in sport and physical activity and, in turn, are impacted and influenced by, in varying degrees, participation in sport and physical activity. This paper draws on data from a three-year study examining the material conditions of athletes’ lives, as structured by the Canadian sport system and Canadian sport policy, and the ways in which those material conditions frame and impact their health and wellbeing. This project employed both qualitative and quantitative research methods including in-depth semi-structured interviews and the development and administration of a bilingual survey questionnaire on the social determinants of athletes’ health. This project is a first of its kind in Canada and contributes to our understanding the social determinants of athletes’ health and in understanding the ways in which the Canadian sport system, including Canadian sport policy, frames the material conditions of athletes’ lives.

2010 NASSS Conference Abstracts Page 61 Sam, Mike, University of Otago ([email protected]), Jay Scherer, University of Alberta ([email protected]) and Steven J. Jackson, University of Otago ([email protected])

Broadcasting New Zealand: State, Indigenous and Private Visions of National Identity

As a matter of cultural citizenship, the ‘free’ provision of sport telecasts continues to elicit political and public dialogue around the world. Our paper pursues two aims. First, we outline the state’s dilemmas in reforming a deregulated broadcasting environment for sport events of national significance. We briefly explore key policy instruments including ‘anti-siphoning’ legislation, unbundling rules, and charters for public broadcasters. Second, we investigate a controversy that occurred in 2009 when two publicly-funded New Zealand networks, TVNZ and Māori Television (along with private network TV3) bid against each other for the free-to-air broadcasting rights for the 2011 Rugby World Cup. Three outcomes/consequences are discussed. First, the government’s predilection for a ‘market-driven’ bidding process paradoxically requires the state to assume significant responsibility for coordination, subsidy, and investment. Second, as a result of the new multi-channel environment, networks with altogether different promotional and public service mandates are under pressure to stake their claims to a limited number of free- to-air properties, and offer their own interpretations and productions of sporting events and national identity. Finally, we examine the paradox facing citizens who are subsidizing competeing media and now have more ‘consumer choice’ than ever in terms of watching limited free-to-air broadcasts of sport.

Samariniotis, Heather, Northern Illinois University ([email protected]) and Thomas J. Aicher, Northern Illinois University ([email protected])

“But I Expected a Man”: An Analysis of Situational Cues Impact on Leadership Endorsement

Gendered stereotypes may limit women’s opportunity to attain leadership position within sport organizations. For instance, Jackson and her colleagues (2007) have found gendered stereotypes about leadership are stronger predictor of leadership endorsement than situational cues in a boardroom setting. This research study centered on determining if situational cues or leadership stereotypes were stronger predictors of leadership endorsement. To alter the context, we placed the group in a circle rather than a “table,” and asked the participants to indicate which individual was the head coach. A sample of student athletes at a Division I institution read one of three different scenarios: five men one woman, five women one man, and a mixed group. We hypothesized individuals will select the man in the five women one man condition, a man will be selected more often in the mixed group condition, and a man will be selected most often in the five men one woman condition. Additionally, Hogg and his colleagues (2006) found an individual’s traditional values moderate leadership. Therefore, we hypothesized individuals who denote greater traditional values will endorse a man regardless of scenario. Data is currently being collected, and will be analyzed using a Chi-square analysis.

Sartore, Melanie L., East Carolina University ([email protected])

The Adventures of Dr. Bourdieu and Mr. Jones: Expanding the Understanding of Students Enrolled in a ‘Comparative Perspectives of Global Sport Cultures’ Course

Bourdieu’s (1977) concepts of field, habitus, doxa, and practice are often difficult for American undergraduate students to grasp. What is not difficult for these students to understand, however, is the star power of players in the National Football League. Coupling the theoretical insights of Bourdieu and the travels of Cincinnati Bengals player, Dhani Jones, students enrolled in a ‘comparative perspectives of international sport cultures’ course can expand their understanding of sport across the globe. The purpose of “Dhani Tackles the Globe”, which just completed its second season on the Travel Channel, is for Dhani to partake in the national sports of various countries around the globe and explore how the sport has helped to define its respective country’s culture. I apply Bourdieu’s concepts to Dhani’s journeys to discuss sport and the other structures (i.e., gender, political, educational, etc.) that shape not only a country’s culture, but also each country’s place in the larger scope of global sport. This has been an incredibly effective teaching tool that has elicited a great deal of positive learning outcomes and feedback amongst students. The purpose of this paper is to share this project, its process, its theoretical insights, and its effects with other academicians.

2010 NASSS Conference Abstracts Page 62 Schausteck de Almeida, Bárbara, Universidade Federal do Paraná, Brazil ([email protected]), Wanderley Marchi Júnior, Universidade Federal do Paraná, Brazil ([email protected]), Ricardo João Sonoda-Nunes, Universidade Federal do Paraná at Litoral, Brazil ([email protected]) and Jay Coakley, University of Chichester, UK ([email protected])

Financing the Olympic bid: Private-public cooperation?

The main funding sources of the Brazilian Olympic Committee (COB) are not clear. After a previous study, we now ask why the COB was financially dependent on the Brazilian federal government (BFG) from 2005 to 2008. We use the field theory of Pierre Bourdieu as we map the main agents in the sporting and political fields. Our goals are to explain (a) the relationship between these two fields, (b) how they interact, and (c) which laws have enabled this relationship to exist over time. Between 2005 and 2008, COB received R$389.7 million from various public resources—an amount that represents 95% of its funds. In this way, we highlight Bourdieu’s description of sport as a potential means of symbolic power which can be converted into political capital. We consider also the strategy of using sport to promote the interests of a particular political system and the nation as a whole. Governmental interests are enhanced as the government supports the COB, because this institution has a dominant position as the primary representative of elite sport in the Brazilian sportive field. We conclude that COB and BFG are mutual accomplices as well as adversaries: each has specific goals, but they need each other to reach them.

Scott, Olan Kees Martin, University of Ballarat ([email protected]), Dwight Zakus, Griffith University ([email protected]) and Brad Hill, Griffith University ([email protected])

Race and the NBA Finals: An Analysis of Announcer Discourse

The media use frames to establish particular discourses during broadcasts of sport events. By scripting and framing these events, the media are able to select aspects of its communication or discourse and enhance the salience of their messages (Entman, 1993); therefore, announcer discourse often contains biases. The content of these discourses have import in terms of mediation the audience on topics and issues such as race. While a wide body of literature around race and sport exists, this study looks at a discrete event not often studied, a National Basketball Association final series, to analyze and evaluate the frames employed when commenting on the racial origins of the competing players. This study sought to uncover how the concept of race was portrayed by commentators during the broadcast of the finals. A content analysis of announcer discourse was conducted to unearth differences in the quantity and the nature of game commentaries attributed to the 21 black and to the other nine players of different racial origins competing in this series. Results of this study indicate that black players received significantly more commentary about their appearance, background, skill, history, leadership, composure, and negative descriptors, which revealed distinct differences in announcer discourse.

Sefiha, Ophir, University of Denver ([email protected])

Drug News: Illuminating the Process and Pressures Involved in the Coverage of Performance-Enhancing Drug Use

Investigating the social actors responsible for sports-related media products allows researchers to examine the labor processes involved in media production and the evolving political economy of modern media. Investigations of this type can also expose a host of timely cultural values regarding ethics, technology, and the role of the athlete in society. Adopting an interactionist perspective employing in-depth interviews with journalists and content analysis of a domestic sport journal, this exploratory study examines the impacts of the emerging federal investigation of performance-enhancing drug (PED) use among domestic cyclists on cycling related media producers. This work seeks to update and expand insights gained from a previous ethnographic study of sport media (Sefiha, 2010). Preliminary results indicate that the recent increase in PED related articles from mainstream news sources has brought pressure on cycling news sources to produce additional PED related stories. Additionally, while the number of PED related articles has nearly doubled in the past year, PED use continues to be framed primarily as a criminal justice issue by focusing on legal components of PED use and largely omitting a critical sociological understanding of the economic and cultural realities of high-performance sport.

2010 NASSS Conference Abstracts Page 63 Shankweiler, Catherine, University of British Columbia ([email protected])

Questioning the Regimes of Truth in Athletics

This paper uses a Foucauldian framework for understanding how relations of power shape codes and ethics in the sporting arena. Employing autoethnography, the author draws on Bourdieu’s notion of reflexive sociology in examining these ‘regimes of truth’. An exploration into the culture of risk is explored, with specific attention to the conflict between performance and health. The author’s perspective as athlete, sports physical therapist and assistant coach illuminates the discursive construction of the ‘players’ in sport. In one such story, she recounts her experience as the object of male physical aggression during a competitive, coed soccer match. This paper invites the reader to consider: how does current sociological research contribute to creating new ways of experiencing sport? Further, what potential do autoethnographic methods hold to progress this field of study? Denzin (2000) asserted that performance texts reveal the play of power in daily life. The stories and interpretations in this paper add to the work of Dennison (2007) and Sparkes (2000), in problematizing the role of ‘players’ in sport, especially those in positions of power. Foucault’s ethical self-stylization, as suggested by Markula (2003), provides a promising theoretical foundation on which to promote bodily democracy (Eichberg) in the current sporting world.

Sharpe, Carlin, University of Lethbridge ([email protected])

Colourful Speed Bumps: Kayak Guides' Interpretations of Risk and Safety

In this paper, I interrogate intersections of risk and emotion in a phenomenological study of guided kayak tours, exploring how kayak guides create meaning for themselves and their clients as they engage in kayaking. Based on interviews and observational data, I consider how guides navigate their interactions with clients, and how they elicit and facilitate a risk experience. Interviews with guides are used to show how they develop and deploy a set of thematically-organized risk and safety discourses in order to develop shared understandings with clients and to navigate their participation in leisure and adventure activities, both personally and professionally. I evaluate interview and observational data in connection with issues of gender, voluntary risk-taking, impression management, tourism, and emotional labour. I conclude by taking into account how risk and danger are packaged and ‘sold’ to consumers, and how guides understand and construct their own risk experiences, as well as those of their clients.

Shea, Kathryn, Indiana University ([email protected])

Compliance and NCAA DI Collegiate Athletics

The purpose of this article is to examine the sources of compliance and non-compliance in United States National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I (DI) intercollegiate athletics system. A synthesis of past compliance research is applied to existing literature detailing the actions and institutional structures of the NCAA DI institutions from economic, social and institutional viewpoints to examine sources of compliance. Analysis indicates that compliance based on self-interest is higher at the constitutional level but is lower at the collective choice level and further declines at the operational level. Independent self- interest accounts for lower compliance; NCAA rules do not reflect preexisting interests centered on winning and require a large degree of behavioral change. Policies of the NCAA are important to maintaining college sport on the prioritized ethical plane of higher education. A study comparing two Big Ten varsity women’s rowing programs that experienced change as a result of the efforts of athletic administration’s to comply with Title IX shows the degree to which compliance with Title IX has shaped the experiences of and opportunities for collegiate women rowers is different over time, across institutions and actors.

Shuart, Joshua, Sacred Heart University ([email protected])

Relating Sport, Heroes and the Catholic Intellectual Tradition

The Catholic Intellectual Tradition is rich in history and focuses on a “treasury of classic texts” (Hellweg, 2000). In this context, the ‘texts’ refer predominantly to scripture, but it is important when attempting to redefine heroes in our society to revisit seminal works of scholars in sport and religion. The amalgamation of traditional heroes and gods is virtually inseparable. In fact, the hero was created in the image of older, more abstract deities (Campbell, 1949; Carlyle, 1840). Klapp’s (1969) work is particularly

2010 NASSS Conference Abstracts Page 64 intriguing because there are direct ties to hero worship of athletes. Bryant & McElroy (1997) point out the vital element of sport hero worship, a dichotomy between collective and individual identity. An important recent work is Riley’s (2000) One Jesus, Many Christ’s, which provides an extensive look at Jesus as a hero in society. Research resoundingly shows that sports stars have eclipsed Jesus (and any other religious figures) as the hero of choice among our youth. Drucker (1997) argues that sport heroes are merely pseudo-heroes, and are only compared to the heroic because of celebrification in the mass media. She maintains that many forms of sport media are responsible for creating athletes of mythic proportions, nearly all undeserving. This study aims to examine sports heroes, in light of religious thought, specifically the Catholic Intellectual Tradition. An original survey instrument was designed and tested in two phases, and key findings will be presented.

Singh, Daljeet ([email protected])

Gender Inequality in Sports (Indian Perspective)

This is an attempt to evaluate the position of Indian female athletes in society. The study involves general views of people, views of sportsmen (Both male and female) and views of professionals in Physical Education and Sports, obtained through personal interview and specially designed questionnaire (for this purpose).It was found that, though decreased during last few decades, still gender inequality is high in India as compared to western/developed countries. Furthermore, efforts to discuss it at a general plethora are minimal. It is a regular feature of media to highlight male achievements over females, even where they achieve higher levels of performance. The news of combined sports receives the title of male players. Amongst the many reasons, ignorance about the issue happens to be at the epicenter. Many International female athletes are also not aware of the fact that they are getting lesser recognition in society through media and other social agencies, as compared to their male counterparts. They have taken it for granted that even if they achieve more, they have to sit on the back benches of history. There is a class of people who feel that sports is a male domain, thus unsuited for females, and unfortunately such people are in a position to decide the fate of female athletes in society. It is shocking to know that such people sometimes try to impose dress code that might not suite the conditions of play for female players. It is very important to improve the position of female athlete in society and provide them a level playing field with men in this male dominant patriarchal setup. Let this be achieved through sensitization and education to usher in a society marked by equality, inclusion and freedom.

Smith, Sean, European Graduate School ([email protected])

Instant Karma's Gonna Get You: Reflections on Movement, Relation and Memory

In 1966 the Fluxus-influenced artist Yoko Ono presented 'Play It By Trust', a conceptual work featuring a chess board with two sets of all-white pieces facing each other on a grid of all-white squares. The opponents become indistinguishable from one another in the absence of traditional visual signifiers, and as the hypothetical game progresses the entire binary of militarized competition becomes subject to reconsideration. Using Ono's white chess set as a model I will put the game into play, so to speak, as a means of questioning the interrelated concepts of movement, relation and memory within this ludic space. Drawing primarily on the Deleuzian concepts of striated space, abstract diagrams and the movement-image, I will contrast the archive as technical apparatus with a more embodied and intermediated form of collective remembering, as well as explore their implications for (micro)political sovereignty in the age of Empire.

Smith, Wade P., University of Colorado ([email protected])

Gender-Role Management in the Wake of Title IX

The role of athlete in U.S. society is commonly associated with characteristics of masculinity. Given that such a role is at odds with characteristics of femininity, gender-role conflict theory suggests that women are likely to experience role conflict when assuming the role of athlete. Empirical investigations have focused primarily on the individual level of analysis revealing that such conflict is perceived to a greater degree than it is experienced. Here, attention is turned to the meso level of analysis to identify how sport governing bodies manage the sporting experience differently for women and men, thus mediating the conflict. Grounded in the gendered notions of individualism outlined in the seminal work Habits of the Heart, expressive for women and utilitarian for men, a discourse analysis of the 2009 NCAA basketball rulebook reveals that the organization relies on socially held notions of a “woman’s sphere” to manage the sporting experience for women. The results of the discourse analysis demonstrate that expressive characteristics of the game inspire the women’s rules, while attributes of utilitarianism define the

2010 NASSS Conference Abstracts Page 65 men’s. Theoretically linking such meso level practices to micro level experiences, it is demonstrated how such gender-role management explains in part the gap between perceived and experienced gender-role conflict.

Sonoda-Nunes, Ricardo João , Universidade Federal do Paraná at Litoral, Brazil ([email protected]), Bárbara Schausteck de Almeida, Universidade Federal do Paraná, Brazil ([email protected]), Wanderley Marchi Júnior, Universidade Federal do Paraná, Brazil ([email protected])

Sport and Leisure Management: A New Approach to Professional Formation in Brazil

This paper focuses on the possibilities and challenges of professional formation in sport and leisure management. Our approach emphasizes human development and sustainability in a way that simultaneously incorporates individual development and social and environmental responsibility. Therefore, our curriculum and course are designed to increase knowledge about individuals as well as social actions based on social, environmental and economic perspectives. As a theoretical perspective, we used the work of Boaventura Sousa Santos and Naomar de Almeida Filho (2008) that deals with the role of the university in the 21st century. We understand that their perspective and the Political Pedagogic Project of UFPR in Litoral enable our students to be engaged with the reality they will enter as professionals. This systemic vision of the career formation process enables students to develop innovative actions and sustainable practices related to regional particularities as they anticipate how they will promote sport and leisure to the population.

Southall, Richard M., University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill ([email protected])

“Where Thieves and Pimps Run Free”: College Conference Expansion and Higher Education

"The TV business is uglier than most things. It is normally perceived as some kind of cruel and shallow money trench…, a long plastic hallway where thieves and pimps run free and good men die like dogs, for no good reason” (H. S. Thompson). Against the backdrop of recent US college conference realignment (in which American football, and associated revenues from current and future television contracts and cable-TV subscriber fees, is the catalyst), this session examines the increasing degree to which Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) college athletic departments (including administrators, coaches, and Olympic sport athletes) rely on Black males’ athletic capital for their existence. Consistent with this year’s conference theme: “Producing Knowledge, Producing Bodies,” this panel will discuss the resulting cross currents from the existence of neocolonial athletic plantations, dedicated to entertainment and revenue maximization, on predominately White US universities. In addition to examining the historical context of recent events, this session will examine the current state of conference expansion, and discuss resulting educational, legal, and public policy issues.

Spearman, LeQuez, University of Tennessee at Knoxville ([email protected])

Inside Information: The New Privatization of Sport

In recent years, largely because of fantasy sports, there have been numerous attempts by the media to provide and construct sports’ knowledge for fan consumption. Cable channels like ESPN, FSN, and CSN have all enlisted analysts, experts, and insiders to grace their daily shows. This past summer, for example, when millions of fans were anxious about Lebron James’s free agency decision, ESPN hired former Portland Trailblazers general manager, Tom Penn as its resident capologist to best predict which NBA team the league MVP and Cleveland Cavaliers’ leading scorer might join. The purpose of this essay is to problematize this increase in sports’ knowledge by offering a critical analysis of ESPN Insider, a Website that provides fans with inventive information lake trade rumors, commentary, and opinion pieces. First, I argue that Insider dupes fans into thinking that they are privy to confidential information that is already accessible to millions of other paying subscribers. Secondly, I argue that information provided on the Website only maintains the current fetishization of commercial sport. Thirdly, I argue-just as other scholars have done-that ESPN insider further allows men to territorialize traditionally masculine sports like baseball, American football, and basketball by monopolizing information.

2010 NASSS Conference Abstracts Page 66 Spencer, Nancy E., Bowling Green State University ([email protected])

“Producing the Tour: Interrogating the ‘Road Map’ as Bio-political Mandate”

In 2007, then CEO of the Women’s Tennis Association (WTA), Larry Scott, introduced a plan for the future of the Women’s Tour known as the “Road Map” (Berger, 2007). Among the goals outlined in the plan were to offer greater prize money, increase the number of meetings between top-ranked players, and increase the off-season from 7 to 9 weeks (purportedly to enhance the players’ health). While players were expected to welcome the increased prize money and longer off-season, the effectiveness of the ‘Road Map’ remains to be seen, if the upcoming Rogers Cup in Montreal is any indication. Among the top players missing are: world No. 1 Serena Williams (foot), Venus Williams (ankle), former No. 1 Justine Henin (elbow), Sam Stosur (arm), and former No. 1 Ana Ivanovic , who was initially denied a wild card (Davis, 2010). Another issue raised by the ‘Road Map’ is the designation of four tournaments as ‘mandatory,’ including Indian Wells , where the Williams sisters have boycotted since 2001. It seems curious that the ‘Road Map’ selected a tournament as mandatory, despite the fact that two of the game’s top stars would not appear. This paper interrogates bio-political discourses (and bodies) produced via the ‘Road Map.’

Stangl, Jane, Smith College ([email protected])

Losing the Biggest Game of Them All: On Coaching, Teams and Death

This piece offers an auto-ethnographic and ethnographic account on the ultimate notion of loss—indeed, the antithesis of a bio (life) ethos—that is, death in a team context. Bigger than games themselves, our social connectivity and the collectivity of a team is often rocked by the realness of life’s final straw. Though athletes are performers who deal with loss on a daily basis, the silencing of the body once so fluid in movement rattles the sensibilities of many who are perceived and often perceive themselves as immortal. As coaching encourages the present, and imagines the future, discussion of the disengagement process with athletes is often absent. But in addressing the vulnerability experienced by all sentient beings when confronted with human loss, coaches are inevitably looked to for leadership. “Where is the manual?,” I’ve heard a college athlete cry as she mourned her dead friend. This piece presents no manual, but a reflective possibility toward how we—as coaches—can more consciously and healthfully engage the final act of teammates, and ultimately ourselves. The tragic death of a young swimmer hired to be an intercollegiate and master’s level assistant swim coach, rests at the core of this reflection.

Stempel, Carl, California State University ([email protected])

“Notes on Doing a “Field” Analysis of Recent Transformations in Sports”

This paper proposes a path for building on Bourdieu’s work on sports that integrates key tools he developed in analyses of sport, utilizes his conception of “field,” and closes divisions between quantitative and qualitative research. Bourdieu’s work on sports emphasized: 1. The gendered structure of class divisions in sports. 2. Field analysis as the meeting of established positions and new generations of athletes, fans, and organizations which via the habitus is the basis for creating new positions. 3. The importance of combining stylistic, social context, social distribution based-attributions, and practical meanings (structured as/through sedimented binaries) of particular sporting practices with a relational understanding of position takings. Bourdieu insisted that these invisible relations are real and that multi-method approaches are needed to reveal them. These tools will be linked to recent Bourdieusian research and used to further a “field” analysis that focuses on the shifting position of sports in the field of culture, relations between sports and other fields, and the shifting degree of autonomy of sport as influenced by movements to democratize sport, television, changes in class/race reproduction strategies, the growth of the “neoliberal state of social insecurity,” and the growth of cultures of “self-actualization” and moral individualism.

Sullivan, David, University of San Diego ([email protected])

Do Try This at Home: Examining UFC's Combat Reality TV

This paper explores how The Ultimate Warrior, a reality show produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship brand of mixed martial arts, articulates a post-feminist masculine "warrior" ethos that blends mainstream and MMA-specific assumptions about male power and control in packaging interpersonal conflict as entertainment. As traditional sources of authority continue to

2010 NASSS Conference Abstracts Page 67 weaken in promotional culture, figures who can embody moral principles assume greater importance. At or near the top of the ratings for all cable shows in each of its six seasons to date, The Ultimate Warrior's appeal to GenX men suggests that the UFC is challenging traditional media sources, such as major sports programming, in producing the emerging role-models for young men to emulate. If so, the warrior ethos will likely be an increasingly important factor in men's self- and group identification. Ritual analysis of series episodes examines how the warrior ethos is framed toward extolling certain values while denigrating others not deemed to be commensurate with the ideal.

Sun, Yu-Kuei (Daniel), University of Iowa ([email protected])

Model Minority on the Mound: Media Representations of Chien-Ming Wang

This paper will examine the media representations of Chien-Ming Wang, a Taiwanese baseball player, in American newspapers from 2005 to 2007. Wang, a New York Yankees pitcher during the time, had been performing well for the Yankees since 2005. He won 19 games in both 2006 and 2007 and was regarded as the team’s ace pitcher. While he had been generally portrayed in a positive way in the media, his Asian identity is still well-scrutinized. I argue that his media representations fit the “model minority” discourse which remains the typical perception in the US, meaning that stereotypical characteristics of Asians or Asian Americans, such as hard-working, self-supporting, self-sacrificing, well-assimilated, and quiet, are emphasized or over- represented. This study reflects Mayada’s (1999) work on Hideo Nomo as well as Nakamura’s (2005) work on Ichiro Suzuki, arguing that the portrayals of these Asian players reinforce not only the myth of “American dream,” but also maintain an idealized archetype of Asians, Asian immigrants, or Asian Americans. Meanwhile, in a more obscure way, both Asians and other minority groups suffer from such mainstream perceptions that function to preserve the status quo of the white-dominant society.

Swain, Stephen, University of Western Ontario ([email protected])

David Mamet's “Redbelt:” Sport, Spectacle, Art and History

In David Mamet's 2008 film “Redbelt,” Brazilian Jiujitsu (BJJ) instructor Mike Terry wants only to teach his martial art to aspiring students. His wife's family, on the other hand, want to use BJJ as a way to sell Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) Pay-Per-Views, spectacularizing and commodifying the fighting style developed by their family over generations. This paper examines Mamet's film, and discusses the issues of spectacularization and commodification raised by the film. In particular, the paper looks at how the spectacle makes use of history, first as part of the message being sold, but also as a means of providing legitimacy. In order for the spectacle to achieve its greatest possible power, it must be seen as not only right, but also natural. This naturalization is achieved, in part, through the use of history as a tool to justify and legitimize. Making use of theories of the spectacular, this paper discusses not only how the spectacle can co-opt and commodify history in the film, but also how those same processes can be seen as a representation of processes used in contemporary MMA.

Sykes, Heather, OISE, University of Toronto ([email protected])

Curriculum from the Streets: Anti-Globalization Movements, Citizenship Education and Physical Education

In Ontario, students learn about participation in democratic and social processes in Social Studies/Citizenship Education and Health/Physical Education high school courses (Ontario Ministry of Education, 2000). Both courses present neoliberal and neocolonial approaches to leadership. This paper provides a tentative, theoretical framework for working with activist youth (Cammarota & Fine, 2008) to develop a cross-curricular resource that highlights the neocolonial, militarized and environmental implications of sporting mega-events. In this paper I present a tentative analysis of how sporting mega-events are implicated in gender injustices, environmental damage and militarization by examining sporting and cultural mega-events held in Canada during 2008-2010. Drawing on transnational feminist and anarchist research into global protest movements (Grewal, 2006; Moghadam, 2009), the paper documents how critical social discourses circulating with the anti-globalization movements (della Porta, Andretta, Mosca & Reiter, 2006; Starr, 2005) are, or might be, applied to sporting mega-events. Building on research into the olympic resistance movement (Lenskyj, 2008), the paper maps some of the discursive and political connections with non- sporting protest movements such as gender justice, indigenous sovereignty, environmental justice and anti-war. This sets the basis for a youth participatory project that will document if, or how, the networking and knowledge sharing between disparate protest movements that took place at the Vancouver Olympics had any subsequent effects at other Canadian political and cultural mega-events (G20/G8 Economic Summits, Toronto Gay Pride and Toronto International Film Festival).

2010 NASSS Conference Abstracts Page 68 Szto, Courtney, University of Toronto ([email protected])

Redemption by Consumption: Analyzing the Nike Product (RED) Campaign

Since the 1980’s a shift has occurred from state-led development initiatives to market-driven solutions. Neoliberal globalization has created opportunities for corporations to take on issues of social welfare that formerly fell under government jurisdiction (Mukherjee Reed & Reed, 2009). This rise in neoliberal policies has encouraged social engagement from consumers by ‘voting at the checkout’ with their purchases (Jacobsen & Dulsrud, 2007). Late in 2009, Nike joined the Product (RED) initiative with the launch of its ‘Lace Up, Save Lives’ campaign with the claim that “just by lacing up a pair of shoelaces in your favorite shoes…and by going about your own life, you can help save someone else’s”. This case study questions the ability of ethical consumption as a method of redeeming Africa from colonial, institutional and systemic oppression. I apply Jean Baudrillard’s theories on consumer society to discuss the identities constructed by and projected from ethical consumption as a form of corporate social responsibility. I also unpack the knowledge (re)produced by Nike’s construction of Africa as the Other, and the unquestioned celebration of ‘celebrity philanthropy.’

Taks, Marijke, University of Windsor ([email protected])

Sport Participation in Economic Crisis: An International Comparison

This contribution reflects on sport and physical culture in the context of the recent economic recession. When compared to the cultural and political realms, the economic realm tends to play a dominant role in many aspects of everyday society (Waters, 1994). Individuals have little control over what transpires in times of economic hardship, but one element they can control is the care of their own bodies and physical well being. The purpose of this paper is to analyze how sport participation has been affected by the economic recession by investigating the impact on sport providers in local communities. Since the recent recession was a global phenomenon, an international comparison is warranted. Data were collected through interviews with 34 managers, owners and/or employees of various sport organizations and providers from the public, non-profit, and commercials sector in Canada, Belgium and France. The results indicate that sport participation, which is part of the cultural realm, is fairly recession proof. People continue to participate regardless of the impact of the economic downturn. This confirms previous work that people participate in sport and physical culture based on their taste and preferences, and thus their ‘habitus’ (Bourdieu, 1979), despite prevailing economic circumstances.

Taub, Ryan, University of Colorado at Denver ([email protected])

How Proposition 8 Passed in Colorado – 1972

In 1970, members of the Denver Olympic Committee returned to Colorado as conquering heroes, having just secured the right for Denver to host the 1976 Winter Olympic Games. Only two years later, the citizens of Colorado voted “yes” on proposition 8 by a near 60% majority to not only ban the use of state funds to finance the Games, but also in essence, declare that they did not want the Olympics in their state. Through a review of historical documents and academic literature, and an interview with Governor Richard Lamm, this paper attempts to examine why the citizens of Colorado turned against the Games and how proposition 8 passed. Using social construction theory and multiple streams framework, the paper analyzes the issues raised, the events that took place, and the actors involved that shaped the climate and therefore the policy.

Thomas, Damion, University of Maryland at College Park ([email protected])

The Harlem Globetrotters and the Trickster Tradition

Discussions of the Harlem Globetrotters and their comedic performativity has been dominated by references to minstrelsy. However, it is important to acknowledge that this discussion places the team within social, political, and cultural traditions that emerged in northern, white communities in the United States. While minstrelsy is a crucial lens through which we have to engage the team’s social importance, this paper attempts to situate the team within African American cultural practices. By utilizing James Scott’s theory of the “hidden transcript,” this project demonstrates how the team’s African American players used their comedy routines as spaces to challenge dominant political ideologies.

2010 NASSS Conference Abstracts Page 69 Thorpe, Holly, University of Waikato ([email protected])

Transnational Mobilities in Snowboarding Culture: Travel, Tourism and Lifestyle Sport Migration

Adopting an interdisciplinary approach and drawing upon global ethnographic methods conducted in six countries over seven years, this paper offers one of the first in-depth examinations of transnational flows and networks in contemporary physical youth culture via a discussion of the corporeal mobilities of snowboarders. Focusing on the travel and migration experiences of various groups of snowboarders (i.e., tourists, professionals, lifestyle sport migrants), and engaging recent work by human geographers, as well as Pierre Bourdieu’s key concepts of field, capital and habitus, this paper reveals fresh insights into the lived transnationalism and global migration of contemporary youth facilitated by the ‘extreme’, ‘alternative’ or ‘lifestyle’ sports economy (Wheaton, 2004).

Tinley, Scott, San Diego State University ([email protected])

The Athlete Celebrity/Hero: Production, Position, and Power

In this moderated panel discussion, an eclectic group of sport sociologists, former professional athletes, and sport business and media professionals discuss the changing landscape of modern athletes in the role(s) of celebrity/heroes. Utilizing anecdotes, phenomenology, and established literature in mass media and hero discourses, the panel will discuss academic and popular ideology that concerns the production, mediation, and consumption of athletes as heroes and celebrities. They will address the current places and spaces that iconic athletes and their narratives occupy, inclusive of the resultant polemics. Emphasis will be on exploring the socio-cultural chasms between celebrityhood and folkloric notions of heroism as they extend uniquely into our social worlds as signifiers and representations in our physical culture. Each panelist has extensive background in the world of commercial sport and has, to varying degrees, written and published on the topics of media’s production of celebrity athletes-as- hero and its resulting social function. They will respond to prepared and audience questions.

Titus-Petrak, Liz, Texas A&M University ([email protected]) and Akilah R. Carter, Texas A&M University ([email protected])

Exploring Student-Athletes Educational Experiences: Does Student Engagement Equal Academic Success?

The purpose of this paper is to understand student-athlete engagement and its relationship with academic success. Umbach, Palmer, Kuh, and Hannah (2006) define engagement as a, “function of both the individual effort of each student and institutional practices and policies that encourage students to participate in educationally purposeful activities” (p. 712). Educationally purposeful activities include, but are not limited to: traditional academic pursuits (e.g., reading, writing, preparing for class), collaborating with peers, problem solving, and community service. Accordingly, participation in educationally purposeful activities has been linked to a students’ academic success (Pascarella & Terenzini, 2005), which has traditionally been examined through the use of grade point averages and graduation rates. Thus, while grade point averages and graduation rates are useful determinants of academic success, Umbach et al. (2006) suggests exploration of institutional practices (e.g., interactions with faculty, on-campus support system, social interactions, etc.). Therefore, utilizing narrative inquiry, this qualitative study examines institutional practices and the educational experiences of today’s student-athlete. Findings, while not generalizable, may enhance the educational experience of student-athletes through exploring institutional practices in order to understand their current relationship with academic success.

Tlili, Haïfa, Concordia University ([email protected]) and Geneviève Rail, Concordia University ([email protected])

Health and Bodily Discourses: The Case of North African Immigrant Women Living in Montreal

In Canada, the results of obesity studies have been widely broadcasted in the population. While these results are still discussed (and at times challenged) in the academic community, most Canadians have been exposed to information on obesity usually intertwined with, and lost within, a popular cultural kafuffle about the importance of one’s weight and shape. Our larger study examines the discursive constructions of heath, the body, and obesity among 15 young women who have emigrated from the Maghreb (including 12 of Islamic faith and 3 who wear the Hijab) in the context of these prominent Canadian messages about

2010 NASSS Conference Abstracts Page 70 obesity and health. The purpose of this paper is to investigate the ways in which these women construct and locate themselves and their body, in this context of acculturation and biopedagogical pressure. Guided theoretically by a feminist poststructuralist and Foucauldian approach, the discourse analysis shows that these women construct their immigration as a breath of fresh air that enables them to live rich bodily experiences (e.g., freedom to go out without the fear of the others’ gaze, and to participate in a wide variety of physical activities). Most participants reproduce dominant Canadian discourses on obesity and individual responsibility for health. As hybrid subjects, however, most have strong Maghreb references around the body, food as well as cultural and religious practices. A few women manifest resistances toward both Canadian and Maghreb discourses and norms around bodily practices and prove to be reflexive poststructuralist subjects.

Travers, Ann, Simon Fraser University ([email protected])

Citizenship Studies, Women's Ski Jumping, and the 2010 Olympics Games

"Citizenship Studies" is an emerging field that has yet to make much of an explicit impact in the sociological examination of sport as an agentic institution in normalizing the inclusion of whiteness and orthodox masculinity and the exclusion of "other others." But as a theoretical tool for understanding the interaction between sport and nation as exemplified in literal and figurative citizenship, it offers a powerful array of lenses for deconstructing sport’s complicit (and resistance) role. In previous work I have claimed that the "sport nexus" plays a significant role in Western democracies in gendering citizenship as male (and white). In this paper I situate the exclusion of women's ski jumping from the 2010 Olympic Games within the discourse of citizenship studies. van Amsterdam, Noortje, Utrecht University ([email protected])

Discursively Constructing (non)athletic Bodies: A Participatory Photography Project with Youth

Young people are urged to be physically active at a time of increasing societal emphasis on bodily appearance. Yet relatively little is known about the meanings Dutch youth assign to the appearance of bodies they encounter in daily life and how these relate to young people’s interpretations of messages about health and the importance of engaging in sport/physical activity. The purpose of this study was to explore how young people use visual images to discursively construct bodies they see in their everyday lives in relation to sport and physical activity. A participatory photography method and focus group discussions were utilized to explore the discursive constructions used by 45 high school students to talk about what they considered to be athletic and non athletic bodies. The results showed that their constructions of athleticism overlapped with their constructions of health and were conflated by notions about gender, sexuality, social class, age and race.

Vannini, April, European Graduate School ([email protected]) and Barbara Fornssler, European Graduate School ([email protected])

Girl, Interrupted: Semenya, Gender Verification Testing and Public Discourse

This paper addresses the social implications of gender verification testing in sport. The authors ask how sex-gender is contained in the public discourse as resultant from media reports that questioned Caster Semenya’s identity following her success in the women’s 800m event on August 19, 2009 at the International Association of Athletics Federation (IAAF) World Championship in Athletics. The authors use critical discourse analysis of news comment bulletin boards to examine the general public’s perception of the case surrounding Semenya along with perceptions and prescriptions regarding her sex and gender identity. The authors argue that the manner by which Semenya’s body is discursively constructed via news board discussants, scientific and medical communities, and athletic governance policies renders her flesh abject and promotes the interpretation of her body as being ‘dis- ordered’, all in the service of maintaining the rhetoric of ‘fair play’ and ‘equal opportunity’ for female athletes. The authors claim that such tests reproduce existing hegemonic gender ideologies via the categories they reinforce and through the mechanism of testing itself, as this leads to sex-gender ‘verification’.

2010 NASSS Conference Abstracts Page 71 Ventresca, Matt, Queen’s University ([email protected])

Coffee, Donuts and Sid the Kid

Given the restaurant’s namesake, it is perhaps not surprising that Canadian coffee shop chain Tim Hortons is often associated with hockey. Under closer examination, however, it is clear the brand’s association with the sport goes far beyond the Hall of Fame defenseman after which the restaurant was named. Penfold (2008) describes some of the ways in which Tim Hortons employs quintessential Canadian imagery to give meaning to everyday consumption practices, but only briefly discusses hockey as part of this symbolic configuration. Through an analysis of a selection of hockey-themed advertisements, this paper delves further into how Tim Hortons appropriates hockey as a symbolic marker of Canadian-ness and how these promotional campaigns forge a seemingly inextricable link between sport, fast food commodity and national identity. I also explore the possible sociological effects of this association with particular attention to the role of Sidney Crosby as the chain’s spokesperson and how his brand of white masculinity lends itself to the company’s marketing objectives. Finally, similar to recent studies examining the connections between sport and beer (Wenner & Jackson, 2009) I look to scrutinize the cultural relationships between a gruelling, physically intense sporting activity and stereotypically ‘unhealthy’ food items such as coffee and donuts. Considering the results from these areas of inquiry, I argue that the Tim Hortons brand is ultimately active in the production of cultural knowledge as it pertains to sport, nationalism and the maintenance of sporting bodies.

Veri, Maria J., San Francisco State University ([email protected]) and Rita Liberti, California State University at East Bay ([email protected])

Tailgate Warriors: Exploring the Masculine Construction of Food and Football

In 2009 the Food Network’s Guy Fieri teamed up with the NFL to create “Tailgate Warriors.” Characterized as a competition between tailgate teams, the show revolves around groups of fans “dukin’ it out to see who has the most killer grub.” This study provides a textual analysis of “Tailgate Warriors” in an effort to build on a small, but valuable body of literature around men, masculinity, and food. Our aim is to situate sport within this existing frame and argue that far from destabilizing gender binaries, the show reifies traditional gender roles through its celebration of what Hollows characterizes as “recognizably manly” cultural practices. Thus, cooking as part of the ritual of tailgating is constructed as a temporary leisure activity distanced from domestic labor. Relationally, cookery is rescued from the feminine domain, gendered as a masculine activity, and in the guise of Fieri, allows the NFL to extend its brand without unsettling the NFL’s established gender hierarchy.

Vidoni, Carla, University of Louisville ([email protected]) and Emese Ivan, St. John’s University ([email protected])

From Born to Made: Experiencing Capoiera

Capoeira is an Afro-Brazilian martial art that has been played over the last four centuries in Brazil, and recently it has become popular in North America and Europe. The purpose of this comparative study is to describe how capoeira evolved from slaves’ protection skills in Brazil into a socially and culturally accepted physical activity worldwide. How capoeira is seen in the Brazilian school system, and how capoeira has reached international audiences. Particular attention has been paid to concerns related to capoeira’s principles expansion (Joseph, 2008; Vieira & Assuncao, 2009). Historical institutionalism was used as a theoretical framework to answer some questions related to ‘globalization’ of capoeira during the 20th century.

2010 NASSS Conference Abstracts Page 72 Wachs, Faye Linda, Cal Poly Pomona ([email protected])

Can I Still Do My Job? Teaching through Bodily Failure

This panel discussion deals with the topic of public presentation and bodily failure. Academics are to some extent public figures, appearing in the mass media, making public presentations and teaching. Most of us have put some time and energy into constructing a public personae and developing a presentation style. What happens when one encounters a temporary or permanent physical problem that significantly alters our presentation of self? How have people coped different types of challenges, physical, psychological and social? Panel members will who have encountered a physical or psychological/emotional problem that impeded public presentation of self will be asked to share their experiences, insights, and reflections.

Walker, Nefertiti, University of Florida ([email protected]), Trevor Bopp, University of Florida ([email protected]) and Michael Sagas, University of Florida ([email protected])

Gender Bias in the Perception of Women as Collegiate Men's Basketball Coaches

The purpose of this study investigated the potential impact of gender-role attitudes and gender-role congruity on the perceived ability of women to coach men. An online instrument was sent via email to 236 students recruited from an introductory to sport management course at a large public institution in the Southeast. Based on previous studies, this study sought to test whether gender alone would influence the hiring recommendation, perceptions of job-fit, and the perceived capability of female applicants for coaching positions in men's college basketball. In examining the role of gender as a predictor on job applicants' capability, job-fit, and hiring recommendation perceptions for a men's basketball coaching position, findings revealed significant differences only on hiring recommendation. In conclusion, this study found that despite perceptions of more than capable abilities and job-fit, women would still be offered a men's college basketball coaching job less often than men.

Waltemyer, D. Scott, Towson University ([email protected]) and Aaron W. Clopton, Louisiana State University ([email protected])

Balancing Team Identity and Perceptions of External Organization Prestige at NCAA Division II and III Institutions

The impact of identifying with one's organization has been linked positively with commitment (Carmelli, Gillat, & Weisberg, 2006), social capital (Carmelli, 2007), and citizenship behaviors (Carmelli, 2005). Extant literature has also examined the extent to which factors include perceived external prestige (e.g. Carmelli et al., 2006). Notably, in higher education, this perception of prestige has been impacted by athletics when football success was linked with perceived academic prestige of an institution by external stakeholders (Goidel & Hamilton, 2006). The benefits of students identifying with their university are framed around the Social Identity Theory (Tajfel & Turner, 1986). In line with identity research, organizational identity has been found to play a salient role in member behavior (Ashforth & Mael, 1989). That is, the greater an organization can get its members i.e. employees, workers, students, alumni, etc. to identify with the organization, the greater the extent of efficient, or effective, behavior. The current study included university students (N=500) from NCAA Divisions II and III institutions who were assessed surveys measuring team identity and perceptions of organizational prestige of their university. A multivariate analysis of variance revealed a significant interaction between NCAA Division and level of team identity.

Ward, Russell, Francis Marion University ([email protected])

Evaluating Athletics Mission Statements for Claims of Unique Academic Success

The purpose of this research is to explore how athletic departments that meet and exceed academic expectations express their educational success in mission statements. Three perennial academic-related expectations include graduating student athletes, promoting gender equity, and complying with NCAA regulations. For this study, the athletic department mission statements of 131 NCAA colleges and universities were randomly sampled, and data on federal graduation rates, gender equity (i.e., proportional representation of female athletes), and NCAA rules compliance were gathered for each school. Content analysis of mission statements reveals that athletic departments avoid showcasing their unique academic success, and choose instead, to use language that reinforces positive perceptions about athletics in general. The findings are grounded in institutional theory,

2010 NASSS Conference Abstracts Page 73 whereby organizations, in order to survive, must conform to the rules and belief systems prevailing in the environment (DiMaggio and Powell, 1983; Meyer and Rowan, 1977). Athletic departments increase the legitimacy of sport in U.S. higher education when they describe their mission in terms of prevailing knowledge and myths about the educational function of sport. Discussion focuses on how concerns about long-term survival may affect the potential for planning innovative athletic programs, and improving the state of athletics in higher education.

Washington, Robert, Bryn Mawr College ([email protected]) and David Karen, Bryn Mawr College ([email protected])

Meritocratic Ideals and Institutional Processes in Sport and Society

This paper argues that sport represents a unique example of meritocratic fairness in contemporary societies. Since meritocratic practice is the normative standard for the distribution of rewards in capitalist democracies, we argue not only that sports contests represent the highest expression of that meritocratic ideal but also, that they operate as the cultural templates for meritocratic practices. Because of their greater popularity and public transparency than other institutions, sports demonstrate most clearly the links between meritocratic practices -- choosing and rewarding the most talented individuals, independent of background and/or connections -- and organizational success, i.e. winning. Our focus on the institutional dynamics within sports will allow us to highlight the ways in which sports organizations are pushed toward the adoption and expansion of meritocratic practices despite the pull of non-meritocratic norms. We will explore, for example, differences in the speed with which different teams adopt meritocratic practices and the consequences of resistance, notably the costs of failure/losing. Finally, we will develop an analytical framework for understanding the components of fairness, as it applies to sports. This framework allows us to develop a research agenda that explores varied questions about sport as a cultural vehicle of fair competition.

Watanabe, Yasuhiro, Juntendo Univesity, Japan ([email protected]) and Haruo Nogawa, Juntendo Univesity, Japan

Tidal Wave of Chinese Tourists – New “Look East” Sport Tourism Policy

Since tourism nation promotion basic law was enforced in January, 2007, this law has clearly positioned tourism, for the first time ever, as one of the pillars of Japanese policy in the 21st century. While an action for the realization of the “tourism nation” develops lively, the sport tourism promotion seems to be a new Japanese strategy toward the tourism nation. Increasing an in- bound tourism through sport is somewhat new to eastern nations. In fact, the number of Australians and New Zealanders, who enjoyed skiing and snowboarding in the northern parts of Japan, has been tripled in the last five years. In recent years, Chinese people have become the center of attention in the global business, and tourism is no exception. So the Japanese government has changed the tourism policy specifically against Chinese to relax an individual tourist visa from July 2010. Although, the tidal wave of many Chinese tourists to Japan is expected, it is quite doubtful if sport tourism, a so-called new “Look East” policy, can attract Chinese people to Japan.

Weedon, Gavin, Southampton Solent University ([email protected])

Moving into Heterotopic Space: Migrant Youth Footballers in England

Premier League football academies provide a context for the acculturation and mobilisation of athletic bodies from diverse countries, regions and cultures, recruited to compete alongside indigenous talent in the hope of producing professional footballers. This recruitment takes place during a period of adolescent development, arguably before the migrant players have reached their maturation as physical commodities or social independents. In this paper, my intention is to capture the conflicting desires of migrant youth footballers to return to the familiar cultural and social environs of the utopian homeland, and to realise their dreams of becoming professional footballers in England, by drawing on Michel Foucault's writings on heterotopia. A series of interviews with migrant players and their acculturating groups within academies provides the empirical substance of these observations. By focussing on a specific, crystallising moment in the life of a young athlete ? the decision by the academy as to whether or not to award a professional contract ? I seek to illustrate how the academy itself can be thought of as a heterotopic space for migrant players; a spatio-temporal realm of promise and nostalgia, of competing desires to be at home, and to feel at home, in an environment which perpetually encourages the appropriation of 'professional' subjectivities in young players.

2010 NASSS Conference Abstracts Page 74 Wells, Janelle E., University of Florida ([email protected]) and Trevor Bopp, University of Florida ([email protected])

Career Paths: What Do Division I Female Athletic Directors Have to Do?

The number of female intercollegiate athletics directors continues to decline. In 2010, 19.3% of all athletic directors were female, of which only 30 were at the helm of a Division I program (Acosta & Carpenter, 2010). Numerous rationales for the drop in female representation have been examined (see Grappendorf & Lough, 2006). One such justification is the limited career and professional development opportunities for women (Whisenant, Pedersen, & Obenour, 2002). Taken together with the scant presence of women in the upper management of athletic departments, there are minimal social networking options, support avenues, and role models for those females aspiring to be an athletics director. Thus, the aim of this study is to examine the career paths of current female athletic directors to determine potential commonalities in the experiences and positions that have contributed to their current post. It has been found that certain experiences and positions serve as stepping-stones in the athletic director career path (Cuneen, 1998; Fitzgerald, 1990; Grappendorf & Lough, 2006; Grappendorf, Lough, & Griffin, 2004). It is hoped the findings from this study will help to encourage the pursuit, recruitment, hiring, and promotion of females into the role of athletic director.

Wells, Sandy, University of Toronto ([email protected])

The Segregation Imperative: Disorders of Sex Development and Sport

Female athletes have been objects of suspicion in every era (Ritchie, 2003), and have been linked to several ‘crises’ – specifically, of ‘femininity’ and ‘masculinity’, and of heterosexuality (eg., Messner, 1988). The practice of “gender verification” in elite athletics has both grown out of and contributed to these socio-cultural crisis discourses. Recently, leading researchers within the growing medical subfield of Disorders of Sexual Development (DSDs) were asked by the IOC to help them “draw up [gender verification] guidelines for dealing with ‘ambiguous’ gender cases” (AP, 2009) in elite sport. This paper draws on recent Foucauldian genealogical work to argue that both the medicoscientific search for diagnostic conditions of maleness and femaleness and the attempt to demarcate normal from pathological sex are, in part, effects of disciplinary power. Although presented as a way to make gender verification practices more ethical, the advice of the expert group effectively contributes to a “diagnosis of culture” (Heyes, 2009), which advances their own professional interests as well as those of the IOC, by displacing the cultural imperative of unambiguous gender onto the bodies of certain female athletes.

Wenner, Lawrence A., Loyola Marymount University ([email protected])

Reading Commodified Female Sports Fans: Dirt and Characterization in Commercials

Over the years the archetype of the sports fan has been reinforced by narrative characterizations of the male sports fan. While there is much evidence that women are increasingly joining the ranks of sports fans, their story is infrequently told in mainstream media. Looking to emerging media forums, this study assesses the contours of the football widow myth and changing characterizations of female sport fanship on YouTube and other video sites on the Internet. Reliant on the dirt theory of narrative ethics, a critical assessment examines a progressive story arc that includes the following categories and subcategories of women and their relation to sport spectatorship: (1) non-fans, including (a) wronged women and (b) wise widows, (2) inchoate fans, including (a) accessory fans and (b) apprentice fans, and (3) invested fans, including (a) devoted fans and (b) deviant fans. The conclusion reflects on the moral dynamics and fissures in these narratives and prospects for reimagining narrative hegemony in telling the story of female sports fanship.

2010 NASSS Conference Abstracts Page 75 Whiteside, Erin, University of Tennessee ([email protected])

“I Repeat, I am Not a Lesbian!” Sexuality and Heteronormativity in the Sports Media Workplace

This paper draws from in-depth interviews with women in college sports public relations to assess the ways in which cultural understandings about sports and gender produce related narratives on sexuality that mediate women’s experiences in the sports media workplace and overall sense of self. In doing so, this research shows how the Foucauldian power effect of this discourse ultimately reifies sexual identity categories, and creates divisions among women in a space where, as tokens, it is in their strategic interest to collectively unite. Comments from the interviews showed a general anxiety of being perceived as lesbian simply because of their presence in a sports-related occupation, and I argue that within this space, discourses of sexuality invite women to adopt a feminine embodiment that meets male-defined standards of beauty and sexual attractiveness. Further, through discourse and behavior that privileges heterosexuality as “normal,” the problematic dichotomy between heterosexuality and homosexuality was naturalized, thus illustrating the manifestation of heteronormativity in a climate where overt hostility toward gays and lesbians is generally seen as undesirable among women.

Wiest, Amber L., Towson University ([email protected])

Justifying Corporeal Commodification: Exteriorizing Health in the Fitness Industry

Working for a national chain of privately-owned fitness clubs, I have encountered the ways health and fitness are reduced to bodily facades and how these oversimplifications are used to generate sales. In my paper, I explore the body’s physical appearance as a prospecting tool for sales personnel and how social corporeal ideals are being used to justify implementing teleological sales methods in order to reach preset daily sales goals. Accordingly, I assert that instead of treating personal training as a meaningful supplement to the general health and fitness of all individuals, personal training has become its own sales entity that appraises potential clients based on social understandings and (re)produced knowledge(s) about (un)healthiness. Drawing upon Frew and McGillivray’s (2005) analysis of health clubs and body politics, I further investigate the health and fitness center as “a space where physical capital is not only constructed and celebrated but also undergoes a willing ocular consumption” (p. 166). Therefore, this quest for the aesthetic manifestation of “healthy” is now a tradable asset continuously used and manipulated to objectify dominant social perceptions and, hence, manufacture an embodied state for consumption (Bourdieu, 1984; Frew & McGillivray, 2005). In effect, I propose that the body and the cardinal pursuit to achieve the healthy looking body have become a “mainstream commodity” (Frew & McGillivray, 2005, p. 163).

Wigley, Brian J., Shenandoah University ([email protected]) and Gina Daddario, Shenandoah University

Sexual Misconduct in Sport: Broadening the Lens

Male athletes’ violence against women has received considerable attention from sport scholars. Benedict and Klein (1997) have compared arrest and conviction rates of professional and collegiate athletes against their non-athlete counterparts while Otto has examined athletes and criminal sentencing. The current study is based on a larger ongoing project that examines one calendar year of sports-related crime. Using Factiva as a search mechanism, print media outlets large and small from across the United States are searched to explore sport-related crime on a broader scale. Variables analyzed in the larger study include: type of sport, level of play, specific criminal charge, role of perpetrator (coach, player, fan, parent, etc.) and the response of the media. Crosset (1999), among others, has concluded that merely focusing on the question of whether athletes commit more crime against women than their non-athletic peers is too simplistic and that we should consider power relations and social structures. The proposed presentation will focus on crimes committed in the broad category of ‘sexual misconduct’ as it explores the power relations of the individuals involved. Among the power relations explored include: coaches involved in sexual misconduct with players; female coaches and teachers involved with male athletes; and students involved with female coaches.

2010 NASSS Conference Abstracts Page 76 Williams, Claire M., St. Mary’s College of California ([email protected])

Vanity has its Benefits: Running Skirts and the Hetero-normalization of the Active Female Body

In their article on the material culture of sport, Hardy, Loy, and Booth (2009) write, “material objects help us to ‘discover the beliefs—the values, ideas, attitudes, and assumptions—of a particular community or society at a given time’” (p. 130). Along these lines, I use a combination of historical texts, marketing materials, product reviews, questionnaires, interviews, and participant-observation to expand upon the current understanding of women’s participation in sport by answering the question: why, at this historical moment, are running skirts in vogue? I suggest three interrelated reasons explain their current popularity: first, running skirts function to promote the feminine apologetic; second, running skirts function as a material signifier of post- feminist empowerment; and third, running skirts function as a technology through which to discipline the body. In this presentation, I focus on the varied ways women employ running skirts to cover, contain, and decorate their active bodies. I conclude that that while women who own and wear running skirts may have multiple reasons for doing so, the selling and buying of running skirts is embedded in post-feminist narratives that equate consumption and bodily discipline with power.

Williams, Ryan K., University of Illinois at Springfield ([email protected]) and Stephen Schnebly, University of Illinois at Springfield ([email protected])

Exploring Changes in Testosterone Levels in Mixed Martial Arts Fighters

Testosterone is frequently proposed as a significant causal factor for explaining aggression in sporting and non-sporting contexts. However, recent research reveals that the relationship between testosterone and aggression is more complex. Strong support exists for biosocial explanations whereby feedback loops exist between an individual’s testosterone level and his or her assertiveness in attempting to achieve or maintain interpersonal status or dominance rank (Mazur, 1985). For this study a total of 118 salivary testosterone samples were collected from 37 individual amateur and professional MMA fighters at various time points before and after practices and official competitions. Survey data about individuals’ contributions to outcome, performance appraisal, and attribution of outcome to internal/external factors were also collected. Consistent with the literature (Archer, 2006), fighters experienced an increase in their salivary testosterone levels well before they began competition and almost every fighter tested showed an increase in their testosterone levels by the end of their fight. Actual increases in testosterone depended significantly on whether the fighter won or lost the fight. For those who did win their fights, the nature of the win (i.e. knockout, submission, decision, etc.) did not significantly affect testosterone levels.

Willms, Nicole, University of Southern California ([email protected])

"You Play Basketball?": Negotiating the Racialized and Gendered Body

The sport of basketball has become a dominant way for many Japanese Americans in Southern California to engage in ethnic community. In order to promote widespread and active involvement in basketball, the Japanese-American basketball leagues and tournaments are very gender-inclusive. This inclusive structure is (re)created through interactions that reaffirm the expectation and desirability of all Japanese-American community members participating in basketball. Therefore, intra-group interactions operate within a unique system of race, class, and gender accountability. Japanese Americans who participate in mainstream basketball, or announce their basketball identity in contexts outside of the Japanese-American community, navigate an entirely different system of accountability. Within mainstream interactions, Japanese-American men and women described feeling that their involvement in basketball commonly elicited reactions of surprise, disbelief or even antagonism. In these interactions, Asian-American basketball players often seem incompatible with the system of accountability, thus making ethnicity/race and gender more salient and in greater need of some kind of conscious negotiation. Height and body size become a salient anchor for discourse through which people make sense of and negotiate these two different sets of accountability. Discourse surrounding height frequently served as a way of controlling female and Asian bodies, excluding them from sport spaces.

2010 NASSS Conference Abstracts Page 77 Wilson, Brian, University of British Columbia ([email protected]) and Brad Millington, University of British Columbia ([email protected])

The Golf Industry and the Making of Environmental Responsibility: A Longitudinal Study

In this paper we describe preliminary findings from a study of the Canadian and American golf industries’ responses to environmental concerns (e.g., related to course construction and pesticide use). The research reported here is based on an analysis of trade publications produced by and targeting greenskeepers and golf superintendents, published from the mid 1960s (in the United States) and early 1970s (in Canada) to the present. In our findings section we outline how golf industry representatives have responded to ‘external’ groups (e.g., through impression management techniques employed in dealing with governments, media, and environmental groups) and ‘internal’ pressures (e.g., the perceived need among industry members for educational seminars, certification programs, and green technologies). Our analysis also reveals how messages and practices related to the environment have changed over time, and highlights the contexts within which these changes have taken place. The paper concludes by considering key findings in relation to extant understandings of organizational change and corporate social responsibility in and around sport. Specifically, we consider how the golf industry’s responses to environmental issues reflect a broader tendency to privilege market-based solutions to problems like environmental risk and destruction.

Witkowski, Emma, IT-University of Copenhagen ([email protected])

Player Physicality in e-sports

This work focuses on player bodies in action from the site of e-sports (electronic sports). The format of computer game play that calls itself e-sports commonly involves specific arrangements of gaming that engages high-performance competitors in organized tournament play. Through the theoretical lens of sports studies (specifically the phenomenology of sporting bodies and sports sociology), this study looks at the player practices of e-sports players and teams and asks: How are computer game players “doing sport”? In particular I look at movement, body balance and haptic engagements of e-sports players, and I suggest that the e-sports body at play is often engaged physically in ways that we are not attuned to recognizing or talking about (especially as researchers of computer games and players of computer games). Whilst theories from sports studies offer a useful framework to think through, I find that e-sports – with their discreet forms of movement performed on highly visible technologies – presents an interesting probe to explore our traditional notions of sport. This work draws on observations and semi-structured interviews with World of Warcraft players competing in pro/am Arena PVP (Player-versus-Player) tournaments as well as from ethnographic work playing with a raiding PVE (Player-versus-Environment) guild.

Wolff, Eli A., Northeastern University ([email protected]), Alexis Lyras, University of Louisville ([email protected]), Ted Fay, SUNY-Cortland ([email protected]) and Matthew Targett, SUNY-Cortland ([email protected])

Uncovering Professional Development in Sport for Development and Peace: An Analysis of the International Sport for Development and Peace

In recent years there has been a growing social movement towards the use of sport as a vehicle for social change reaching communities with messages in ways traditional sport practices and interventions cannot (Beutler, 2008; Kidd, 2008; Levermore, 2008; Lyras, 2005, 2007; Sugden, 2007). These relatively new sport practices, are mainly driven, initiated and implemented by individual entrepreneurial efforts that are often ignored by mainstream governing agencies (Kidd, 2008; Levermore, 2008), and in many cases, are poorly planned and without providing scientific evidence about their effectiveness (Lyras, 2007; 2009; 2010). To address this gap, Lyras and Wolff (2008; 2009) pioneered the Sport for Development Global Initiative that aimed to advance Sport for Development theory and practice, and facilitated the establishment of the International Sport for Development and Peace Association (ISDPA). The ISDPA aims to “… assist in the global efforts to establish sport for development and peace as a recognized, accepted and credible discipline grounded on scientific facts that prove the value of sport within society” (UNODP, 2010). Through this paper findings will be presented from data collected at the first ISDPA international summit (115 participants) and identify individual placement, needs and challenges related to Sport for Development and Peace.

2010 NASSS Conference Abstracts Page 78