Transcript THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE SOCIAL SCIENCES OF SPORT

THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE
SOCIAL SCIENCES OF SPORT
John W. Loy
University of Otago
Dunedin, New Zealand
Sport Sciences and Sport
Studies (Basic and Applied)
Anthropology
History
Journalism
Economics
Law
Management
Geography
Literature
Pedagogy
Political
Science
Social
Psychology
Sociology
Philosophy
The Social Sciences of Sport
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Empirical Observation
Theoretical Explanation
Time, Space and Place
Social Change
Social Inequalities
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Example of Globalization
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Prerequisites for Subfield
Development in Social Science
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Establish an Identity
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Achieve Legitimation
Precondition One for Subfield
Development in Social Science
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First, a new subfield must attain an
identity. That is, it must be a research
area with a distinctive subject matter;
and there must be a group of specialists
who maintain social ties.
Establishing An Identity
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Patterns of Social Organization
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Patterns of Publication
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Patterns of Professional Development
Patterns of Social Organization
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International Societies
Regional Societies
National Societies
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Conferences
Symposiums
Seminars
Workshops
Patterns of Publication
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Newsletters
Journals
Anthologies
Textbooks
Scholarly Books
Popular Books
Online Journals
Patterns of Professional
Development
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Courses
Curriculums
Undergraduate Degree Programs
Graduate Degree Programs
Training Centers
Institutes
Endowed Chairs
Institutionalization of the
Social Sciences of Sport
Psychology of
Sport
Sociology of
Sport
History of
Sport
Philosophy of
Sport
Anthropology
ISSP
ICSS
ICOSH
PSSS
TASSP
Rome
1965
Cologne
1966
Prague
1967
Boston
1972
Windsor, Ont.
Increased Autonomy and
Maturity of Sport Sociology
Missionary
Stage
Categoric
Analysis
Reflection
Empirical
Stage
Distributive
Analysis
Reproduction
Specialty
Stage
Relational
Analysis
Resistance
Thesis
Thesis
Thesis
Precondition Two for Subfield
Development in Social Science
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Second, the new subfield must be
defined and accepted by the larger
field(s) as a legitimate area of inquiry;
and integrated into the social structure
of the profession/discipline.
George Orwell on Sport
and Sociology
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“With the single exception of stampcollecting, I can think of no human
activity, not even the practice of
sociology, more entirely foolish and
pointless than athletics.”
Achieving Legitimation
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Parent Profession
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Physical Education
Kinesiology
Human movement
Studies
Exercise Science
Sport Science
Leisure Studies
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Parent Discipline
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Anthropology
Economics
Geography
History
Political Science
Social Psychology
Sociology
Philosophy of Sport
(Scott Kretchmer, 1997)
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“As a so-called subdiscipline, the
legitimacy of sport philosophy is more
derived than inherent. Any glory it
might display is more reflected than
self-generated. The tendency, therefore,
has been to think that good sport
philosophy is nothing more than a
narration on good philosophy” (p. 198).
History of Sport
(Nancy Struna, 1997)
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“Even now the number of practicing
sport historians has diminished. Many
scholars who contributed to the field in
the 1970s and 1980s have retired and
more will follow shortly. Only a few of
these people are being replaced, as
departments choose … to abandon
sport history…” (p. 169).
Legitimation within
Physical Education
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TOO THEORETICAL
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TOO LIBERAL
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TOO CRITICAL
Legitimation within
Exercise and Sport Science
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TOO “SOFT”
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TOO MARGINAL
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TOO UNDISCIPLINED
Legitimation within
Kinesiology
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TOO CONTEXTUAL
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TOO COGNATE
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TOO SOCIO-POLITICAL
Legitimation within
Sociology
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Very Few Full-Time Sport Sociologists
Very Few Part-Time Sport Sociologists
Virtually No Formal Degree Programs
Very Few Postgraduate Courses
Very Few Doctoral Students
Lowest Status Sociological Specialty
Limited Contributions to Major Journals
AMERICAN SOCIOLOGICAL
REVIEW
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John W. Loy, “Social Psychological
Characteristics of Innovators,” ASR,
1969, 34, 73-82.
Donald W. Ball, “Failure in Sport,” ASR,
1972, 41, 726-739.
Janet Lever, “Sex Differences in the
Complexity of Children’s Play and
Games,” ASR, 1978, 43, 471-483.
Problem of Critical Mass
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History of Sport
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Philosophy of Sport
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Two specialists at Penn State University
Two specialists at the University of Western
Ontario and at the University Tennessee
Sociology of Sport
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Three specialists at the University of Otago
The Continuous Crisis in the
Social Sciences of Sport
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From Positivism to Postmodernism
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From Natural Science to Nonscience
Paradigmatic Shifts within
the Sociology of Sport
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Quantitative to Qualitative
Sociology to Cultural Studies
Cultural Studies to Poststructuralism
Poststructuralism to Postmodernism
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Semiotics
Social Constructionism
Deconstruction
The Hermeneutic Turn
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Quantitative
Measurement
Explanation
Objective
Universal
Value Neutral
“Is”
Description
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Qualitative
Meaning
Understanding
Subjective
Particular
Value Laden
“Ought”
Interpretation
Centre for Contemporary
Cultural Studies (CCCS)
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Critical Subcultural Sociology
Neo-Marxism (Gramsci, R. Williams)
Feminism and Racialism
Emphasis on Political Economy
Hegemonic Theories of Sport
Movement Toward Media Studies
Interest in Men and Masculinities
Poststructuralism
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Language, Discourse, Narration
Iconography, Signs, Representations
Subject Position, Difference, “the Other”
Identity Politics
Subjectivities, Desires, Embodiments
The Body as Contested Terrain
Social Construction and Deconstruction
Postmodernism
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“…the term ‘postmodernism’ covers an
ill-defined galaxy of ideas – ranging
from art and architecture to the social
sciences and philosophy” (Sokal &
Briemont, 1998, p. 182)
Postmodernism
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“Postmodernism is a theory of cultural,
intellectual, and societal discourse that
rejects the linearism of the
Enlightenment notions of progress”
(Agger, 1992, p. 93).
Postmodernism
(Sokal & Briemont, 1998, p. 1)
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“an intellectual current characterized by
the more-or-less explicit rejection of the
rationalist tradition of the
Enlightenment, by theoretical
discourses disconnected from any
empirical test, and by cognitive and
cultural relativism that regards science
as nothing more than a ‘narration,’ a
‘myth’ or a social construction…”
Basic Postmodern Tenets
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“Postmodern theorists have embraced
two main ideas:
That of Subjectivity (i.e., the personal
is political) and of
Knowledge as Power.”
(Fernandez-Balboa, 1997, p. 5)
Challenges of Postmodernism
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Rejects Epistemological Assumptions
Refutes Methodological Conventions
Resists Knowledge Claims
Obscures All Versions of the Truth
Dismisses Policy Recommendations
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(Rosenau, 1992, p. 3)
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Abandoning the Author
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Postmodernists diminish the importance of
the author.
Postmodernists deem the author a relatively
recent historical development and argue that
in the near future the author may again
disappear entirely.
Postmodernists treat nothing as every being
really original,i.e., the exclusive work of a
particular person.
Privileging the Text
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Postmodernists contend that no two
texts are ever alike and no two readings
of the same text are ever identical.
They do not assume that any reasoned
reading of a text is superior to another.
The post-modern text is plural, so open
(or vague) as to yield to an infinite
number of interpretations.
Re-Orientating the Reader
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Postmodernism implies that meaning
originates not in the production of a
text (by an author), but in its reception
(by the reader).
Anyone may read a text and in so doing
recreate it: journalists, social scientists,
and citizens among others.
Forms of Postmodernism
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Skeptical Postmodernism (European)
Affirmative Postmodernism (AngloNorth American)
New Age Postmodernism
Critical Postmodernism
Critical Postmodernism
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Ben Agger (1992). Cultural Studies as Critical
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Juan-Miguel Fernandez-Balboa (Ed.) (1997).
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Genevieve Rail (1998).Sport and Postmodern
Theory: New Perspectives on Social Theory.
Critical Postmodernism in Human Movement,
Physical Education and Sport.
Times.
The Future of Sport Sociology
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Theoretical
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Critical
Comparative
Historical
Applied
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Critical/Sport Pedagogy
Leisure/Recreation/Sport Management
Sport and Social Policy
History & Sociology of Sport
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“Sociology is history with the hard work
left out;
History is sociology with the brains left
out.”
(Donald G. Macrae, 1991, p. 204)
The Future of the
Social Sciences of Sport
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Rationalist but not dogmatic
Scientifically minded but not scientistic
Open-minded but not frivolous
Political progressive but not sectarian
“But this, of course, in only a hope, and
perhaps a dream” (Sokal & Briemont,
1998, p. 182)