Editing Sociology of sport (section)

== Theories in sociology of sport ==
===Functionalism===
Structural functionalist theories see society as a [[Complex systems|complex system]] whose parts work together to promote solidarity and stability.<ref>{{Cite book|title=Sociology|last=Macionis|first=John|date=1944–2011|publisher=Pearson Prentice Hall|others=Gerber, Linda Marie|isbn=9780137001613|edition= 7th|location=Toronto, Canada|oclc=652430995}}</ref> Sport itself developed from religious ceremonies, which served to promote social and moral solidarity of the community.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Giddens |first1=Anthony |title=Capitalism and Modern Social Theory |date=1971 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |location=Cambridge |isbn=9780511803109 |pages=108–111}}</ref>

Bromberger saw similarities between religious ceremonies and football matches. Matches are held in a particular spatial configuration, pitches are sacred and may not be polluted by pitch invaders, and lead to intense emotional states in fans. As with religious ceremonies, spectators are spatially distributed according to social distribution of power. Football seasons have a fixed calendar. Group roles on match day are ceremonial, with specially robed people performing intense ritual acts. As a church, football has an organizational network, from local to global levels. Matches have a sequential order that guides the actions of participants, from pre-match to post-match actions. Lastly, football rituals create a sense of [[communitas]].<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Bromberger |first1=Christian |title=Football as World-View and as Ritual |journal=French Cultural Studies |date=October 1995 |volume=6 |issue=18 |pages=306–309 |doi=10.1177/095715589500601803 |s2cid=194009566 |url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/270619907 |access-date=30 January 2021}}</ref> Songs and choreography can be seen as an [[immanence|immanent]] ceremony through which spectators transfer their strength to the team.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Robertson |first1=Roland |title=The Sociological Interpretation of Religion |date=1970 |publisher=Blackwell |location=Oxford |pages=50–51}}</ref>

Accounting for the fact that not all actions support the existing societal structure, [[Robert K. Merton]] saw five ways a person could react to the existing structure, which can be applied to sports as well: conformism, innovation, ritualism, withdrawal, and rebellion.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Merton |first1=Robert K. |title=Social Theory and Social Structure |url=https://archive.org/details/socialtheorysoci0000mert_w8x3 |date=1968 |publisher=The Free Press |location=New York|isbn=9780029211304 }}</ref>

[[Erving Goffman]] drew on Durkheim's conception of positive rituals, emphasizing the sacred status of an individual's "[[Face (sociological concept)|face]]". Positive (compliments, greetings, etc.) and negative (avoiding confrontation, apologies, etc.) rituals all serve to protect one's face.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Goffman |first1=Erving |title=Relations in public: microstudies of the public order |date=1971 |publisher=Basic Books |location=New York |isbn=9781412810067 |pages=62–91}}</ref> Sport journalists, for example, utilize both the positive and negative rituals to protect the face of the athlete they wish to maintain good relations with. Birrell furthermore posits sport events are ritual competitions in which athletes show their character through a mix of bravery, good play and integrity. A good showing serves to reinforce the good face of the athlete.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Birrell |first1=Susan |title=Sport as Ritual: Interpretations from Durkheim to Goffman |journal=Social Forces |date=December 1981 |volume=60 |issue=2 |pages=365–372 |doi=10.2307/2578440 |jstor=2578440 |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/2578440 |access-date=30 January 2021}}</ref>

===Interpretative sociology===
Interpretative sociology explores the interrelations of social action to status, subjectivity, meaning, motives, identities and social change. It avoids explaining human groups through general laws and generalizations, preferring what [[Max Weber]] called ''verstehen'' - understanding and explaining individual motivations.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Giulianotti |first1=Richard |title=Sport: A Critical Sociology |date=2015 |publisher=Polity Press |location=Cambridge |page=35}}</ref> It allows for a more complete understanding of diverse social meanings, symbols and roles within sport. Sport allows for creation of various social identities within the framework of a single game or match, which may change during it or throughout the course of multiple matches.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Weiss |first1=Otmar |title=IDENTITY REINFORCEMENT IN SPORT: Revisiting the Symbolic Interactionist Legacy |journal=International Review for the Sociology of Sport |date=1 December 2001 |volume=36 |issue=4 |doi=10.1177/101269001036004002 |s2cid=144798843 |url=https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/101269001036004002 |access-date=30 January 2021}}</ref> Ones role as a sportsperson further affects how they act outside of a game or a match, i.e. acting out the role of a student athlete.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Adler |first1=Patricia A. |title=Backboards and Blackboards: College Athletes and Role Engulfment |url=https://archive.org/details/backboardsblackb0000adle |date=30 September 1991 |publisher=Columbia University Press |location=New York |isbn=0231073070}}</ref>

Weber introduced the notion of [[rationalization (sociology)|rationalization]]. In modern society, relationship are organized to be as efficient as possible, based on technical knowledge, instead of moral and political principles. This creates bureaucracies that are efficient, impersonal and homogeneous.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Weber |first1=Max |title=Economy and Society: An Outline of Interpretive Sociology |url=https://archive.org/details/economysocietyou00witt |date=1978 |publisher=University of California Press |location=Berkeley |isbn=9780520035003 |page=[https://archive.org/details/economysocietyou00witt/page/n459 350]}}</ref> Allen Guttmann identified several key aspects of rationalization, which can likewise be applied to sports:<ref>{{cite book |last1=Guttmann |first1=Allen |title=From Ritual to Record: The Nature of Modern Sports |date=2004 |publisher=Columbia University Press |location=Berkeley |isbn=9780231133418}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=Giulianotti |first1=Richard |title=Sport: A Critical Sociology |date=2015 |publisher=Polity Press |location=Cambridge |pages=42–43}}</ref>

* [[Secularization]]: modern sports have become independent of the [[religious institutions]] from which they have evolved. In the pre-modern societies, sport and religious festivities were interconnected. [[Religion]] does hold some importance in sports, which can be seen in the pre-match rituals, [[superstitions]] and [[prayer]].
* [[Meritocracy]]: Sports promote fair competition, while pre-modern sports were exclusive. For example, the ancient [[Olympics]] excluded women and non-citizens. In contrast, modern sports offer opportunities to the disadvantaged, while fair judging/refereeing offer a [[level playing field]]. [[Social status]] still plays a role in sport access and success. Richer countries will have more numerous and successful athletes, while the higher class will have access to better training and preparation.
* Specialization: modern sports, just like industry, has a complex division of labor. Athletes have a very specialized role inside of a team, which they must learn and perform, i.e. the kicker in [[american football]]. This does not apply to all sports, as some value the ability to cover a number of roles as necessary.
* Rationalization: modern sports identify the most efficient way to achieve the desired goal. On the other hand, Giulianotti points out that sports are dominated by irrational actions.
* Bureaucratization: sports are controlled by organizations, committees and supervisory boards on local, continental and global levels. Leading positions are supposed to be given based on qualifications and experience, instead of charisma and nepotism. This is not always the case, as powerful and charismatic personage are often put in charge of said organizations and committees.
* Quantification: [[Statistics]] measure and compare modern sport events, often throughout multiple generations, reducing complex events to understandable information which can be easily grasped by the mass public. Statistics are not the dominant factor in sport culture, with the socio-psychological and aesthetically pleasing factors still being the most important.

===Neo-Marxism===
[[Karl Marx]] saw sports as rooted in its economic context, subject to [[commodification]] and [[Social alienation|alienation]]. [[Neo-Marxism]] sees sport as an ideological tool of the [[bourgeoisie]], used to deceive the masses, in order to maintain control. As laborers, athletes give up their [[labour power]], and suffer the same fate as the alienated worker.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Brohm |first1=Jean-Marie |title=Sport: A Prison Of Measured Time: Essays |year=1978 |page=105 |publisher=Pluto Press |location=London |isbn=074530303X}}</ref> Aside from supporting [[industrial capitalism]], sport propagates heavy physical exertion and overworking as something positive.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Adorno |first1=Theodor W. |title=The Culture Industry |date=2001 |publisher=Routledge |location=London}}</ref>

Specialized division of labor force athletes to constantly perform the same movements, instead of playing creatively, experimentally and freely.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Vinnai |first1=Gerhard |title=Football Mania: The Players and the Fans : the Mass Psychology of Football |date=1973 |page=38 |publisher=Ocean Books Limited |location=Hapshire |isbn=9780855145019}}</ref> The athlete if often under the illusion of being free, unaware of losing control over his labor power.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Guttmann |first1=Allen |title=A Whole New Ball Game: An Interpretation of American Sports |date=1988 |publisher=UNC Press Books |location=Chapel Hill, North Carolina |isbn=9780807842201 |page=183}}</ref> Spectators themselves support the alienation of athletes' labor through their support and participation.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Aronowitz |first1=Stanley |title=False Promises: The Shaping of American Working Class Consciousness |date=1992 |publisher=Duke University Press |location=Durham, North Carolina |isbn=9780822311980 |pages=410–411}}</ref>

Marxist theories have been used to research the commodification of sport, for example, how players themselves become goods or promote them,<ref>{{cite book |last1=Heinilä |first1=Kalevi |title=Sport in Social Context |date=1998 |publisher=University of Jyväskylä |location=Jyväskylä |isbn=9789513900144 |pages=162–163}}</ref> the hyper-commercialization of sports during the 20th century,<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Giulianotti |first1=Richard |title=Supporters, Followers, Fans, and Flaneurs: A Taxonomy of Spectator Identities in Football |journal=Journal of Sport & Social Issues |date=February 2002 |volume=26 |issue=1 |doi=10.1177/0193723502261003 |s2cid=55615322 |url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/30051434 |access-date=1 February 2021}}</ref> how clubs become like traditional firms, and how sport organizations become brands.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Hardy |first1=Stephen |title=Entrepreneurs, Organizations, and the Sport Marketplace: Subjects in Search of Historians |journal=Journal of Sport History |date=1986 |volume=13 |issue=1 |pages=22–23 |jstor=43609130 |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/43609130 |access-date=1 February 2021}}</ref>

This approach has been criticized for their tendency toward raw [[economism]],<ref>{{cite book |last1=Hargreaves |first1=Jennifer |title=Sporting Females: Critical Issues in the History and Sociology of Women's Sports |url=https://archive.org/details/sportingfemalesc0000harg |date=1994 |publisher=Routledge |location=Abingdon |isbn=9780415070287 |page=[https://archive.org/details/sportingfemalesc0000harg/page/17 17]}}</ref> and supposing that all current social structures function to maintain the existing capitalist order.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Gruneau |first1=Richard S. |title=Class, Sports, and Social Development |url=https://archive.org/details/classsportssocia00rich |date=1983 |publisher=University of Massachusetts Press |location=Amherst, Massachusetts |isbn=9780870233876 |page=[https://archive.org/details/classsportssocia00rich/page/140 140]}}</ref> Supporting sport teams does not necessarily contradict the development of [[class consciousness]] and participating in the [[Class conflict|class struggle]].<ref>{{cite book |last1=Miliband |first1=Ralph |title=Marxism and Politics |date=1977 |publisher=Oxford University Press |location=Oxford |pages=52–53}}</ref> Sport events have a number of examples of political protest. Neo Marxist analysis of sports often underestimate the aesthetic side of sport as well.

===Cultural studies===
Hegemony research describes the relations of power, as well as methods and techniques used by dominant groups to achieve ideological consent, without resorting to physical coercion. This ideological consent aims to make the exploratory social order seem natural, guaranteeing that the subordinate groups live out their subordination. A hegemony is always open to contestation, and thus counter-hegemonic movements may emerge.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Williams |first1=Raymond |title=Marxism and Literature |date=1977 |publisher=Oxford University Press |location=Oxford |pages=110–111}}</ref>

The dominant groups may use sports to steer the use of the subordinate classes in the desired direction,<ref>{{cite book |last1=Clarke |first1=J. |last2=Critcher |first2=C. |title=The Devil Makes Work: Leisure in Capitalist Britain |date=1985 |publisher=University of Illinois Press |location=Champaign, Illinois |page=228}}</ref> or towards consumerism.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Hargreaves |first1=Jennifer |title=Sporting Females: Critical Issues in the History and Sociology of Women's Sports |url=https://archive.org/details/sportingfemalesc0000harg |date=1994 |publisher=Routledge |location=Abingdon |isbn=9780415070287 |page=[https://archive.org/details/sportingfemalesc0000harg/page/228 228]}}</ref> However, the history of sport shows that colonized are not necessarily manipulated through sport,<ref>{{cite book |last1=Guttman |first1=Allen |title=Games and Empires: Modern Sports and Cultural Imperialism |date=1995 |publisher=Columbia University Press |location=New York |isbn=9780231100427 |pages=178–179}}</ref> while sport professionalization, and their own popular culture, helped the working class avoid mass subordination to bourgeois values.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Tranter |first1=Neil |title=Sport, Economy and Society in Britain 1750-1914 |url=https://archive.org/details/sporteconomysoci0000tran |date=1998 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |location=Cambridge |isbn=9780521572170 |page=[https://archive.org/details/sporteconomysoci0000tran/page/49 49]}}</ref>

Resistance is a key concept in cultural studies, which describes how subordinate groups engage in particular cultural practices to resist their domination. Resistance can be overt and deliberate or latent and unconscious, but always counters the norms and conventions of the dominant groups.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Rinehart |first1=Robert E. |last2=Sydnor |first2=Synthia |title=To the Extreme |date=1996 |publisher=State University of New York Press |location=New York |page=136}}</ref> [[John Fiske (media scholar)|John Fiske]] differentiated between confrontational semiotics and avoidance.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Fiske |first1=John |title=Understanding Popular Culture |date=1989 |publisher=Routledge |location=Abingdon |isbn=9780415078764 |pages=2–3}}</ref>