SOCIO-CULTURAL INFLUENCES Flashcards
How does gender affect participation?
Boys and men are more likely to engage in sport and physical activity than girls and women.
Can be due to:
Discrimination has often meant that women are seen as the ‘weaker sex’. Eg they were not allowed to compete in distances longer than 800m in the Olympics until 1960.
Only recently have sports such as football, rugby and cricket seen a surge in female players.
Sports played by women at elite level are less likely to receive as much media coverage as sports played by men.
Women often have to juggle many other aspects of their lives eg children.
Fewer female role models than men.
How does ethnicity affect participation in sport?
People from ethnic minority backgrounds are often limited to sports and physical activities that are traditionally associated with that ethnic group.
Low level of ethnic minority professionals, captains, managers and coaches.
Religious commitments such as fasting it is difficult to take part in sport because your energy levels are low.
Some cultures have dress codes which makes participation difficult.
How does age affect participation in sport?
Participation in sport tends to peak between ages of 16 and 25, when people have more free time.
When working, some people have little free time and disposable income.
Physical changes caused by ageing also has a huge impact on participation.
- flexibility decreases with age
- young people will not achieve maximal strength until they are about 25
- skill levels can improve with age and experience.
- bodies ability to take in and use oxygen decreases by 1% per year after 25.
- older people are more likely to suffer injuries.
- tidal and stroke volume decrease with age.
How does family affect participation in sport?
If parents have a positive attitude towards sport, they are likely to pass this attitude to their children. Similarly, a negative attitude.
Families can encourage participation by:
providing equipment (sports require specialised equipment)
providing transport
becoming a role model
How do friends and peers affect participation in sport?
If your peer group likes to take part in sport, then there is a chance that you will too. Peer pressure can be a positive force, promoting participation. However, they might have a negative attitude.
How does disability affect participation in sport?
Limited number of teachers and coaches with the necessary qualifications.
Not all facilities are adapted to cater for people with disabilities. Therefore, it is difficult for people with disabilities to find suitable clubs to join or facilities to train.
Limited disposable income if they are reliant on disability benefits.
Travelling might be problematic.
Increased media coverage and popularity of the 2012 Paralympics meant that disabled sport was beginning to get more recognition.
Define commercialisation.
The management or exploitation of a person, organisation or activity in a way designed to make profit.
Define media.
A diverse range of technologies that acts as a means of mass communication.
What are the different forms of media?
Broadcast media - television, radio
Internet and social media
Print media - magazines and newspapers.
Outdoor media - billboards.
Define sponsor.
An individual or group, usually a company, that provides financial or other forms of support to an event, activity, person or organisation.
Define sponsorship.
Provision of funds or other forms of support to an event, activity, person or organisation in return for some kind of commercial return.
What forms can sponsorship take?
Financial
Clothing, equipment and footwear
Facilities.
What are positive impacts of sponsorship and media on the performer?
More money to pay higher wages.
Can turn the performers into heroes and role models.
More money available to pay for new and technologically advanced kit, equipment and facilities, or it might be free.
More money for better coaching and training programmes.
There are more competitions, increasing the standard of competition nationally and helping to increase the national team’s international profile.
What are some negative impacts of sponsorship and the media on the performer?
Increase pressure and reduce enjoyment.
Mistakes that a performer makes become very public.
Sponsors make demands about how a performer should behave, which can conflict with what they want to do. This can disrupt training.
Performers may become distracted from training while trying to maintain their appeal to sponsors and the media.
Intense media scrutiny for performer’s (especially women’s) private lives - attention away from their sporting ability.
In team sports, the achievements of one or two players can be emphasised at the expense of the team.
What are the positive impacts of sponsorship and the media of officials?
Being in the media spotlight can turn officials into heroes and role models.
The more money there is in a sport, the more professional the role of the official becomes, and the more likely it is that a career path will develop.
What are the negative impacts of sponsorship and the media on officials?
A strong media pressure can increase pressure to make the right decision, and thus reduce the official’s enjoyment.
Being in the media spotlight can mean that the mistakes officials make become very public.
What are the positive impacts of sponsorship and the media on the sport?
Increase interest which attracts media attention, increasing grass roots participation.
More money available to support grass-roots participation.
More money for kit, equipment and facilities.
Prize funds and rewards for winning are bigger.
More money is spent on technological developments that can give performers the edge.
More competitions, increasing the reach of the sport.
More role models, who are ambassadors for the sport, are created.
What are the negative impacts of sponsorship and the media on the sport?
The rules of the sports are changed to meet the requirements of the media and sponsors.
Minority sports and women get less coverage.
Controversies become sensationalised.
Sports can become very dependent on the money they receive from the media and from sponsors, with disastrous results if withdrawn.
Sponsors may sell products pr services that promote poor lifestyle choice.
What are the positive impacts of sponsorship and the media on the audience/spectator?
Events are scheduled so that people can watch them on the television or the Internet, making it easier to support your sport or team.
Commentary, which is not available live, educates the viewer at home.
Live coverage, highlights, documentaries and coaching tips satisfy the spectator’s interest in the sports they are interested in and helps to educate them.
The media provides information about results, fixtures and rankings.
More competitions give more spectators the opportunity to watch their sport live.
Good quality facilities makes viewing live sport more comfortable for the spectator.
What are some disadvantages of sponsorship and the media on the audience/spectators?
The timing of an event can be changed to suit world wide audiences, meaning that performers have to perform late at night.
More people stay at home and watch sport on television or the internet.
Most sport is shown via subscription and pay-per-view services, making it expensive to watch.
The scheduling changes, designed to make it easier for fans to watch at home, often make it difficult for people who want to watch sport live.
Tickets and sport related merchandise are expensive.
The more popular a sport becomes the more difficult it is to get hold of tickets.
The demands made by spectators can limit choice and value-for-money for spectators when they are buying food and drink etc at live events.
What are the positive impacts of sponsorship and the media on the sponsor/company?
The sponsor’s name or brand is linked to positive, healthy, triumphant activity or performer.
The sponsor’s name or brand is advertised to a wide audience.
What are the negative impacts of sponsorship and the media on the sponsor/company?
If a sponsor links their name or brand to a sport, team or performer that is hit by a scandal, it can have a damaging effect on the sponsor’s reputation.
What is hawkeye?
This computer system uses several cameras to track flight and trajectory of balls and other things. It is used in tennis and cricket to help with decision making e.g. on line calls.
What are performance analysis aids?
These include wearable technology, that monitors fitness or records a performer’s movements on a pitch or fields. Also, software programmes such as Dartfish and Kandle, that use cameras to capture movement. Provides analysis on distance run, passes made and overall effectiveness and contribution made by a performer.
What are television match officials?
Also known as ‘video referees’, television match officials are used in rugby, football and cricket to check and review the decisions made by the on-field match officials.
What are the positive impacts of technology on performers?
Performance analysis aids can help to improve performance.
Performers may be able to use technology to ask officials to review decisions that go against them.
What are the negative impacts of technology on performers?
The best equipment may not be available as it is expensive.
Too many reviews can disrupt play and put the performers at a psychological disadvantage.
