DEVIANCE IN SPORT HANDOUT
DEVIANCE INSPORT HANDOUT


Deviance in Sports

Sources of Deviance
Deviant Behaviour is a product of numerous interacting social and cultural forces. These include an inadequate socialisation process; lack of, or failure of social controls; perceived inequities in a situation; the individuals definition of the situation; and the labelling of individuals who engage in deviance. More specifically, one learns deviant behaviour by directly and indirectly acquiring opportunities. McPherson et al. (1989)

There are three main approaches into studying deviance in sports:
· Absolutist approach - where deviance is either right or wrong.
· Relativist approach - where it depends on who makes the rules.
· Alternative approach - where deviance is either positive or negative.

Absolutist approach:
When sociologists use certain theoretical framework they define deviance in terms of how actual behaviour compares with a designated norm or ideal, the greater the difference between actual behaviour and the norm, the greater the level of deviance.
There are a few problems with this approach:
· Definitions of ideals in any social setting often reflect biases related to gender, social class, race, and other factors, or they are based on some arbitrary distinction between right and wrong.
· Because people have different concepts between right and wrong conceptions in sports, this approach creates considerable confusion
Relativist approach:
According to this approach, no behaviour and no person is inherently deviant.
Instead, deviance is defined as through a labelling process in which some behaviours are identified as bad, undesirable, or unacceptable on the bases of the rules made by the people in positions of power (J.J.Coakley, 1994).
There are also problems with the Relativist approach:
· Because their approach leads to the conclusion hat all deviance in sports is simply the result of labelling processes influenced by who has power and who doesn't. They also do not identify any behaviour as objectively deviant. To them nothing is bad or wrong in itself.
· When deviance is defined in this way, efforts to control or change deviant behaviour are dismissed as biased or oppressive.

An Alternative approach:
Absolutists define deviance as a failure to conform, and they see the rule violators as disruptive and morally bankrupt, whereas Relativists define deviance as a behaviour that violates the interests of people with power, and they see the rule violators as exploited victims.
Underconformity is a behaviour that doesn't measure up to commonly accepted rules or standards of behaviour, it is behaviour grounded in a rejection or lack of awareness of the rules.
Overconformity is behaviour that goes so far in following commonly accepted rules or standards that it interferes with the well being of self or others; it is behaviour grounded in an uncritical acceptance of the rules.


References:
McPherson, B.D.; Curtis, J.E.; and Loy, J.W.; (1989), The Social Significance Of Sport, Human Kinetics Books Illinois.

Coakley, Jay, J. (1994), Sport In Society, Issues And Controversies, Mosby

Heywood, L.; Kew. F.; and Bramham, P. (1995) Understanding Leisure, Thornes.

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