Abstract des Verlegers

Sociological Perspectives on Sport: The Games Outside the Games seeks not only to inform students about the sports world but also to offer them analytical skills and the application of theoretical perspectives that deepen their awareness and understanding of social processes linking sports to the larger social world. With six original framing essays linking sport to a variety of topics, including race, class, gender, media, politics, deviance, and globalization, and 37 reprinted articles, this text/reader sets a new standard for excellence in teaching sports and society.

Vorwort

This is a comprehensive text/reader that provides an integrated approach to understanding the linkages between sport and society. It goes beyond standard anthologies by providing not only a unique conception of the field but a concise and compelling introduction of sociology's basic concepts—for example, social class, race/ethnicity, gender, deviance, and community—applied to the world of sport. And, it goes beyond standard textbooks by including a range of well-written, insightful articles on a variety of topics on sports/society. Laying out a broad view of the “games outside the games”, the book is organized into six Sections—each reviewing the relevant literature and presenting multiple perspectives in response to key analytical questions. The book opens with an introductory essay that provides both a brief overview of the sociological study of sports and a discussion of the analytical perspective that informs our approach to the field. In the five additional Sections, we focus on the ways that sport and society intertwine. Beginning with "Biases and Barriers" in the second Section, we explore the various ways that racial/ ethnic, social class, gender, and disability have affected who plays which sport-and at what level. We turn next, in the third Section, to address the generative issues of fandom and community galvanized by sports. In the fourth Section, we focus on two of the most neglected topics in the popular sports media discourse – the political economy and the politics of sports. In the fifth Section, we examine perhaps the hottest and most complex phenomenon confronting the contemporary sports world, namely the problem of rule-breaking or deviance. Finally, we address sports globalization as a dynamic and complex process of expanding transnational organization. This text/reader aims to introduce students to a fascinating multidisciplinary field. By presenting coherent analytical essays and reading selections that illuminate the complex interconnections between sports and society, it addresses such phenomena as: the relationship between social movements and changes in sports; the social processes that sustain the institutional stability and integrity of sports; the role of sports in creating group identity and bonds of social community; the enormous growth of sports in modern society as sources of entertainment and wealth; and, perhaps most far reaching, the influence of sports on the development of meritocratic normative practices in other social institutions. In short, this text/ reader constitutes a unique undertaking. Combining the best features of textbooks and edited readers, it has the advantage of flexibility, which makes it suitable for a variety of course objectives and audiences. The framing essays will introduce analytical concepts and theoretical perspectives that the student will encounter in the reading selections. They will also demonstrate how to employ those concepts and theories. The reading selections have been chosen for their topicality, clarity, and excellent integration of theoretical and empirical material. Seeking not only to inform students about the sports world but also to teach them analytical skills and the application of theoretical perspectives that deepen their awareness and understanding of social processes linking sports to the larger social world, this text/reader aims to appeal to both undergraduates and graduate students. (geändert)