Essay on Figeroua's Framework

In sport we have to take in a range of different performers, who come from various different backgrounds cultures and beliefs, each of these has its own demands and regulations for participation in sport and so it is the job of different organisations and sporting parties to overcome this, finding ways to include and allow everyone to participate in sport.

This Article, is from the Sociology of Sport Journal, title “Learning Lessons in Tee Ball”: “The Reinforcement of Gender and Status in Kindergarten Sport”. The article was written by Melissa A. Landers and Gary Alan Fine University of Georgia (1996). The article describes how “status and gender roles can become reinforced at the earliest stage of organized sports” (Landers & Fine 1996). The data collected was done “through field notes that the authors took during participation” (Landers & Fine). The children that were being observed were “between the ages of 5 and 6”. There was a total of 24 children “13 Caucasian boys”, “6 Caucasian girls”. “4 African American boys”, and “1 Asian-American boy” all this children were from “working-class and middle class families” (Landers & Fine 1996).

The institutional level is not just about the influence of schools; it also looks at the availability of facilities and the structure of organised sport within a community. The rules of different sports are also considered as part of an analysis of the institutional level. Sporting rules, which are determined and standardised by sports’ governing organisations, can restrict access to certain groups and individuals.

In sport we have to take in a range of different performers, who come from various different backgrounds cultures and beliefs, each of these has its own demands and regulations for participation in sport and so it is the job of different organisations and sporting parties to overcome this, finding ways to include and allow everyone to participate in sport.

Australia is widely regarded as both characterised and united by sport. Sport has an elevated place in Australia's official and popular national culture, and the country’s reputation for being a 'paradise of sport' has become a largely unquestioned aspect of the Australian way of life. Gender is a social construct that outlines the roles, behaviours, characteristics and actions that a specific society deems appropriate for men and women (WHO, 2014). The established relationship between gender equality and sport is a widely regarded issue in not only Australia, but all around the world. Gender equality is achieved when women and men enjoy the same rights and opportunities across all sectors of society, including sport and physical recreation

Target groups include women, young people, over 50’s, disabled people and black or ethnic minority groups. These groups of people are the groups that generally have been the most barriers to participation. They are focused on increasing opportunities in sport as they are likely to benefit the most.

Figueroa’s Framework for Examining Equity and Access in Sport and Physical Activity in Australian Society

Sociologist Peter Figueroa created a framework in order to analyse racism within society, and particularly to determine the equitable and accessibility within a physical activity (Hede, Russell and Weatherby, 2010). Figueroa’s Framework is an exceptionally useful and educational tool that is utilised in order to understand the socio-cultural factors that impact sports participation as an individual or in a team. Consisting of a five layer structure, Figueroa’s Framework includes the cultural, structural, institutional, interpersonal and individual levels which all umbrella their own factors of accessibility and equitability.

According to Article 2 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, “Everyone is entitled to all the rights and freedoms set forth in [the] Declaration, without distinction of any kind, such as race, colour, sex, language, religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin, property, birth or other status.” Because of the establishment of this international document, much progression toward the equality of rights for all with inherited and acquired traits has been achieved over time. In particular, gender equality has made a great deal of headway since the Olympic Games in ancient Greece. Even though this may be the case, there is no doubt that female athletes are far from considered equal as compared to male athletes in modern sports. In today’s sports society, women athletes are still discriminated against based on lower salaries, less media coverage, and lack of opportunity.

Men and women who chose to engage in sports from which they would traditionally be discouraged because of their gender, particularly as professionals, redefine the sport. The social and cultural "costs" are not the result of the individual's participation, but rather the way in which sports have been socially, politically, and economically constructed. Gender is only one of the few ways in which people are categorized according to their proficiency for some athletic activities. Race and class are also factors which may prevent individuals from engaging in sports that have been traditionally excluded to them. Socially constructed notions of race, class, and sexuality compound the way in

To what extent do race & ethnicity, social class and commercialism influence participation in sport, and in what ways?

Women’s equality is an issue that has been around for awhile. While women have been given many rights to increase equality, including the right to vote and go to college, the problem hasn’t completely vanished. One area that still sees this is in sports. Women’s sports do not draw nearly as many fans and are not covered in the media as much as men’s sports, pay differences between male and female athletes are large, and female athletes have to wait longer to start their professional career than men, which risks their professional career before it even starts.

Sports participation is something that is looked at closely in todays society because of the amount of participants there are in sports today. Social classes and participation is heavily influenced by the way people live their lives, where they live, what country they live in , and perhaps most importantly, the socioeconomic class they may fall into. In some understatements, sports may serve as an identifier of what social class a family or individual may fall into, simply by looking at who we are dealing with and what sport this individual may play. As a student in a sport sociology class we find trends in countries worldwide when comparing certain sport involvement and social class. Throughout this essay I will have three arguments that will support my point about social class and participation in sports. My first point will be how economic resources affect the middle-class, second will be how social capital affects middle-class sports, and lastly lower-class and participation in sports.

This essay will be an attempt to bring together the ideas from our class readings about the Marxist sociological perspective as well as insight from other readings to further my understanding of Marxism and its applications to sport. I will lay the groundwork for the theory then proceed with how his theory is applied to accessibility issues in sport, distribution of power in sport and commercialization of sport.

Equality in modern sports can be broken down into two meanings as defined by Guttmann, first that “everyone should, theoretically, have