Self-Esteem Vs Sports

3 Strikes, The Bond Is Out: The Effect Of Sports On Relationships in A Separate Peace

It goes without saying that athletics are enormously influential in the social sphere of high school. While academics are more impactful on one's future, immediate popularity is something numerous teenagers covet. Countless students try out for sports every year for multiple reasons, one of the most prevalent being the aspiration of becoming a school celebrity. While that is indeed an excellent benefit, the reason I initially joined the tennis team was to have a group to be a part of. But there was always this one thought that loomed over me. Why does it mean more to be on the baseball team than it does to be a member of the tennis team? Whereas students would gather and attend football, basketball, and baseball games to support the school's athletes, the tennis benches remained empty all spring. My teammates, too, realized that our sport was not favored. Naturally, we harbored resentment towards members of the admired teams. Though belonging is a natural human desire, malicious actions are easier to perform once a group has been formed. Mob mentality blinded our team and caused us to behave in ways that we would not dare alone. It is my opinion that the envy experienced by my team is an inescapable feature of society; I will present and examine this feature and what is says about our world, but I'm going to begin by reflecting on the spiteful activities my team conducted.

In many societies, there exists a high passion for athletics and those who excel in their given sport are often considered to be some of the most valued members of society. Take, for example, the way in which Olympic athletes are celebrated for performing well on the international stage. The study of how sports, as social phenomena, affect interactions between people and how these interactions lead to the further solidification of the social hierarchy, is known as sociology of sport. The study of the sociology of sport shows that as athletes continue their interactions with the “common” people of society, they develop a sense of Glorified Self as a result of the achieved status they are given by others. This could raise the question, how does the achieved social status of professional athletes impact the development of their Glorified Self? As athletes continue to achieve status in society, the Looking Glass Self Theory developed by Charles Horton Cooley offers an explanation as to why these athletes develop senses of Glorified Self. Additionally, as athletes continue to develop a larger sense of Glorified Self, their instinctive impulses further contrast their critical conscience. This conflict is the subject of Sigmund Freud’s hypothesis on the relationship between the Id and Superego. Freud’s theory leads to a further explanation as to why athletes begin to act they way they do once they achieve a status level higher than what they were ascribed.

For this assignment I will explain the effect of personality and motivation on sports performance.

Men and women are psychologically different in many ways. Some of these differences include competitiveness, goal orientation, self-confidence, motivation, mental toughness, incentives, preferences, etc. According to Anne Bowker in Sports Participation and Self-Esteem, Men have an advantage over women in sports because they're more aggressive and have higher self-esteem (2003).

There are a lot of aspects that should be taken into account when determining what makes an athlete successful. One could argue that natural ability is one of the determining factors which leads to success. For example, if an athlete has dreams of playing in the NBA then height makes a difference. There aren’t many successful players in the league under six feet tall. One could argue that level of competition plays a role in the development of an athlete. This could include the skill level of the opponent or outside factors such as playing conditions or game circumstances. These types of arguments play a role in athlete success, but will not be used in this paper because they are factors that are out of the athlete’s control. This paper

Internationally, there have been mixed reactions. Most people express a knowledge and understanding of the contrast between the basic principles of the sport and Maradona’s actions. Even the youngest football fans are aware one ought not touch the ball with one’s wrist. Nevertheless, people - usually not British - find ingenuity in his actions. It has been described by some as the “scandal of the century,” “the hand of a rascal,” and the “most blatant act of cheating ever caught on tape,” whiles others have labelled it the “goals” and “game” of the century. Argentina, led by Maradona, won the prestigious event, and Maradona was named the best player of the tournament, winning the Golden Ball. The incident, however, is referenced till date.

In the Journal “Sport and Society: Annual Review of Sociology” written by Robert E. Washington and David Karen they talk about gender and sports in one section of their Journal. In this section the author addresses masculinity in sports and the attempts of Title IX to try and make sports equal in the sense that if women make up 40% of the athlete population they should receive 40% of the resources. However, this is not the case “The most recent data (Suggs 2000) reveal that in 1998–1999 women made up 42% of Division I athletes, received 42% of scholarship monies, 31% of recruiting budgets, 34% of coaching-salary budgets, and 33% of total operating expenses. According to Andrew Zimbalist (2000:B9), women “still play in inferior facilities, stay in lower-caliber hotels on the road, eat in cheaper restaurants, benefit from smaller promotional budgets, and have fewer assistant coaches.” (Washington and Karen, 2001) This long quote showcases that although women are starting to get what they deserve when it comes to a the percentage of Athletics that they comprise it is still not up to par. Although it is not technically salary, the gap in scholarship money and money spent of faculty for female athletes showcases how money it’s sports always goes to the male athletes no matter at what level. In a more recent example that further pushes the points that were made in Washington and Karen’s journal would be the U.S. Women’s Soccer team compared to the U.S. Men’s Soccer team. Both

That was my outlet, it helped me to vent my anger and frustration. It also helped get rid of a lot of energy and it honestly was just exhilarating. Sports is where I got my high and it boosted my self-esteem. A lot of my friendships have all been based around sports and for all that to be taken away was just a major blow to everything I know.

“Are Sports Fans Happier?” Sid Kirchheimer inquires in his article. Like Kirchheimer, I believe sports fans are better off in life than those who aren’t sports fans or who don’t have a similar passionate hobby. Kirchheimer notes throughout his article that when sports fans cheer for their teams, they feel connected to something greater than themselves, to a greater cause and group. Through wins and losses, sports fans gain a healthy perspective and learn how to balance everyday worries, which result in improved mental health for sports fans, according to studies. Being a sports fan also improves a person’s social life, as fans gather to cheer for teams and, in the process, build relationships. All told, it appears cheering for

Sports have been part of everybody’s culture and entertainment since the Olympics in ancient Greece. Then the entertainment was people killing each other. Now the entertainment is football, basketball, baseball etc. So many people across America dedicate four, seven, or maybe even their whole Sunday to football during football season. Plus, you can tell that when the Jaguars lose, the next day the city is a little depressed and upset.

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.

Krendl, A., Gainsburg, I., & Ambady, N. (2012). The Effects of Stereotypes and Observer Pressure on Athletic Performance. Journal of Sport and Exercise Psychology, 34(1), 1-14. doi:10.1123/jsep.34.1.3

It has been identified that through sports psychology one can improve their physical ability and performance. Sports psychology is the study of how the mind, mental states and behaviour effect sporting performance. There are several sport psychology techniques, which have helped me become a better volleyball player. These techniques include planning for performance, controlling arousal levels, mental rehearsal and concentration.

In this report, I am going to talk about the effects of personality and motivation on sports performance and I will do this by looking at the different theories relating to sports performance and how sports athletes deal with the effects of personality and motivation in sports performances.