Exam I Study Guide

1. Definition and focus of sport sociology. a. Sociology: interaction between groups and their inherent cultures b. Sport sociology: relationship between sport and society by examining its inherent institutions (race, genders…) i. “Sport is a microcosm of society. It mirrors our culture” (drugs, women, scandal) 2. Definition of the following terms: c. Socialization: The process of interacting with other people and learning social customs, morals and values. One becomes socialized by observation, participation, and/or reinforcement . *economics affects socialization more than anything* as well as personal attributes, significant others, and social situation d. Culture: Shared beliefs, values, symbols, ideologies-> changing patterns of learned behavior. (ex. After 9/11 one team, not individual players) (criteria: class, income, gender, age, education, occupation, religion, ethnicity, race, appearance, athleticism) ii. transformation of sport: social roles -> social statuses-> role behavior-> social interaction -> social organization e. Play: Free activity that involves exploring our environment, self-expression, dreaming, and pretending. There are no firm rules, and the outcome of the activity is unimportant. f. Games: an aspect of play that shows more evidence of structure and is competitive. The goals for participating are clear. They are mental, physical, or a combination of both; they are government by informal or formal rules; they involve competition; winning is determined by luck, strategy, or skill; and the result is an end product such as prestige or status. g. Sport: Institutionalized competitive activity that involves physical skill and specialized facilities or equipment and is conducted according to an accepted set of rules to