Wednesday, November 01, 2006
Doctoral Research in Sociology
I have been enrolled on the PhD (Sociology) programme at the University of Exeter since September 2004, in the School of Historical, Political and Sociological Studies. (www.exeter.ac.uk/shipss). The School offers degrees by research, either MPhil or PhD, on both a full-time and part-time basis. Candidates are normally registered for an MPhil in the first instance and then transferred to a PhD, subject to satisfactory progress. I managed to argue the case for immediate registration to PhD based on my recent Masters in a related area (A Sociological Analysis of the Development of Skateboarding, July 2003). Essentially, this means that I am not required to undertake the “in-house” programme of research training, and can move straight to the focus of my research interests.
You may be wondering why someone with a background in Sports Science (yes – I did say science!) is embarking on a PhD in Sociology. I must confess, at times, so do I! There is a long and complicated history to that one, which I will happily bore you with over a pint, but essentially I found a supervisor within the School who has an interest in sport, and who was happy to supervise me.
As I am only in the first year of registration, most of my work to date has been background sociological stuff involving “posts” (Post-Fordism, Post-Modernism and other such exciting topics!). However, the main focus of my research is related to the growth of so called “lifestyle sports”, and in particular SNOWBOARDING.
Background and outline of thesis:
There is now a body of academic literature examining the phenomena of what has been variously termed ‘extreme’, ‘alternative’, ‘lifestyle’, ‘whiz’, ‘postmodern’, ‘postindustrial’ and ‘new’ sports. Such labels encompass a wide range of mostly individualised sporting activities, from established practices like surfing and skateboarding, to new emergent activities like B.A.S.E jumping and kite surfing. Since embarking on my PhD I have decided to focus my research on one such activity, namely, snowboarding.
Whilst traditional sporting activities continue to dominate sporting involvement in adolescence, popularity for some of the other activities suggests that global influences are increasing. One of the clear trends is the growth in popularity of activities which are less organised and regulated and have less emphasis on traditional sporting values (Humphreys, 1997). Activities such as skateboarding, snowboarding and surfing, are assuming considerable importance worldwide in adolescent leisure-time activities. In the emergence of these sports and their associated lifestyles, we can see some of the central paradoxes of advanced capitalist or late-modern societies, such as in the changing expression of self-identity, and the individualisation and privatisation of the act of consumption, even in seemingly public spheres (Philips and Tomlinson, 1992). Whatever the venue or purpose, lifestyle sports are fundamentally individual sports, however, as corporations and sponsors encroach upon and delve into the lucrative aspects of these sport forms, the twin aspects of money and control are becoming more and more prominent at all levels.
In May 2002, in a poll conducted by a ‘teen’ marketing firm in the USA, skateboarding star Tony Hawk was voted the ‘coolest big time athlete’ ahead of ‘mainstream’ mega-sport celebrities such as Michael Jordan (basketball) and Tiger Woods (golf) (Layden, 2002). This evidence is supported by the work of Beal and Wilson (2004) who point out that in the USA the growth of skating, based on sales of skateboards, has outpaced the growth of ‘big league’ traditional sports including baseball. Similar trends have also been identified by Humphreys (1997) in relation to snowboarding, and by Booth (1994) in his work on Australian surfing.
Whilst several studies on lifestyle sports have been conducted in America, New Zealand and Australia, research is limited in Europe. Belinda Wheaton who is based at the University of Brighton’s Chelsea School has conducted a number of studies on windsurfing, and has recently edited a book entitled “Understanding Lifestyle Sports” (2004). This new edition to the literature is welcomed and provides an exploration of the sociological significance of these activities, however, only three chapters within it focus on European studies – these being Wheaton’s own contribution on windsurfing, and two contributions relating to the sport of climbing. Information relating to snowboarding, in particular, is scarce, and has tended to focus upon recreational conflict between skiers and snowboarders, and the safety considerations within the sport.
My research sets out to examine the growth of snowboarding by means of an ethnographic study of participants. Some potential research questions include:
Can this apparent rise in lifestyle sports be linked to changes in the industrial organisation of society?
Is the culture of sport and the identities that emerge from it being transformed in the twenty-first century?
I also have a particular interest in gender studies, and want to investigate the gender dynamics involved within the sport. Do ‘lifestyle sports’ such as snowboarding challenge the hegemonic masculinities of traditional sport environments such as rugby and football?
As you can see – my study is very broad at the moment, and I am currently completing a paper for my supervisor on groups and youth subcultures.
References:
Beal, B. and Wilson, C. (2004) ‘Chicks dig scars’ in Wheaton, B. Understanding Lifestyle Sports: Consumption, Identity and Difference. London: Routledge.
Booth, D. (1994) Surfing ‘60’s: A case study in the history of pleasure and discipline. Australian Historical Studies, 26 (103): 262-79
Humphreys, D. (1997) ‘Shredheads Go Mainstream’? Snowboarding and Alternative Youth. International review for the Sociology of Sport. Vol. 32. (2) pp.147-160.
Layden, T. (2002) What is this 34-year-old man doing on a skateboard? Making millions. Sports Illustrated: 82-96: 24: cited in electronic collection A86849699
Philips, & Tomlinson (1992) 'Homeward Bound-Leisure, Popular Culture and Consumer Capitalism'. In , Strinati, D. and Wagg, S. (eds) Come On Down? Popular Media Culture in Post-War Britain. London and New York: Routledge.
Wheaton, B. (2004) Understanding Lifestyle Sports: Consumption, Identity and Difference. London: Routledge.
Lucy Airton
You may be wondering why someone with a background in Sports Science (yes – I did say science!) is embarking on a PhD in Sociology. I must confess, at times, so do I! There is a long and complicated history to that one, which I will happily bore you with over a pint, but essentially I found a supervisor within the School who has an interest in sport, and who was happy to supervise me.
As I am only in the first year of registration, most of my work to date has been background sociological stuff involving “posts” (Post-Fordism, Post-Modernism and other such exciting topics!). However, the main focus of my research is related to the growth of so called “lifestyle sports”, and in particular SNOWBOARDING.
Background and outline of thesis:
There is now a body of academic literature examining the phenomena of what has been variously termed ‘extreme’, ‘alternative’, ‘lifestyle’, ‘whiz’, ‘postmodern’, ‘postindustrial’ and ‘new’ sports. Such labels encompass a wide range of mostly individualised sporting activities, from established practices like surfing and skateboarding, to new emergent activities like B.A.S.E jumping and kite surfing. Since embarking on my PhD I have decided to focus my research on one such activity, namely, snowboarding.
Whilst traditional sporting activities continue to dominate sporting involvement in adolescence, popularity for some of the other activities suggests that global influences are increasing. One of the clear trends is the growth in popularity of activities which are less organised and regulated and have less emphasis on traditional sporting values (Humphreys, 1997). Activities such as skateboarding, snowboarding and surfing, are assuming considerable importance worldwide in adolescent leisure-time activities. In the emergence of these sports and their associated lifestyles, we can see some of the central paradoxes of advanced capitalist or late-modern societies, such as in the changing expression of self-identity, and the individualisation and privatisation of the act of consumption, even in seemingly public spheres (Philips and Tomlinson, 1992). Whatever the venue or purpose, lifestyle sports are fundamentally individual sports, however, as corporations and sponsors encroach upon and delve into the lucrative aspects of these sport forms, the twin aspects of money and control are becoming more and more prominent at all levels.
In May 2002, in a poll conducted by a ‘teen’ marketing firm in the USA, skateboarding star Tony Hawk was voted the ‘coolest big time athlete’ ahead of ‘mainstream’ mega-sport celebrities such as Michael Jordan (basketball) and Tiger Woods (golf) (Layden, 2002). This evidence is supported by the work of Beal and Wilson (2004) who point out that in the USA the growth of skating, based on sales of skateboards, has outpaced the growth of ‘big league’ traditional sports including baseball. Similar trends have also been identified by Humphreys (1997) in relation to snowboarding, and by Booth (1994) in his work on Australian surfing.
Whilst several studies on lifestyle sports have been conducted in America, New Zealand and Australia, research is limited in Europe. Belinda Wheaton who is based at the University of Brighton’s Chelsea School has conducted a number of studies on windsurfing, and has recently edited a book entitled “Understanding Lifestyle Sports” (2004). This new edition to the literature is welcomed and provides an exploration of the sociological significance of these activities, however, only three chapters within it focus on European studies – these being Wheaton’s own contribution on windsurfing, and two contributions relating to the sport of climbing. Information relating to snowboarding, in particular, is scarce, and has tended to focus upon recreational conflict between skiers and snowboarders, and the safety considerations within the sport.
My research sets out to examine the growth of snowboarding by means of an ethnographic study of participants. Some potential research questions include:
Can this apparent rise in lifestyle sports be linked to changes in the industrial organisation of society?
Is the culture of sport and the identities that emerge from it being transformed in the twenty-first century?
I also have a particular interest in gender studies, and want to investigate the gender dynamics involved within the sport. Do ‘lifestyle sports’ such as snowboarding challenge the hegemonic masculinities of traditional sport environments such as rugby and football?
As you can see – my study is very broad at the moment, and I am currently completing a paper for my supervisor on groups and youth subcultures.
References:
Beal, B. and Wilson, C. (2004) ‘Chicks dig scars’ in Wheaton, B. Understanding Lifestyle Sports: Consumption, Identity and Difference. London: Routledge.
Booth, D. (1994) Surfing ‘60’s: A case study in the history of pleasure and discipline. Australian Historical Studies, 26 (103): 262-79
Humphreys, D. (1997) ‘Shredheads Go Mainstream’? Snowboarding and Alternative Youth. International review for the Sociology of Sport. Vol. 32. (2) pp.147-160.
Layden, T. (2002) What is this 34-year-old man doing on a skateboard? Making millions. Sports Illustrated: 82-96: 24: cited in electronic collection A86849699
Philips, & Tomlinson (1992) 'Homeward Bound-Leisure, Popular Culture and Consumer Capitalism'. In , Strinati, D. and Wagg, S. (eds) Come On Down? Popular Media Culture in Post-War Britain. London and New York: Routledge.
Wheaton, B. (2004) Understanding Lifestyle Sports: Consumption, Identity and Difference. London: Routledge.
Lucy Airton
# posted by A Sociologist : 1:30 PM
