Sport for Development Sport participation is often thought to provide positive benefits on educat... more Sport for Development Sport participation is often thought to provide positive benefits on education attainment, gender equality, self-efficacy and health in developed and developing societies (Levermore and Beacom, 2009). The United Nations Office of Sport for Development and Peace (UNOSDP) recognizes that sport participation can have dramatic effects on young peoples’ lives and support development initiatives. Sport also has the capacity to reduce gender-based stereotyping and discrimination by challenging gender expectations and empowering females to independence and success (Darnell, 2011; Saavedra, 2009; Brady, 2005; Meir, 2005; Hartmann-Tews and Pfister, 2003). In sum, sport often serves as a “social good” or tool for social and economic development.
Year Champion Coach Points Runner-Up Points Host or Site Attendance 1982 ........................... more Year Champion Coach Points Runner-Up Points Host or Site Attendance 1982 ........................................... Florida Randy Reese 505 Stanford 383 Florida 1,67
This article applies the human capability approach (HCA) to explicitly investigate gender role at... more This article applies the human capability approach (HCA) to explicitly investigate gender role attitudes from the perspective of boy and girl participants in sport for development and peace (SDP).
markdownabstractThe field of sport for development and peace (SDP) has flourished in recent decad... more markdownabstractThe field of sport for development and peace (SDP) has flourished in recent decades, with development programmes around the world using sport as a mechanism to support social, economic and health-related development efforts. However, the academic literature on SDP is limited in comparison to more established development fields. This study is a critical examination of SDP, extending beyond existing research by contributing in two fundamental ways. First, it uses a gender lens that includes the perspective of both girls’ and boys’ attitudes on gender role attitudes, a rarity in SDP research. Secondly, the Human Capability approach of Amartya Sen is applied as a theoretical framework, perhaps for the first time in SDP research. Furthermore, studies in the field of SDP also often overlook the complex social and economic environment in the postcolonial Eastern Caribbean. This study examines sport for development for at-risk adolescents and unemployed youth in Barbados and...
The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) is one of the biggest, wealthiest and most influ... more The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) is one of the biggest, wealthiest and most influential sport governing bodies in the world. The BCCI has overseen traditional Test cricket in India since 1928. In 2008, the Indian cricket landscape shifted with the development of the Indian Premier League (IPL), a Tweny20 cricket league that has exploded in popularity since its launch. The BCCI also governs over the IPL, which generates extensive income and has raised the profile of Indian cricket around the world. However, recent controversies and corruption scandals have brought increasing scrutiny to the BCCI. In this study, the good governance framework from UK sport is applied to examine the BCCI. The good governance framework is used to examine five elements of the BCCI: structure, people, communication, standards and conduct, and policies and process. Through interviews with expert journalists and researchers (n = 6), it is clear that the BCCI needs to make significant reforms ...
In August 2018, Scotland made history as the country leading a global movement to end period pove... more In August 2018, Scotland made history as the country leading a global movement to end period poverty. The government pledged to invest £5.2m to provide free menstrual products in schools, colleges and universities across the country. Period supplies will be available in toilets, just as paper and soap are already provided. The scheme’s objective is to ensure that all students have access to the pads, tampons and products they need, regardless of financial means.
Sport for development (SFD) research and practice has become more critically examined recently, w... more Sport for development (SFD) research and practice has become more critically examined recently, with many scholars calling for better understanding of how and why sport might contribute to the global development movement. Developing and refining theoretical approaches is key to unpacking the complexities of SFD. Yet, theory development in SFD is still relatively young and often relies on oversimplified theory of change models. In this article, the authors propose a new theoretical approach, drawing upon the capabilities approach and critical feminist perspectives. The authors contend that the capabilities approach is effective in challenging neoliberal ideologies and examining a range of factors that influence people’s lived experiences. They have woven a “gender lens” across the capabilities approach framework, as feminist perspectives are often overlooked, subjugated, or misunderstood. The authors also provide an adaptable diagrammatic model to support researchers and practitioner...
Understanding the role of gender in sport for development and peace (SDP) has sparked new and cri... more Understanding the role of gender in sport for development and peace (SDP) has sparked new and critical research recently, aligning with the focus on gender equality in the United Nations (UN) Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Researchers tend to explore gender in terms of how girls and women access and experience sport. The academic literature often describes sport participation for girls as a form of empowerment, but fails to critically examine the masculinised, heteronormative framework of sport and rarely includes the voices of girls and boys together. 1 This unique study is the first to apply the human capability approach (HCA) to explicitly investigate gender role attitudes from the perspective of boy and girl participants in SDP. We believe it is vital to include voices of all participants to more critically examine how SDP might both challenge and reinforce restrictive gender norms.
Changing the game or dropping the ball? Sport and human capablity development for at risk youth in Barbados and St. Lucia, 2017
The field of sport for development and peace (SDP) has flourished in recent decades, with develop... more The field of sport for development and peace (SDP) has flourished in recent decades, with development programmes around the world using sport as a mechanism to support social, economic and health-related development efforts. However, the academic literature on SDP is limited in comparison to more established development fields. This study is a critical examination of SDP, extending beyond existing research by contributing in two fundamental ways. First, it uses a gender lens that includes the perspective of both girls’ and boys’ attitudes on gender role attitudes, a rarity in SDP research. Secondly, the Human Capability approach of Amartya Sen is applied as a theoretical framework, perhaps for the first time in SDP research. Furthermore, studies in the field of SDP also often overlook the complex social and economic environment in the postcolonial Eastern Caribbean. This study examines sport for development for at-risk adolescents and unemployed youth in Barbados and St. Lucia. Using quantitative and qualitative data through surveys, focus group discussions, interviews and journals. Key findings indicate that boys tended to embrace a machismo masculinity regarding sport and domestic life. Their experience in sport, particularly sporting with girls, may in fact reinforce restrictive gender role attitudes and hetero-normative beliefs. On the other hand, girls seemed to experience a sense of empowerment through sport, despite struggling with the narrow scope of culturally ascribed and aesthetically defined ideals of the female body. Furthermore, although all participants expressed a positive relationship between sport participation and their own development of self-efficacy and social affiliation, girls focused more on social aspects while boys were more concerned with skill-building. Finally, the macro-level conversion factors of economic instability, inadequacies in education and government ineffectiveness undermine sustainable youth development efforts. To conclude, these programmes largely function as an integrative development approach, rather than a transformative gender and development method. This study affirms that these SDP initiatives may be restricted by a neo-liberal framework, which relies on traditional modes of gender and hetero-normativity, as discussed in previous research (Forde and Frisby, 2015; McDonald, 2015; Chawansky, 2014; Levermore and Beacom, 2009). Role Creating a stronger presence of female role models as coaches and peer leaders may better engage at-risk girls and support the challenging of restrictive gender role norms amongst boys. Expanding the opportunities for type of sport played to include more gender-neutral or feminized sporting forms may also help transform the sport for development narrative.
While sport for development programming has flourished, the complex social and economic environme... more While sport for development programming has flourished, the complex social and economic environment in the postcolonial Eastern Caribbean is often overlooked by researchers. This case study examines sport for development with ‘at risk’ adolescent girls in St. Lucia (n = 16). These young women, who have been removed from mainstream public schools due to behavioural issues, participated in focus group discussions regarding their experiences and perspectives on sport. Their sport participation included single-sex, organised programming at the Upton Gardens Girls Centre and mixed-sex, unsupervised football play. Results of the study indicate that these sporting activities contributed towards the capability development of the participants, with limitations toward challenging gender stereotypes and encouraging kinetically focused body image. While the female-only sport participation encouraged a positive sense of self-efficacy and fostered peer/mentor relationships, engagement in co-educational football supported girls’ empowerment and the challenging of gender stereotypes. However, outcome towards progressive perspectives on sport and body image gleaned mixed results. As a whole, these results point to larger concerns within the sport for development field and the need for more in-depth and comprehensive critical research to better understand how sport impacts development initiatives.
Sport for Development Sport participation is often thought to provide positive benefits on educat... more Sport for Development Sport participation is often thought to provide positive benefits on education attainment, gender equality, self-efficacy and health in developed and developing societies (Levermore and Beacom, 2009). The United Nations Office of Sport for Development and Peace (UNOSDP) recognizes that sport participation can have dramatic effects on young peoples’ lives and support development initiatives. Sport also has the capacity to reduce gender-based stereotyping and discrimination by challenging gender expectations and empowering females to independence and success (Darnell, 2011; Saavedra, 2009; Brady, 2005; Meir, 2005; Hartmann-Tews and Pfister, 2003). In sum, sport often serves as a “social good” or tool for social and economic development.
Year Champion Coach Points Runner-Up Points Host or Site Attendance 1982 ........................... more Year Champion Coach Points Runner-Up Points Host or Site Attendance 1982 ........................................... Florida Randy Reese 505 Stanford 383 Florida 1,67
This article applies the human capability approach (HCA) to explicitly investigate gender role at... more This article applies the human capability approach (HCA) to explicitly investigate gender role attitudes from the perspective of boy and girl participants in sport for development and peace (SDP).
markdownabstractThe field of sport for development and peace (SDP) has flourished in recent decad... more markdownabstractThe field of sport for development and peace (SDP) has flourished in recent decades, with development programmes around the world using sport as a mechanism to support social, economic and health-related development efforts. However, the academic literature on SDP is limited in comparison to more established development fields. This study is a critical examination of SDP, extending beyond existing research by contributing in two fundamental ways. First, it uses a gender lens that includes the perspective of both girls’ and boys’ attitudes on gender role attitudes, a rarity in SDP research. Secondly, the Human Capability approach of Amartya Sen is applied as a theoretical framework, perhaps for the first time in SDP research. Furthermore, studies in the field of SDP also often overlook the complex social and economic environment in the postcolonial Eastern Caribbean. This study examines sport for development for at-risk adolescents and unemployed youth in Barbados and...
The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) is one of the biggest, wealthiest and most influ... more The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) is one of the biggest, wealthiest and most influential sport governing bodies in the world. The BCCI has overseen traditional Test cricket in India since 1928. In 2008, the Indian cricket landscape shifted with the development of the Indian Premier League (IPL), a Tweny20 cricket league that has exploded in popularity since its launch. The BCCI also governs over the IPL, which generates extensive income and has raised the profile of Indian cricket around the world. However, recent controversies and corruption scandals have brought increasing scrutiny to the BCCI. In this study, the good governance framework from UK sport is applied to examine the BCCI. The good governance framework is used to examine five elements of the BCCI: structure, people, communication, standards and conduct, and policies and process. Through interviews with expert journalists and researchers (n = 6), it is clear that the BCCI needs to make significant reforms ...
In August 2018, Scotland made history as the country leading a global movement to end period pove... more In August 2018, Scotland made history as the country leading a global movement to end period poverty. The government pledged to invest £5.2m to provide free menstrual products in schools, colleges and universities across the country. Period supplies will be available in toilets, just as paper and soap are already provided. The scheme’s objective is to ensure that all students have access to the pads, tampons and products they need, regardless of financial means.
Sport for development (SFD) research and practice has become more critically examined recently, w... more Sport for development (SFD) research and practice has become more critically examined recently, with many scholars calling for better understanding of how and why sport might contribute to the global development movement. Developing and refining theoretical approaches is key to unpacking the complexities of SFD. Yet, theory development in SFD is still relatively young and often relies on oversimplified theory of change models. In this article, the authors propose a new theoretical approach, drawing upon the capabilities approach and critical feminist perspectives. The authors contend that the capabilities approach is effective in challenging neoliberal ideologies and examining a range of factors that influence people’s lived experiences. They have woven a “gender lens” across the capabilities approach framework, as feminist perspectives are often overlooked, subjugated, or misunderstood. The authors also provide an adaptable diagrammatic model to support researchers and practitioner...
Understanding the role of gender in sport for development and peace (SDP) has sparked new and cri... more Understanding the role of gender in sport for development and peace (SDP) has sparked new and critical research recently, aligning with the focus on gender equality in the United Nations (UN) Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Researchers tend to explore gender in terms of how girls and women access and experience sport. The academic literature often describes sport participation for girls as a form of empowerment, but fails to critically examine the masculinised, heteronormative framework of sport and rarely includes the voices of girls and boys together. 1 This unique study is the first to apply the human capability approach (HCA) to explicitly investigate gender role attitudes from the perspective of boy and girl participants in SDP. We believe it is vital to include voices of all participants to more critically examine how SDP might both challenge and reinforce restrictive gender norms.
Changing the game or dropping the ball? Sport and human capablity development for at risk youth in Barbados and St. Lucia, 2017
The field of sport for development and peace (SDP) has flourished in recent decades, with develop... more The field of sport for development and peace (SDP) has flourished in recent decades, with development programmes around the world using sport as a mechanism to support social, economic and health-related development efforts. However, the academic literature on SDP is limited in comparison to more established development fields. This study is a critical examination of SDP, extending beyond existing research by contributing in two fundamental ways. First, it uses a gender lens that includes the perspective of both girls’ and boys’ attitudes on gender role attitudes, a rarity in SDP research. Secondly, the Human Capability approach of Amartya Sen is applied as a theoretical framework, perhaps for the first time in SDP research. Furthermore, studies in the field of SDP also often overlook the complex social and economic environment in the postcolonial Eastern Caribbean. This study examines sport for development for at-risk adolescents and unemployed youth in Barbados and St. Lucia. Using quantitative and qualitative data through surveys, focus group discussions, interviews and journals. Key findings indicate that boys tended to embrace a machismo masculinity regarding sport and domestic life. Their experience in sport, particularly sporting with girls, may in fact reinforce restrictive gender role attitudes and hetero-normative beliefs. On the other hand, girls seemed to experience a sense of empowerment through sport, despite struggling with the narrow scope of culturally ascribed and aesthetically defined ideals of the female body. Furthermore, although all participants expressed a positive relationship between sport participation and their own development of self-efficacy and social affiliation, girls focused more on social aspects while boys were more concerned with skill-building. Finally, the macro-level conversion factors of economic instability, inadequacies in education and government ineffectiveness undermine sustainable youth development efforts. To conclude, these programmes largely function as an integrative development approach, rather than a transformative gender and development method. This study affirms that these SDP initiatives may be restricted by a neo-liberal framework, which relies on traditional modes of gender and hetero-normativity, as discussed in previous research (Forde and Frisby, 2015; McDonald, 2015; Chawansky, 2014; Levermore and Beacom, 2009). Role Creating a stronger presence of female role models as coaches and peer leaders may better engage at-risk girls and support the challenging of restrictive gender role norms amongst boys. Expanding the opportunities for type of sport played to include more gender-neutral or feminized sporting forms may also help transform the sport for development narrative.
While sport for development programming has flourished, the complex social and economic environme... more While sport for development programming has flourished, the complex social and economic environment in the postcolonial Eastern Caribbean is often overlooked by researchers. This case study examines sport for development with ‘at risk’ adolescent girls in St. Lucia (n = 16). These young women, who have been removed from mainstream public schools due to behavioural issues, participated in focus group discussions regarding their experiences and perspectives on sport. Their sport participation included single-sex, organised programming at the Upton Gardens Girls Centre and mixed-sex, unsupervised football play. Results of the study indicate that these sporting activities contributed towards the capability development of the participants, with limitations toward challenging gender stereotypes and encouraging kinetically focused body image. While the female-only sport participation encouraged a positive sense of self-efficacy and fostered peer/mentor relationships, engagement in co-educational football supported girls’ empowerment and the challenging of gender stereotypes. However, outcome towards progressive perspectives on sport and body image gleaned mixed results. As a whole, these results point to larger concerns within the sport for development field and the need for more in-depth and comprehensive critical research to better understand how sport impacts development initiatives.
Changing the game or dropping the ball? Sport and human capability development for at risk youth in Barbados and St. Lucia, 2017
The field of sport for development and peace (SDP) has flourished in recent decades, with develop... more The field of sport for development and peace (SDP) has flourished in recent decades, with development programmes around the world using sport as a mechanism to support social, economic and health-related development efforts. However, the academic literature on SDP is limited in comparison to more established development fields. This study is a critical examination of SDP, extending beyond existing research by contributing in two fundamental ways. First, it uses a gender lens that includes the perspective of both girls’ and boys’ attitudes on gender role attitudes, a rarity in SDP research. Secondly, the Human Capability approach of Amartya Sen is applied as a theoretical framework, perhaps for the first time in SDP research.
Furthermore, studies in the field of SDP also often overlook the complex social and economic environment in the postcolonial Eastern Caribbean. This study examines sport for development for at-risk adolescents and unemployed youth in Barbados and St. Lucia. Using quantitative and qualitative data through surveys, focus group discussions, interviews and journals.
Key findings indicate that boys tended to embrace a machismo masculinity regarding sport and domestic life. Their experience in sport, particularly sporting with girls, may in fact reinforce restrictive gender role attitudes and hetero-normative beliefs. On the other hand, girls seemed to experience a sense of empowerment through sport, despite struggling with the narrow scope of culturally ascribed and aesthetically defined ideals of the female body. Furthermore, although all participants expressed a positive relationship between sport participation and their own development of self-efficacy and social affiliation, girls focused more on social aspects while boys were more concerned with skill-building. Finally, the macro-level conversion factors of economic instability, inadequacies in education and government ineffectiveness undermine sustainable youth development efforts.
To conclude, these programmes largely function as an integrative development approach, rather than a transformative gender and development method. This study affirms that these SDP initiatives may be restricted by a neo-liberal framework, which relies on traditional modes of gender and hetero-normativity, as discussed in previous research (Forde and Frisby, 2015; McDonald, 2015; Chawansky, 2014; Levermore and Beacom, 2009). Role Creating a stronger presence of female role models as coaches and peer leaders may better engage at-risk girls and support the challenging of restrictive gender role norms amongst boys. Expanding the opportunities for type of sport played to include more gender-neutral or feminized sporting forms may also help transform the sport for development narrative.
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Furthermore, studies in the field of SDP also often overlook the complex social and economic environment in the postcolonial Eastern Caribbean. This study examines sport for development for at-risk adolescents and unemployed youth in Barbados and St. Lucia. Using quantitative and qualitative data through surveys, focus group discussions, interviews and journals.
Key findings indicate that boys tended to embrace a machismo masculinity regarding sport and domestic life. Their experience in sport, particularly sporting with girls, may in fact reinforce restrictive gender role attitudes and hetero-normative beliefs. On the other hand, girls seemed to experience a sense of empowerment through sport, despite struggling with the narrow scope of culturally ascribed and aesthetically defined ideals of the female body. Furthermore, although all participants expressed a positive relationship between sport participation and their own development of self-efficacy and social affiliation, girls focused more on social aspects while boys were more concerned with skill-building. Finally, the macro-level conversion factors of economic instability, inadequacies in education and government ineffectiveness undermine sustainable youth development efforts.
To conclude, these programmes largely function as an integrative development approach, rather than a transformative gender and development method. This study affirms that these SDP initiatives may be restricted by a neo-liberal framework, which relies on traditional modes of gender and hetero-normativity, as discussed in previous research (Forde and Frisby, 2015; McDonald, 2015; Chawansky, 2014; Levermore and Beacom, 2009). Role Creating a stronger presence of female role models as coaches and peer leaders may better engage at-risk girls and support the challenging of restrictive gender role norms amongst boys. Expanding the opportunities for type of sport played to include more gender-neutral or feminized sporting forms may also help transform the sport for development narrative.
Furthermore, studies in the field of SDP also often overlook the complex social and economic environment in the postcolonial Eastern Caribbean. This study examines sport for development for at-risk adolescents and unemployed youth in Barbados and St. Lucia. Using quantitative and qualitative data through surveys, focus group discussions, interviews and journals.
Key findings indicate that boys tended to embrace a machismo masculinity regarding sport and domestic life. Their experience in sport, particularly sporting with girls, may in fact reinforce restrictive gender role attitudes and hetero-normative beliefs. On the other hand, girls seemed to experience a sense of empowerment through sport, despite struggling with the narrow scope of culturally ascribed and aesthetically defined ideals of the female body. Furthermore, although all participants expressed a positive relationship between sport participation and their own development of self-efficacy and social affiliation, girls focused more on social aspects while boys were more concerned with skill-building. Finally, the macro-level conversion factors of economic instability, inadequacies in education and government ineffectiveness undermine sustainable youth development efforts.
To conclude, these programmes largely function as an integrative development approach, rather than a transformative gender and development method. This study affirms that these SDP initiatives may be restricted by a neo-liberal framework, which relies on traditional modes of gender and hetero-normativity, as discussed in previous research (Forde and Frisby, 2015; McDonald, 2015; Chawansky, 2014; Levermore and Beacom, 2009). Role Creating a stronger presence of female role models as coaches and peer leaders may better engage at-risk girls and support the challenging of restrictive gender role norms amongst boys. Expanding the opportunities for type of sport played to include more gender-neutral or feminized sporting forms may also help transform the sport for development narrative.
Furthermore, studies in the field of SDP also often overlook the complex social and economic environment in the postcolonial Eastern Caribbean. This study examines sport for development for at-risk adolescents and unemployed youth in Barbados and St. Lucia. Using quantitative and qualitative data through surveys, focus group discussions, interviews and journals.
Key findings indicate that boys tended to embrace a machismo masculinity regarding sport and domestic life. Their experience in sport, particularly sporting with girls, may in fact reinforce restrictive gender role attitudes and hetero-normative beliefs. On the other hand, girls seemed to experience a sense of empowerment through sport, despite struggling with the narrow scope of culturally ascribed and aesthetically defined ideals of the female body. Furthermore, although all participants expressed a positive relationship between sport participation and their own development of self-efficacy and social affiliation, girls focused more on social aspects while boys were more concerned with skill-building. Finally, the macro-level conversion factors of economic instability, inadequacies in education and government ineffectiveness undermine sustainable youth development efforts.
To conclude, these programmes largely function as an integrative development approach, rather than a transformative gender and development method. This study affirms that these SDP initiatives may be restricted by a neo-liberal framework, which relies on traditional modes of gender and hetero-normativity, as discussed in previous research (Forde and Frisby, 2015; McDonald, 2015; Chawansky, 2014; Levermore and Beacom, 2009). Role Creating a stronger presence of female role models as coaches and peer leaders may better engage at-risk girls and support the challenging of restrictive gender role norms amongst boys. Expanding the opportunities for type of sport played to include more gender-neutral or feminized sporting forms may also help transform the sport for development narrative.