Sports History – The Sport Journal

Increased Exposure to Women in Sport Increases Familiarity and Liking

Authors: Beth Dietz

Department of Psychology, Miami University, Middletown, Ohio, US

Corresponding Author:

Beth Dietz
Department of Psychology, Miami University
Middletown, OH 45044
dietzbl@miamioh.edu

Dr. Beth Dietz is a professor of psychology at Miami University. Her research interests include social identity, sport fans and spectators, women in sport, and the scholarship of teaching and learning.

Increased Exposure to Women in Sport Increases Familiarity and Liking

ABSTRACT

Purpose: The quantity of media coverage of sports played by females has not achieved parity with coverage of sports played by males. Additionally, coverage of sport played by females is often regarded as boring, uninteresting, and bland. The current study tests the hypothesis that as exposure to sport and gender increases, so will liking. Methods: Participants completed measures of familiarity, liking, and knowledge before and after a course on Sport and Gender. Results: The results showed increases over time in liking-to-watch, frequency-of-watching, knowledge of and familiarity with sport played by women (results also showed increases for neutral sports and sports played by males). Conclusions: These results suggest that repeated exposure to sports played by females leads to greater liking and interest. Applications: Increasing exposure to sports played by females in the media and in classrooms will lead to increased liking of, and likely demand, for sports played by females.

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Vandy Pacetti-Donelson2023-09-22T13:09:26-05:00September 22nd, 2023|Research, Sports History, Sports Marketing, Women and Sports|Comments Off

Title IX and Its Impact on Opportunities for Women in NCAA Coaching and Administrative Leadership

Authors: Elisa Van Kirk

Department of Education, St. Lawrence University, Canton, NY, US

Corresponding Author:

Elisa Van Kirkl
SLU- 23 Romoda Dr.
Atwood Hall 21
Canton, NY, 13617
evankirk@stlawu.edu
860-919-3274

Dr. Elisa Van Kirk is a Visiting Assistant Professor in the Department of Education at St. Lawrence University in Canton, NY. Van Kirk played Division I softball and was a collegiate coach at the Division III level for over a decade. Currently, Van Kirk primarily works with the University’s graduate students who are pursuing a Master of Art in Leadership degree.
Van Kirk’s research focuses on collegiate athletics, athletic leadership, as well as sports and gender.

Title IX and Its Impact on Opportunities for Women in NCAA Coaching and Administrative Leadership

ABSTRACT

Title IX was evolutionary when first enacted, and it provided a framework to address equity in education in many respects; however, it has had limited effects in many other areas, including in NCAA athletic administration. In this commentary, a discussion is offered in regard to the ongoing impacts of Title IX in college athletics and ways in which this legislation has impacted women and their opportunities for leadership. Examples from the literature from women who once held roles in NCAA Division III leadership are considered and their experiences are drawn upon to demonstrate ways in which barriers and sources of inequity continue to exist. Recommendations are offered for women seeking leadership positions based on the experiences of the women in this study.

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Vandy Pacetti-Donelson2023-03-13T09:35:26-05:00March 13th, 2023|Commentary, Sport Education, Sports History, Women and Sports|Comments Off

Examination of Athletic Best Performance Trends in Track and Field Over One Hundred Years’ History

Authors: Ran Wei and Yuanlong Liu

Corresponding author:
Ran Wei, MA
Western Michigan University
1903 W. Michigan Ave., Kalamazoo, MI, USA 49008-5426
Campus Site: Room 4024-4 Student Recreation Center
Phone: (269) 267-2493
Fax: (269) 387-2704
Email: ran.wei@wmich.edu

Ran Wei is a doctoral student in the PhD-EHD program of College of Education and Human Development. Her emphasis area is Sport Management in the department of Human Performance and Health Education. Dr. Yuanlong Liu is a professor and chair of the department of Human Performance and Health Education. His specialty is evaluation and measurement in Kinesiology. He serves as editor and associate editor among multiple journals.

Examination of Athletic Best Performance Trends in Track and Field Over One Hundred Years’ History

ABSTRACT

It is always interesting to predict future performance and explore human limits. In this study, 24 events (running, jumping, and throwing) were studied from men’s and women’s track and field events. The best yearly performance data and world record data since 1900 to 2018 were collected. All the events were analyzed by applying longitudinal analysis with scatterplots. The findings revealed that it is encouraging to expect the new world record in men’s shorter running events and women’s longer running events. However, the waiting time for the new world records in men’s longer running events, women’s shorter running events, and both their field events will be much longer as going into the 21^st century. For the overall track and field events, both men’s and women’s athletic performance may have reached the asymptotic level. Women’s athletic performances will not surpass men’s performances in track and field in the near future. To explore track and field performance trends and predict future world records, research of new methods and new prediction models are needed when the asymptotic level has been reached.

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U.S. Sports Academy2020-06-02T13:45:56-05:00September 5th, 2019|Commentary, Sports History|Comments Off

Contextualization of a Shifting Perspective Regarding the Steroid Era

Authors: Patrick Antinori and Rodney J. Blackman

Corresponding Author:
Dr. Rodney Blackman
United States Sports Academy
One Academy Drive
Daphne, Alabama 36526
Phone: 251-626-3303
Email: rblackman@ussa.edu

Patrick Antinori is Director of Global Sales for Phoenix Bats, a hardwood bat supplier for Major League Baseball. He is also a graduate student at the United States Sports Academy.

Rodney J. Blackman, is an Associate Professor and Chair of Recreation Management at the United States Sports Academy

ABSTRACT
To a young fan whose innocence is preserved, baseball can represent the very best of life. Adult fans support this in a variety of ways. But, the history of the game has a less-than-noble side. The steroid era in baseball has been widely considered as a blemish on the visage of baseball, leaving the people involved and the game itself open to disdain and disparagement. Until recently, the writers who elect people to the Baseball Hall of Fame have echoed these sentiments by holding to a very narrow view of that era, and the effects thereof can be likened to staring at their shoes. But a certain shift is appearing regarding perceptions about the steroid era – a view given to greater forbearance, in the larger context of the history of baseball, and how best to preserve the integrity of the game.

Over time, there has also been a greater societal demand for full disclosure. This has created a wealth of information about the steroid era in relation to the history of the game of baseball, including chronicled accounts of what people did and what they said, and did not say, at the time. However, ascertaining culpability was not the purpose of this study. Rather, the purpose of this qualitative study was to explore and describe historical accounts of pre-steroid and steroid era behaviors and their after-effects, as well as to contextualize these choices and consequences that shaped the steroid era within the historical past and coming future of the game. Moreover, the data effectively also yielded the presence and contextualization of a discernible shift in perspective regarding the steroid era.
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U.S. Sports Academy2017-07-20T16:04:02-05:00July 25th, 2017|Commentary, Contemporary Sports Issues, Sport Education, Sports History|Comments Off

The Interrelated Back Stories of Kenny Washington Reintegrating the NFL in 1946 and Jackie Robinson Integrating Major League Baseball in 1947

Submitted by Raymond Stefani, Ph.D*

1* California State University, Long Beach, USA

Dr. Raymond Stefani is an emeritus professor of Engineering at the California State University, Long Beach, USA. His more than 120 sports publications are evenly divided between individual and team sports. He seeks a fundamental understanding of the physics, physiology, causes of gender differential performance, rates of improvement, effect of historical events and effects of performance enhancing drugs related to Olympic gold medal performances in athletics (track and field), swimming, rowing and speed skating. He has analyzed Olympic home nation medal advantage He developed a least squared team rating system applied to predicting the outcome of more than 20,000 games of American football, basketball, European soccer, Australian Rules football, and Super Rugby. Home advantage has been studied in those contexts. He has contributed to the understanding of the types and application of 100 international sport rating systems (both for individuals and teams) and their ability to predict the outcome of world and Olympic championship events. He contributed to the millennium edition of the New York Times. He has presented his work to 10 organizations conducting conferences in eight nations on three continents. Dr. Stefani invites collaboration with colleagues from around the world.

ABSTRACT

In 1946, Kenny Washington reintegrated the National Football League (NFL). In 1947, Jackie Robinson integrated Major League Baseball. Those two iconic events initiated an era of opportunity for black athletes wanting to compete at the highest level in professional sports. In fact, both events terminated two interrelated (and largely forgotten) back stories from 1936 to 1947, covered in detail in this paper. The back stories include two second-tier pro football teams, a narrow escape from Honolulu before Pearl Harbor by Robinson and the creation of a rival league to the NFL. Had it not been for the cancellation of the 1940 Olympics, Robinson might now be known as an Olympic medalist in the long jump. Had it not been for an ankle injury in 1944, Robinson might now be known as a former professional football player. Had it not been for Kenny Washington’s success in pro football from 1940 to 1945, Robinson might not be known for breaking the color barrier in major league baseball. These back stories form a fascinating, inter-twined chain of events upon which depended the signing of Washington and Robinson.

Key words: integration, pro football, major league baseball, NFL, Kenny Washington, Jackie Robinson

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U.S. Sports Academy2015-04-16T16:07:41-05:00March 17th, 2015|Sports Coaching, Sports History, Sports Management|Comments Off