Sport, society and culture Flashcards
Sport has a significant impact on leisure, business and entertainment. Modern day sport has an important part in contemporary culture:
boosting tourism
developing core values
creating a feeling of national pride.
Sport offers a sense of:
National identity, uniting countries nationally and internationally. It can also be used to shape values and morals within society.
Sports can also break down:
Social barriers, stereotypes and prejudices.
Sport and physical activity also:
enhances quality of life
reduces medical costs
increases productivity
The role of sport in socialisation
Socialisation is the way humans adjust to their culture (values, beliefs, heritage); it is the process by which they become participating members of society. Sport and physical education in schools is an important vehicle for transmitting the values of wider society.
Define, within the context of sport, socialisation. [1]
Award one mark for:
Societies:
cultural values
Norms and values
e.g. Members of a group/team following rules / values in sport
e.g. sport used to teach behaviours/attitudes
With physical education on the national curriculum and a statutory requirement, society can foster the values of physical education and sport:
Respect
Competitiveness
Teamwork
Tolerance
Cooperation
Personal effectiveness
Problem solving
Critical thinking
Decision making
Fair play and sportsmanship
Role of commercialisation in sport
The commercialisation of sport allows sportspeople to be bought and sold as a commodity, with figures now soaring to over £100 million per player.
An individual changing their social and economic standing is known as:
Social mobility
At a political level, sport has also been used for various reasons:
the promotion of political ideologies
to promote healthy living
for economic purposes
to promote social integration.
7 strands
National pride
Propaganda
Tourism
Health-NHS
Military strength
Economic regeneration
Social integration
Explain, using examples, why sport may be seen as an important mechanism for
developing national identity. [4]
2x2 marks
Award two marks for understanding of the following points if
examples are used / points developed:
* Patriotism and pride – playing of national anthems and
displaying of national flag.
* By attending and supporting different sporting events, people
reinforce the identity dimension of citizenship eg. what is
means to be British.
* Sport creates a sense of belonging and unity – bringing the
country together (shared experiences).
* ‘Feel-good’ factor associated with success in global games
eg. London 2012 – Super Saturday / Ashes.
* Success in sport is often linked with politics – sport seen as a
shop window (Cold War).
* Creation of national icons eg. Mo Farah, David Beckham
Berlin olympics 1936
At the Berlin Olympics 1936, Hitler planned to show the world that the Aryan people were the dominant race; Jesse Owens proved him wrong and sealed his place in Olympic history by becoming the most successful athlete in the 1936 Games. Owens also became the first American to win four track and field gold medals at a single Olympics (100m, 200m, 4x100m relay and long jump).
South africa 1995
Many athletes chose not to compete in South Africa during apartheid, where athletes were picked based upon their ethnicity and not ability. Then in 1995 at the Rugby World Cup Final, Nelson Mandela appeared in a Springbok shirt; that one gesture helped reunite a nation.
Mexico city 1968
Tommie Smith and John Carlos risked their careers as athletes over the ‘Black power salute’ in the 1968 Olympics, drawing the world’s attention to the turbulent time in the USA for Black citizens.
