Inside Sports - Softcover

""Inside Sports is a unique collection of stories about people involved in a wide range of sports. . . Using field work, observations, and probing interviews that included both athletes and supporters of athletic events, researchers gathered data to investigate the influence of sports on individuals and society. . .Some of their findings challenge many popular beliefs about participation in sports and the associated impact on people's lives.." -Magill Book Reviews (Salem Press), August 2000 "Recommended for graduate and undergraduate students interested in the study of sport and how sport affect human beings, social relationships, and social life." - "Choice "These vivid, insightful stories will inevitably change how readers think about sports, how they watch sports, and perhaps even how they play sports. Should be required reading for college athletes and anyone hoping to pursue a career in sociology or sports." -Mariah Burton Nelson, author of "The Stronger Women Get, the More Men Love Football "With the careful introductions and excellent suggestions for films, discussions, and projects, "Inside Sports will be an excellent reader for any undergraduate course in the sociology of sports." -Gary Fine, Northwestern University

How do people become involved in sports? What can their experiences teach us?
These are two of the many questions asked by this unique collection of personal stories of people involved in sport. Told by researchers who have interviewd participants and observed what happens in the setting where people play sports, the contributions not only show how sport studies contribute to the wider study of society, but also describe the difficulties and challenges faced when doing research of this kind.
Inside Sports is divided into four main sections reflecting the social processes and developments over time that make up the experience of sport for most people, however diverse their circumstances may otherwise be:
* Early experiences: being introduced to sports
* Experience and identity: becoming an athlete
* Deep in the experience: doing sports
* Transition experiences: facing life beyond the playing field.
In its extensive coverage of the sporting experience from within, as well as its discussion of research methods, Inside Sports will be essential reading for all students studying sport in society.