Sexism in Sports

Sexism- Sexism, prejudice or discrimination based on sex or gender, especially against women and girls. Are women treated with the same standards as men? Burton, L. (2015). Underrepresentation of women in Sport leadership: A review of research. Sport Management Review, 18(2), pp.155-165. Women have had a great increase in participation in sports, however, their leadership role in sports is still not there yet. This can be linked to the stigma that a leadership role should be given to some with masculine traits.

Also, that the social institution is mainly organized around crucial forms of masculinity as acceptable, while condescending others. Within the U.S. the intercollegiate sports system, women have lost leadership positions since Title IX was officially passed and implemented. The power is given to leadership roles as a result of increased resources and opportunities provided to women's athletic teams since more resources were brought in more men were brought into programs to hold such positions. educated in the field of sports. Fink, J. (2015). Female athletes, women's sport, and the sport media commercial complex: Have we really come a long way, baby?. Sport Management Review, 18(3), pp.331-342.

Participation for women's athletics has greatly increased however it's still less prevalent than male athletics. In the 2012 Olympics, women's participation was at an all-time high but still wasn't equal to that of a man, despite the women being just as impressive as the male athletes. Even with participation at an all-time high the marketing and coverage aspects of these events were greatly jet lagged. In studies, it was actually shown that coverage of professional women's events has actually declined. This is believed to be because the major news sources don't actually cover these events at all. Also, it was shown that if a women's event is covered it is actually done in lesser quality which would also lead to a decrease in market and coverage. Kim, Kayoung, and Michael Sagas. Athletic or Sexy? A Comparison of Female Athletes and Fashion Models in Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issues. Gender Issues, vol. 31, no. 2, 2014, pp. 123“141., doi:10.1007/s12147-014-9121-2.

Traditional gender stereotypes are difficult in portraying female athletes because it emphasizes sexuality rather than their athleticism. In the article, the study was aimed to explore the extent to which sports magazines manipulate gender and sexualize female models in a way that continues gender stereotypes. An increasing number of female athletes have been portrayed in sexually provoking ways in men's magazines. The degree of sexuality between female athletes and female fashion models were analyzed in the study through an examination of female models' gender portrayals. It was found that for the most part women athletes were portrayed on the beach in swimsuits while touching themselves. By continuously only portraying women athletes' femininity and not displaying their athletic ability. The extremely talented women athletes are sexually objectified in the illustration business. Oxford, Sarah, and Fiona Mclachlan. ?You Have to Play Like a Man, But Still Be a Woman': Young Female Colombians Negotiating Gender Through Participation in a Sport for Development and Peace (SDP) Organization. Sociology of Sport Journal, vol. 35, no. 3, 2018, pp. 258“267., doi:10.1123/ssj.2017-0088. In Columbia women and girls are not encouraged to participate in sports due to the stereotype that women are delicate. These gender roles are not essential characteristics determined by biological sex; rather gender in Columbia can be interpreted as a social construct. Sports are a social construct in itself that reflects social issues like inclusion, access, equity, and power. In 1991 Colombia was obligated to follow an international standard created by FIFA mandating that Colombia must include women in professional football.

However, a gap existed between instruction and application at the elite level. Gender fairness was not enforced, and the movement was slow to gain traction both in terms of infrastructural support and in securing players. Shor, E., van de Rijt, A., Miltsov, A., Kulkarni, V. and Skiena, S. (2015). A Paper Ceiling. American Sociological Review, 80(5), pp.960-984. In the twenty-first century, women continue to have decreased roles in sports media. In the studies shown in this article, women are greatly unrepresented in these categories. Women in sports media were actually had the lowest percentage among all media outlets.

In the article, they proposed that inequalities in media coverage reflect social realities and everyday societal inequalities for women. They also state they believe there is this inequality because sports fields receive some of the most attention. A lot of this is due to the stigmatism that women aren't well educated in the field of sports. Women are treated inferior to men in professional athletics, sports media, and leadership positions within sports.

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