Social Influences on Sport Participation

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Social Influences on Sport Participation

It is clear that sport is strongly influenced by social factors and by

human cultural responses. There is a recurring tension between

tradition and the cry for modern intervention, this is apparent in

football, where some want the technology that is used in rugby, in

which a television screen is used in doubtful situations such as try's

that weren't fully seen by the referee, this would eradicate time

wasting in controversial football decisions, that cause players to

fire up at referee's. The development of sport has moved with various

waves of social change

Cultural

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In the UK we've witnessed the move to urbanisation from an

agricultural way of life, i.e. from working on farms as a farmer or

farm hand to working in factories, then we moved to a technologically

based society in the twentieth century and a communications and

electronic society in the twenty-first. With this we have seen major

changes in the way we provide and participate in sport. We have new

physical and social settings, such as golfing complexes, multi sports

clubs, high-tech stadiums, indoor cricket arenas and even virtual

reality dimensions for practicing before we play.

Many local, regional and national cultural attitudes and values are

reflected in the development of sport. With specific sports in

selected areas i.e. adventure sports in the Lake District and water

sports on the Solent, which is a part of the channel between the Isle

of Wight and the main land of England.

Patterns of employment have changed with more flexible working styles.

Making more leisure time available enabling pe...

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...e an assumption that some sports have a high

incidence of injury. That playing sport can be humiliating.

Disability: Can be a barrier, and the integration of disabled

participants is ongoing challenge for sport. Recent legislation has

forced organisations to look at physical barriers and build or rebuild

suitable access. Barriers are mainly physical ones but others include

lack of opportunity, and lack of suitable or qualified coaches,

adaptation of equipment, lack of money, lack of transport, and the

disadvantaged may have less time or energy for sport.

All target groups experience barriers to participation. The target

groups are:

* OAP'S

* CHLDREN

* DISABLED

* TEENAGERS

* UNEMPLOYED

* WOMEN

* ETHNIC GROUPS

* DIFFERENT ABILITY LEVELS

* INNER CITY KIDS

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