I am interested in how athletes perceive their opponents. It has been my experience teaching collegiate athletes here in America that collegiate athletes see the opponent as merely a means to and end, specifically "the enemy." Examples of High School Athletic Associations canceling post-game handshakes due to the fear of violence, and the degree of verbal abuse ("trash talking") in sport confirm this notion. However, during discussions of sport with students from Australia and to some extent the UK, it seems to me that they value the opponent on a different level than do American athletes. I've been told numerous stories of "going to the pub" with opposing teams after hard fought contests.
I'm interested in your comments, and would like to know if there are instuments in the Social Sciences which measure constructs such as respect for opponents.
On the topic of high school sports, I feel that the issue of fighting is more rare than what people make it out to be. For football (from personal experience of being in a post-game brawl) it isn't so much as a threat from the team as a whole, but rather one or two bitter losers or non-gracious winners who lose control of their emotions and do or say something to evoke violence.
ReplyDeleteI also think it varies from sport to sport. Probably along the lines of individual-sports versus team-sports, but I have found (also from personal experience) that a sport like track can be and is often a very friendly competition. Whether it be joking around while warming up with the people you are about to compete against or talking about how each other did at invitationals or other meets, Individual-sports are more likely to be more social because there is less pressure or expectations from the rest of your team to "despise" the other team. I know from first hand experiences and feelings from my many years of playing football that I am guilty of wishing injury upon an opposing team member. It is a mindset that consumes the members of team-sports teams and is sometimes unavoidable within the mob mentality associated with team-sports.
-Matt Kingsbury
In addition, with the differences of views of a competitor may reflect the motives or reasons of why the player is playing in the first place. It appears to be that the American athlete is only concerned about winning no matter what he/she does to get there. In contrast, the Australian athlete seems to value sport itself. Less concerned about the outcome and more focused on "celebrating" the game itself.
ReplyDeleteI played Little League baseball for 6 years, Babe Ruth for two, men's league one year, Legion Ball one year, Valley league 5 years, college baseball four years, high school football JV & varsity 5 years. I can recall only one time that there was danger of violence between players on different teams. Once, a fellow slid into 2nd and badly cleated our shortstop, who happened to be the best friend of our pitcher. Our pitcher threw at a couple of guys in retaliation.
ReplyDeleteI have no memory of any trash talking, except my own. I remember once helping to create huge hole on a trap blocking scheme and yelling to an opponent, who was a friend, "He Sammy, check out that hole."
Of course, I'm old, I played in the 60s and 70s. Times have changed, but I think most of us saw our opponents as friends. We were competitive and wanted badly to win, but didn't see our opponents as enemies to be humiliated. I lived and played in an area where almost everyone was white. I do recall some tension between my teammates and opponents when the opposing teams had a lot of black players.
I think in terms of why we feel that we have to destory or tear the other team's head off in competitions can in my opinion be linked to our own history as a nation. In looking at our founding we were the inferior understudy of stepsister to England that time and time again felt as if we had to literally pound our competition our enemy as they would become in order to stand apart and make a name for ourselves as a nation. I do believe that in some form or another this attitude or inferiority complex has in many ways carried over to our views of competition . We don't respect our opponet because in many cases we feel that respecting our opponet is giving them an upper hand psychologically so we get ourselves as athletes all jacked up as to hating our opponet in maybe a fear or sense respecting them is letting them gain an advantage. The intersting factor though is that when you look at the greatest sports rivalries of all time (Ohio State vs Michigan in football , Unc vs Duke in Basketball) that their is a respect for one another at the highest level that both programs are rich with a tradition of excellence yet when they play one another make no dobut about it each team has in mind to put up as many points and make as many good plays to humiliate the other team. My question is what does it mean ti have a respect for your opponet do you respect all the hard work they put in and the challenge they present to you or is respect of the opponet to embrasses or humiliate them? Any thoughts on this would love to hear them.
ReplyDeleteI think that sometimes familiarity does breed contempt. You have go two ways the more you play someone - either your respect goes up and there is less chance of violence or the opposite happens.
ReplyDeleteI remember when I was in college my alma mater having to suspend a football series because it had become too heated. I think this is the exception, but it does happen.