IAPESGW组织的会议部分内容
ABSTRACTS
SESSION I: POSTERS
001
Influence of Physical Activity over Elderly People
Helena Brandao Viana
Sao Paulo State University at Campinas (UNICAMP), Sao Paulo, Brazil
The theme Life Quality, for its encompassing and importance in the current world, has been object of many studies and researches. Life Quality is strictly related to the well-being concept and starts to have an individualized concept, as different social classes have different perceptions of what Life Quality is. In our work, we focus in the elderly and in the Life Quality, comparing 2 groups of elderly people, actives and non-actives, and the relation with the subjective evaluation of the individual Life Quality. The main questioning was how the practice of physical activities influences the subjective evaluation of the personal Life Quality. For that, we used a subjective evaluation tool from the World Health Organization – the WHOQOL-brief, which has 26 questions and an additional tool. Comparing the two groups – actives and non-actives physically – we obtained significant results, showing that the physical activity really influences the subjective evaluation of the individual Life Quality in elderly people, that is, active elderly perceive their Life Quality as being better. Later this research, we start a work in a University, with physical activities for elderly women. We observe in this research, that active women have better self-esteem, wellness and healthy. This work show us how important is to practice any sport or physical activity with elderly people.
002
Females, Fitness Levels, and Promotion
Jessica Hugo
The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio, USA
High school is a phase of development in which adolescents are attempting to make sense out of who they are and how they will live as adults. The transition from adolescence to adulthood is key during high school years. Physical fitness can play an important role in this transition. Physical fitness is essential for improved health. Recently, the U.S. Surgeon General's Call to Action to Prevent and Decrease Overweight and Obesity addresses the epidemic of overweight and obesity among youth in the United States. When compared to males, females have a decreased amount of weekly physical activity. Females must have higher levels of fitness to live a healthier life. If physical fitness is crucial for increasing health, then why do low levels of physical activity and high levels of sedentary behaviors exists among adolescent females? Furthermore, how is physical activity promoted among adolescent females? A number of factors contribute to lower levels of fitness. This presentation examines the literature, provides information concerning why female’s have lower levels of fitness, and provides ways to promote fitness. In addition, this presentation will demonstrate how female’s fitness levels are affected by their propensity (i.e., intrapersonal factors) and opportunity (i.e., interpersonal factors and community influences) which fit into the conceptual model for adolescent risk behavior. Effective programs that have been beneficial are a result of propensity and opportunity for adolescent females. Moreover, it is essential that implemented programs allow females choices, cooperative, social, and feminist activities when providing assistance to increasing female’s fitness levels.
003
Aerobics Training Effect to Female Health Conditions and Its Experiment
Li Yanan and Li Weidong
Hong Kong Institute of Education, Hong Kong, China
The aim of this study was to: 1) Compared with the frequency and time index of the common disease in female students who never had done amateur exercise, and there is a different in this crowd. 2) Whether the physique and health index of this crowd are different from other female without amateur exercise. 126 female participants and divided into three groups according to different training level: Non-exercise (NE), short training (ST), and long training (LT,). A 20-items questionnaire was used to exam female’ health conditions and types of sickness. The results showed: 1) frequency of rachitic, rhinitis and pneumonia were slight different between NE and ST. 2) Rest heart rate had a tendency of decrease for NE and LT. diastolic pressure was gradually reduced, and systolic pressure was increased slightly. 3) Frequency of getting cold/flu was remarkably decreased between ST and LT. 4) Joint soreness and muscular soreness for LT were significantly reduced. 5) Frequency of having neurasthenia was also reduced greatly. ST participants’ system of neurasthenia had no significant improvement. 6) Frequency of dysmenorrheal were greatly reduced for LT. 7) In terms of nutritious, both ST and LT showed a good appetite. There was no significant difference between the LT and NE in selecting nutritious food. 8) There is no difference in BMI and BFR between ST and LT. 9) The rate of dystrophy in LT was nearly the same. But P-value was very low. The finding indicated the types of sickness among different training levels, and aerobic exercise can significant promote health conditions in female students who participate in Aerobic exercises for a longer time.
004
A Study of Aerobic Dance Effect on the Cardiovascular System of University Female Students
Li Weidong and Li Yanan
Hong Kong Institute of Education, Hong Kong, China
There is a lot of type of Aerobics training to girls and women from 1990 in the world. And these practicers’ age span range from young girl to middle age women. Although Aerobics is an effective exercise for someone’s health, but there are a little data about the effect of Aerobics training to female Cardiovascular especially. The author adopt the advanced clinical technology, which is color ultrasonic (Model—EUB—565A) studied 29 female gir1’s Cardiovascular function. The 29 female quizzes were divided into three groups according to the time they participated in aerobics. The three groups are divided in general, three month and amateur training. The standard of experiment was doing as clinic. The experimental results show us that Aerobics training can affect cardiovascular function and form changed. The Cardiovascular function was enhanced by the training time. There is a lot of obviously difference among these three groups. Amateur training groups rest heart rate had a tendency of decrease, and minute output, stroke volume, and ejection fraction had significant improvement. There was no significant difference between the three month and general. Aerobics is the one of the best way to enhance female cardiovascular function. Aerobics can develop the cardiovascular function effectively. And the working capacity of Cardiovascular can be enhanced and developed. Else the Aerobics can accelerate the oxygenic metabolism and improve the ability of ventricle muscle, improve heart sendout and enhancement the capability of ventricle hive. Meanwhile the results also remind us that Aerobics is only fit in with generals and the cardiovascular patients must be careful to do so.
SESSION I: PAPERS
THEME: Counting the Women: Case Studies
005
Women of the Canadian Olympic Committee
Josée Martel
University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
There is an abundance of Western feminist research shedding light on the historical plight of women attempting to forge administrative careers in the sporting world. However, this paper examines women’s particular struggles in gaining entry to high profile sporting organizational bodies in Canada, more specifically the Canadian Olympic Committee (COC). A brief look at membership in this sporting organization reveals a drastic under representation of women from its inception to the present day and it continues despite the significant inroads women have made in other organizational arenas in Canada. A great deal of academic attention has been given to exposing the lack of female leadership in Canadian sport and encouraging greater female participation in sports administration. I will focus upon the COC because of its important function in Canadian culture as well as dispute claims that Canadian sporting bodies have become inclusionary and embraced the presence of women. I assess the COC’s past and current membership tracing the history of executive board members involved in decision-making roles shaping Canadian national sport. I will consider the positions held by women over the years and assess the degree to which they have been excluded from decision-making roles, estimating the impact this imbalance has had upon the evolution of competitive sport in Canada. Literature concerning the various barriers which operate to limit female membership in powerful sporting organizations as well as a gendered organization theoretical framework will be used to argue that the COC sustains a masculine paradigm through its embedded structural elements. The paucity of research on the Canadian Olympic Committee places an importance on this study which will not only provide a complete record of membership to the COC but will provide a historical analysis of female leadership roles in Canadian national sport to the present.
006
Women’s Participation in Brazilian Sports Management
Roberta Carolina Valle da Trindade* and Euza Maria Paiva Gomes**
* Augusto Motta University (UNISUAM), Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
** UNIVERSO, Niterói, Brazil
In 2004 the World Conference of woman and sport occurred. In this meeting the International Olympic Committee determined that at least 20% of women should be part of its executive offices. In view of that, this research aims at describing the current situation of woman in the administrative management of the Brazilian Olympic Committee (COB). The data were collected through the site of the Brazilian Olympic Committee and verified through visit held in situ. The consulted sources in 2004 revealed that at the COB the feminine presence is scarce: there are 50 administrative positions held by 48 men and 2 held by women. From 20% offices foreseen for women only 4% are actually held by them. We can thus conclude that the largest sports representation office in Brazil reproduces in its management structure the characteristics of the male reserve in the national sports management.
007
Gender Complacency in Scottish Sport
Jessica Lindohf
Sportscotland, Edinburgh, Scotland
“It works … everything runs smoothly.” Was one of the many comments on the distribution of leaders in Scottish sport which indicates that there is a gender complacency in Scottish sport. Despite the fact that quantitative data on women and sport has been available in many other countries for some years, Scotland has not had distributive data about women’s representation in sports leadership before. This paper presents a descriptive analysis of women in sports leadership across Scotland, a country of 4 million people with a long tradition of sporting interest and excellence. The data were collected during 2004 in order to provide a baseline for future action. They inform a new Action Plan for Women and Girls’ Sport launched in May 2005. The data are divided by sector: Clubs, Governing Bodies, Local Authorities/Trusts, Local Sports Councils, Universities, Institutes of Sport, Commonwealth Games representation in 2002, Scottish Executive (Tourism, Culture and Sport Group) and sportscotland (the government’s sport agency). Data were collected through a quantitative internet survey and desk research. The main findings show that there are significant inequalities between males and females in sports leadership positions although most of the organizations surveyed consider the current position “satisfactory”. This may suggest a degree of complacency and lack of awareness of the benefits of gender mainstreaming in Scottish sport. The findings are discussed in relation to the new Action Plan.
08
The Interest of the Egyptian Ministry of Youth in Developing Women’s Leadership
Laila El-Shahat
Woman Sport Department of Sport Sector, Ministry of Youth, Egypt
Woman is the half population of any society, so she must take her real position in order to serve her society with all her power. As women get older, she will be in need to have flexible muscles and joints. This cannot happen unless she practices some kind of sports. The Egyptian Ministry of Youth has already developed woman leadership positions in all sport fields by modifying the rules in order to let woman enter the positions of decision-making, and this precession makes a noticeable step for the presence of woman in the councils of the administrations of every physical and youth institution or organization, for example, joining the woman by vote for the membership of the Egyptian Olympic Committee in its election by the year 2000, after 90 years of its establishment. This led to increase the number of woman candidates in the sports federations that, so there were more than 20 ladies presented to the elections of the Olympic federation and ten of them had won, and in the non-Olympic federation there were six candidates, five of them had won the elections, so there are 15 ladies participate, then the minister put women in the federations that did not have women after their elections.
THEME: Gender and Sport Organizations (Part 1)
009
Women Taking the Lead: Results of a Danish Project
Gertrud Pfister
University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark
Worldwide, women are a small minority in the governing bodies of organized sport and numerous and various reasons for this phenomenon have been discussed, without clear results. A collection of articles on women and sport in 16 countries has shown that with regard to leading positions in sport women are underrepresented in all areas and at all levels. Schemes on the advancement of women, which have been in effect in some countries for the past ten years have not been able to bring about any decisive changes. My paper presents the design and the first results of a project in Denmark which aims at - analyzing the extent to which women are represented in executive sports bodies - analyzing the causes of the under representation of women in executive positions. Our theoretical reflections about gender and the gender order are based on a constructivist theory which is the point of departure and also an umbrella for more specific theoretical approaches. The project uses, among others, recent studies on the culture of organizations which emphasized the important role of gender in shaping or also changing organizations. Beside the organizational level, also the individuals and their circumstances of life have to be taken into consideration. Here, theoretical approaches to the double aspects of women’s work, that means the ambiguities of work in and for the family and work on the labour market can be used as theoretical backdrop. Based on this theoretical approach, we developed a questionnaire which was sent out to more than 3000 male and female leaders in Danish sport organizations (above the club level). The main questions focused on the situation of the sport leaders, their experiences and careers in sport organizations, their professions, private lives and their commitment to sport. In addition, we asked about discrimination against women and attitudes towards gender democracy. In my contribution, I will present the first results of this study.
010
Paradoxes of Gender in Sport Leadership in Norway
Jorid Hovden
Finnmark University College, Norway
Norway is seen as a world champion in gender equality policy. However, the leadership structures of the most significant societal institutions including sport indicate strong male dominance of the upper leadership echelons. The situation in sport has not changed much despite of stated goals for more gender balanced leadership structures during the last two decades. I will in this paper elaborate some explanations of this paradox by analyzing how male and female leaders consider, experience, explain the existing gender order in sport leadership. The analysis will be based on a study of males and females holding central positions in the governing bodies of Norwegian Sport. The data material is mainly based on in-dept interviews. The analysis indicates that the persistent gender order was considered by all leaders as an untenable political situation. The situation was, however, very seldom brought to the agenda and gender equity issues were downplayed and handled as "non issues". The reported experiences, explanations and challenges related to the existing leadership structure, were both gender and age specific. The analysis traces a political situation, where the men in power are able to avoid a political discussion, framing and definition of the problem related to the gender gap in sport leadership and thus a visualization of the gender-and age related consequences of the existing relations of domination.
011
‘If You Listen Carefully, You Can Hear the Solutions’: Women in Sport Governance
Inge Claringbould
Mulier Institute, Utrecht, the Netherlands
The gender ratio in the governance of sport in the Netherlands is greatly skewed towards men. Research is needed that not only explores barriers that keep women out of these boards but also strategies used by those women who are board members. Knowledge of such strategies can give insight into dynamics of cultures of governance that exclude women. We use in- depth interviews to explore how women who are members of the board of directors of Dutch national sport associations cope with being a visible minority. Acker’s perspective on the construction of gender in organizations is used to analyze the data. This perspective assumes that gender is constructed by 1) organizational structures such as the division of labor, 2) interactions among organizational members, 3) images of social groups and of functions, and, 4) individual identity work. The results show that women use various strategies to influence other board members and to be taken seriously in a male dominated culture. They do not want to be characterized as outspoken. For example, one of the interviewed women about her strategy to influence the board: “If you listen carefully, you can hear the solutions”. We use Acker’s perspective to show how women reinforce and challenge the construction of gender in the culture of sport governance.
012
The Significance of Social Structures in Gendering Processes
Ilse Hartmann-Tews and Claudia Combrink
Institute of Sport Sociology, German Sport University, Cologne, Germany
The central purpose of the paper is to present results of two studies to answer the question what kind of social structures are more favorite than other to reduce the traditional gender gap in leading positions in sport organizations. In addition the findings will be related to an ongoing research about the knowledge and implementation of gender mainstreaming in sports organisations. The first part of the research is a case study: Following a theoretical design we interviewed 28 board members of eight selected governing bodies of sport. The second source of data is an extensive questionnaire, which was sent out to a total of 774 board members in the Executive Boards of all regional governing bodies of sport (return rate was forty per cent, 307 questionnaires were processed). The general focus of these two studies is the social construction of gender within sports organisations, identifying gendered and gendering structures within the organisations. The studies are theoretically informed by sociological theories of organisation and social construction of reality. Our basic understanding of organisations is that people who belong to an organisation are constantly constructing, transforming or consolidating the social structures within the organisation. Gender is a central part of the social construction of organisation and very often interwoven with these social structures. Two types of social structure are analysed: constellations (e.g. segregation, power relations) and normative expectations (e.g. statutes of an organisation, informal rules) and interpretative structures (e.g. beliefs). Our presentation will concentrate first on constellations, second on the analysis of normative expectations, especially on recruitment structures within the organisations and their effects on gender-gap-reproduction and on effects of affirmative action within sports organisations.
THEME: Women and Leadership: Women’s Voices (Part 1)
014
Advancing Women in Collegiate Athletic Leadership
Nancy Lough
University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, New Mexico, USA
Although Title IX was passed over 30 years ago in the USA, the absence of women in athletic leadership roles among NCAA institutions remains disconcerting. Due to the under-representation of women at the top level of decision-making positions in intercollegiate athletics, it is necessary to learn from those who have attained the top position to guide others who aspire to leadership roles. The studies utilized for this presentation sought to add to the limited amount of information regarding women in athletic leadership, and to discover if specific positions contribute to or have provided the opportunity for promotion to the position of athletic director. Findings that will be reported in this presentation are the result of many separate studies in which Senior Women Administrators (SWA’s) and Women Athletic Directors at NCAA Division I, II, and III institutions provided their perceptions regarding career advancement. Data collection included career profile information, demographics, and open-ended questions. Both quantitative and qualitative methodology was utilized to analyze the career paths and aspirations of the respondents. Findings indicated that opinions vary regarding the SWA position as a preparatory step to achieving an Athletic Director position. Acquiring experience in specific areas such as fund raising, financial management and contract negotiation were considered key to advancement. Similarly, experience in areas such as academic advising and compliance were seen as detrimental to career advancement. Numerous perceived barriers will be discussed along with recommended strategies for improving the likelihood that more women will be promoted to athletic leadership positions in the future.
015
Work “Faster, Better, Harder”, But Don’t Lose Your Femininity: Coping with Gender Dynamics in Olympic Leadership
Anita White and Emma Rich
Loughborough University, Loughborough, UK
This paper draws on research conducted by the Institute of Sport and Leisure Policy at Loughborough University for the International Olympic Committee on Women’s Leadership in the Olympic Movement. One of the research questions was “How do the women leaders on the Executive Committees of National Olympic Committees (NOCs) experience their roles?” This paper focuses on the gendered barriers experienced by these women in their NOC leadership positions, and the strategies that they used to cope with inequalities in the male defined environment in which they worked. The research, undertaken between January 2002 and December 2003, consisted of a world- wide questionnaire survey of all women members of NOC executive committees, and Secretary Generals of NOCs, along with in-depth interviews with thirty women members of the NOC executive committees, and twenty five Secretary Generals. A number of gendered barriers facing these women are highlighted, most notably the expectation that they are expected to work ‘faster, better and harder’ than many of their male counterparts to prove their worth. A dynamic relational understanding of gender is applied in an attempt to explore the variations in the management of femininities in response to working in a male defined sports environment. It is suggested that many of these women negotiated “femininity” in relation to their work, in ways that enabled them to cope with inequality, and have influence in powerful positions, particularly in terms of decision making at a policy level in the NOC.
016
To my sisters in the field
Janice Forsyth
University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, Manitoba
Discussions about how women can improve, influence, and enrich existing sport and recreation structures dominate contemporary thinking about leadership in North America. It should come as no surprise that women who are deemed ‘successful’ are those who have acquired decision-making positions within the dominant structures, or those who have gained access to the same material resources as men. As women, we need quantifiable data to prove that we are ‘moving ahead’ in our chosen fields, or, alternatively, to show how much work we have left to do. Nowadays, gatherings are being hosted worldwide to encourage more women to get involved and stay committed to sport and recreation. To be sure, many delegates leave with new ideas, new contacts, and a new sense of hope. But to provide direction and inspiration is one thing; it is another to talk honestly and openly about the different fears that we all face as women in leadership roles. In this narrative style presentation, I examine some of these fears. What I offer is an experientially based critique of how Indigenous self-determination and western feminism has both helped and hindered the leadership potential of Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal women in sport and recreation. I argue that women need to engage, explore, and ponder the many fears they face both individually and collectively, and that public discussions of this sort are necessary if we are to gain a better understanding of the commonalities and differences we face as sisters in the field.
THEME: Dance
017
C. Matsumoto's Achievements and Dance Education
Toshiko Shimauchi* and Kyoko Nakamura**
* Japan Women's College of Physical Education, Tokyo, Japan
** Juntendo University, Tokyo, Japan
In 1947, as a member of the committee established by the Ministry of Education, Chiyoe Matsumoto was charged with the responsibility of developing a national curriculum for physical education in Japan. In fulfilling this responsibility she introduced "creative dance" as a branch of physical education following World War II. Previously, dance was taught by instructors according to certain principals and predefined routines, but the introduction of creative dance changed the way in which dance was studied. It became an imaginative and artistic experience where each student created his or her own movements. However, the absence of established curricula or teaching methods in the beginning meant that there was confusion among learning institutions. As a consequence, the quality of instruction offered by some institutions suffered initially. In collaboration with numerous instructors and researchers, Matsumoto established curricula and teaching methods based on her own hypotheses, experiments and studies. She developed original and effective teaching techniques called dance-learning models and worked tirelessly to promote them. She exhibited remarkable leadership skills insofar as the establishment of creative dance as a branch of physical education was concerned. This study investigated the extent of Chiyoe Matsumoto’s excellent leadership, and attempted to clarify her enormous contribution to dance education through the changes she made to the national dance education curriculum. The study details her varied achievements, from encouraging the incorporation of creative and artistic elements into dance to the establishment of the dance-learning models, and documents the advances made in dance education to date.
018
Dance Therapy Qualification Programs in Germany
Arisa Yagi
Tokyo, Japan
With the purpose of surveying the present situation of dance movement therapy and its qualification system in Germany, research was carried out through data collection via E-mail and interview to each dance movement therapy association or dance therapy school. Results: the name of "Dance/movement therapy" had been improved in USA, but influence of the concept of body-mind relationship from German culture in the 1st generation is not to be ignored. In Germany, there have been established more than 10 dance therapy organizations since 80's. At least 100 dance therapists have been qualified in a German manner, but detailed information on these people is not arranged yet. They are working mainly in hospitals and welfare institutions. But it is not a national qualification yet, therefore dance therapy itself does not included in medical insurance. The German Professional Organization for Dance Therapists, which regulates qualification businesses, follows the Method, which refers to the American qualification-training program. The basic requests for qualification training are clear in its regulation. In the actual use, they vary among the organizations. As for clinical practice being seriously considered commonly, although dance training of the individuals varies between simple requests of the proof and providing some weekly organized program.
SESSION I: WORKSHOPS
W01
Mentoring as a Leadership Development Tool
Organizer:
Sheilagh Croxon, Coaching Association of Canada
Presenters:
Sheilagh Croxon, Coaching Association of Canada,
Vanessa Bray and Dru Marshall, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Canada
Beth Ali, Program Manager, Women’s National Team, Field Hockey Canada
Mentoring is a valuable and effective tool in developing women leaders. The Coaching Association of Canada Women in Coaching program incorporates mentoring into their Long Term Apprenticeship program as a mechanism to help develop women coaches to the National team level. This presentation will offer perspectives on what constitutes a successful mentor/mentee relationship in two different settings and the benefits derived from this type of learning opportunity. Former apprentice coach Beth Ali (assistant national team coach and program manager for the Women’s National field hockey team) and her mentor coach Dru Marshall (Women’s National Team Field Hockey coach 1996 - 2001) will talk about their experience in a national team setting. Sheilagh Croxon (two-time Olympic coach in synchronized swimming) and Vanessa Bray (Masters in coaching student at the University of Alberta) will discuss their experience in the context of post graduate training in a university setting.
W02
Women and Wilderness Expeditions: Redefining Leadership
Organizer/Presenter:
Anjeanette LeMay, Outward Bound Programs, Netherwood School, Rothesay, NB, Canada
“He who controls the food, controls the men.” Art Moffat, leader of the ill-fated first non-native expedition descending the Dubawnt River. Join one of the members of the 2004 Dubawnt River Art Expedition, an all-women’s 52-day canoe journey from Black Lake, Saskatchewan through the Northwest Territories to Baker Lake, Nunavut. Explore the differences in expedition philosophy and leadership structure of traditional men’s wilderness travel, and a contemporary women’s trip. We will discuss the contrast between the “x-games” and “conquer the mountain” notion of wilderness activities highlighted in today’s media, and the intuitive, aesthetic approach of living in harmony with the land that guides the majority of long canoe trips today. Anjeanette will also present on the motivation behind organising an all-women’s trip and the process of recognizing our leadership potential in terms of adding women’s voices to the story of wilderness skills and travel, and in sharing what we have learned from the North; about the beauty and the challenges of the people and their environment.
SESSION I: SYMPOSIUM
S01
The Moving Self
Organizer/Chair:
Margaret Whitehead, De Montfort University Bedford, England
Presenters:
Margaret Whitehead, De Montfort University Bedford, England
Karen P. DePauw, Virginia Technology University, USA
Katia Savrami, University of Thrace, Greece
This symposium comprises a series of papers all of which build from aspects of Existentialism and Phenomenology. They are founded on a monist approach that advocates an essential role for our embodiment in human life as we know it. Building from this foundation the concept of Physical Literacy has been developed over the last few years. Key questions have been raised in relation to the concept and this Symposium continues the debate by picking up three of these areas. The first issue concerns the role of Physical Literacy in relation to the development of the self-concept. It is argued that an individual’s attitude to his/her embodied dimension is critical in the development of self-respect and positive self-esteem. The second issue to be addressed concerns the universality of the concept. Universality implies that the concept is applicable to all humans, whatever their age or social context. Very important here is the role of Physical Literacy for individuals with a disability. The third area under debate is the relationship between Physical literacy and expression, communication and community. This issue is discussed in a dance context with reference to the role of the performer, the choreographer and the audience. Overall the Symposium presents the case that all individuals have the right to becoming physically literate and that this attribute will significantly enhance their quality of life.
Paper One: The Concept of Physical Literacy and the Development of Self-Esteem
Margaret Whitehead
De Montfort University Bedford, England
The paper will look back to the development of the concept of Physical Literacy with reference to its roots in Existentialist and Phenomenological thinking. Proposed solutions to questions raised in earlier papers will be addressed. Particular reference will be made to the challenging issues related to the universality of the concept and to the role of propositional knowledge in becoming physically literate. The main body of the paper will address the relationship between Physical Literacy and the development of self-esteem. Self-esteem is considered to comprise personal attributes such as self-confidence, self-expression and interpersonal relationships. Finally the paper will look at the implications of identifying the prime goal of movement work in school/Physical Education as being the nurturing of physical literacy in all pupils. This will cover not only the content of the work but the teaching methods used and the climate of the lesson as created by the teacher.
Paper Two: Physical Literacy and Disability
Karen DePauw
Virginia Technology University, USA
The human body, and how it moves, is central to the study of exercise and sport science and discussions of physical education, sport and physical literacy. In exploring the universality of physical literacy, notions of body and physicality must include perspectives of disability and individuals with disabilities. These perspectives arise from, and are informed by, early physical activity through elite disability sport. The purpose of this paper is to examine physical literacy from a developmental perspective to physical education for individuals with disabilities and in relation to body, disability and sport.
Paper Three: Communication, Communion and Community: Developing a Philosophical Dance Discourse
Katia Savrami
University of Trace, Greece
The dancer’s body is the lived body thus the body as experienced by me: body as I live it, as my embodied aspect and as it shapes my experience. Max Scheler makes the distinction between lived body and thing body. The thing body is the body known as an organic object. To reduce the body and see it as a thing can never be the body which the self lives and experiences. The audience is the receiver of an idea or a concept being that which the choreographer wishes to communicate. Dance uses the human body to perform and is about expression and communication. In this paper, issues on the triadic interrelationship between the choreographer, dancer and audience, are discussed based on the current approach to dance analysis as has been introduced and developed in UK, the chorological studies perspective that relies almost exclusively to the ephemeral nature of dance. The philosophical framework is concerned with both the notion of corporeality with reference to Aristotle mimesis and theories of embodiment and phenomenology with special reference to Dionysian and Apollonian mode and thus the reversibility of the moving- perceived body.
SESSION II: POSTERS
019
Women and Decision Making Positions in the Catalan Sport Federations
Rosa Junyent Balasch
Consell Català de l’Esport, Catalonia
In 2000 the Catalan Women and Sport Commission of the Catalan Olympic Committee carried out a first survey about the situation of women in decision making positions of the Catalan Sports Federations. In 2004 the survey was updated. The aims of the 2004 study were: 1) To quantify the presence of women in the decision making positions of the Catalan Sports Federations (CSF). 2) To evaluate the level of compliance with the targets set by the International Olympic Committee (IOC). 3) To get to know the profile of these women (age, studies, professional situation, sporting tastes), their situation in the structure of the Federation (dedication, position, responsibilities, etc.) and their relationship with the decision making position. 4) To compare the data from year 2004 with the one from 2000. The two first aims of the study were reached by gathering data from different sports organisations in Catalonia: the Catalan Sports Council, the Catalan Sports Association, and each Catalan sport Federation. In order to answer the third aim of the study 82 women members of the board of directors of the Catalan Sport Federations (out of 93) were interviewed following the same questionnaire of year 2000. The answers to the questionnaire were submitted to statistic analysis using the SPSS program. In the poster I will also present the main results of this study.
020
Observing Pupils Moving
Patricia Maude* and Margaret Whitehead**
* Homerton College, University of Cambridge, England
** De Montfort University Bedford, England
Following the successful launch of the interactive CDRom, Observing Children Moving, which caters for practitioners working with children aged 3-7 years, research continued towards the production of a resource to cater for the needs of those working with young people aged 7 – 14 years. This involved detailed study of teachers with children aged 7-11 years in Primary schools (Key Stage 2) and teachers with students aged 11-14 years in Secondary schools (Key Stage 3). A particular need was to facilitate learners’ transition from Primary to Secondary school, since in England teachers in Primary schools are mainly generalists, whereas specialists teach Physical Education in Secondary schools. In preparation for the launch of the National Continuing Professional Development Programme in 2005, the Teacher Training Agency (TTA) and the Department for Education and Skills (DfES) helped to fund the production of a CDRom/DVD, designed to enhance movement observation, description and analysis of movement, in order to raise standards for learners. The resource is in the final stages of production and is due for an Autumn, 2005 launch. Observing Pupils Moving is a flexible, interactive learning tool which is made up of video clips of 13 motor patterns, representing a broad cross-section of Physical Education activities, Analysis Grids describing the movement seen and Strategies for Development, Observation Tasks and Hotspots for practitioners to apply across the curriculum in their own settings. The poster exemplifies the rationale and content of the resource and indicates ways in which raising standards for learners can be accessed through enhanced movement observation and analysis.
SESSION II: PAPERS
THEME: Gender and Sport Organizations (Part 2)
021
Striving and Thriving: Chinese Women Sport Managers
Cui Ying
University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
This paper is developed based on an empirical study on the gender structure of three Chinese national sport organizations (NSOs) in post-reform China. Conventionally, whenever the topic of women in Chinese sport is discussed, attention is unexceptionally, if not exclusively, directed to women athletes. Little academic effort has been devoted to looking at women’s condition in other realms of the sporting world, in this case the sport management. The main focus of this paper is women sport administrators’ status in the Chinese national sport bureaucracy. Through in-depth interviews with more than a dozen Chinese sport administrators, both male and female, most at senior leadership positions, this study explores the underlying reasons for women’s under-representation in the decision-making of Chinese NSOs. I argued that women’s absence from senior leadership positions and their powerless status in the national sport management hierarchy is partly attributed to the traditional cultural thinking on gender roles, and to a larger extent, reinforced by a male-defined organizational culture. Processes such as recruitment and selection, evaluation and promotion are examined. Also discussed are women’s dual responsibilities in work and family, the double standards faced by token women leaders, and the different implications of the transformation from elite athletes to sport managers for both sexes. Based on the research findings, tentative recommendations are put forward with regard to enhancing women’s equal career opportunities in sport management.
022
Intersections of Sport and Gender Ideologies
Annelies Knoppers
University of Utrecht, Utrecht, the Netherlands
The massive increase in the number of women athletes that began about 30 years ago, has not translated into a similar increase in women in positions of leadership in sport. This lack of change requires strategic policy interventions based on scholarship that reveals ideologies, areas of resistance and obstacles that keep women out of such positions. Since ideologies are explicitly expressed in discourses, the purpose of this paper is to explore discourses used by coaches to explain the skewed gender ratio in coaching. I examine the dominant discourses used by 90 coaches in 11 sports to give meaning to sport performance, gender and coaching. The results indicate that most of these coaches draw primarily on discourses of neutrality and male normativity to justify the relatively low number of women. Only women who coached at the elite level used alternate discourses to frame their experiences. I situate these results in their societal context that includes dominant societal meanings given to sport, sport structures and to masculinity. The results give insight into the ways sport and gender ideologies intersect to keep coaching a male dominated profession.
023
Introducing Gender Equality Work at the General Sports Secretariat of Catalonia
Anna Vilanova
Consell Català de l’Esport, Catalonia
The General Sports Secretariat of the Catalan Government - the governing body of sports administration in Catalonia- created in March 2005 the Gender Equity Unit. This Unit is the responsible to implement the sports section of the 2005-2007 Action and Development Plan on Women Policies in Catalonia of the Catalan Women’s Institute of the Catalan Government. In relation to sport, this plan establishes 2 objectives, 11 measures and 19 actions. The 2 main objectives are: to increase the number of women in sport at all levels and areas; and to improve the value and image of women sport. The measures and actions seek, at a great extent, to introduce the gender equality perspective in sport policies, budgets and funding, to promote specific research on women and sport, to promote education in gender aspects for sport professionals and sport organizations (courses and materials), to increase the number of women in decision-making positions, etc. Our presentation would firstly explain the creation process of the Gender Equity Unit of the General Sports Secretariat. This would be followed by a brief introduction of the structure of the plan and its main contents. Finally, it would conclude by presenting the main outcomes of the implementation of some of the actions so far and the reactions by the main bodies involved towards the acceptance of this plan.
024
State Feminism and Sport Feminism in Australia since 1975
Lynn Embrey
Sorrento, Western Australia, Australia
In Australia in the latter part of the 20th century sport feminism was clearly aligned to institutionalized state feminism. A network of government and non-government state and national organisations flourished to advocate for the participation by girls and women in physical education and sport. Funding for both government and non-government organisations was derived from an array of government sources while Labor governments held office. Girls’ physical education received a significant boost from education and equity projects such as the Girls’ Physical Activity project. A critical review of the portrayal of sportswomen by the media led to the establishment of the Women’s Sport Promotion Unit (WSPU) within the Australian Sports Commission in 1987. Funding from the federal Office for the Status of Women enabled the non-government Womensport Australia (WSA) to establish an office and employ staff in 1992. State government sport and recreation departments also recognised the special needs of girls and women either by taking direct responsibility or by providing funds to non-government organisations such as the Women’s Sport Foundation of Western Australia. However, funding to most feminist programs including sport was cut abruptly in the mid-1990s when Liberal (conservative) governments took office at both state and federal levels. The fragility of the sport feminist network was revealed. The WSPU was downsized, WSA faltered and the state organisations struggled for survival. Ironically, in May 2003 the Australian Sports Commission sponsored a conference entitled Sport needs more women but distanced itself from efforts to rekindle the network.
THEME: Women and Leadership: Women’s Voices (Part 2)
025
Future Plans for Leadership of Female Athletes
Kari Fasting* and Nada Knorre**
*Norwegian University of Physical Education, Oslo, Norway
** Czech Olympic Committee, Czech Republic
It is often anticipated and/or used as an argument that some people who have been highly involved in competitive sport should “give something back” to sport. Coaching and administrative works would be possibilities. But what do the female athletes think about this? This is the main question asked in this presentation. Participants in the study were 596 Czech female athletes (mean age 23 years), who were divided into three groups, elite athletes, non-elite athletes and exercisers. The method used for data gathering was questionnaire. The results show that 57 per cent of the athletes answered “yes” to a question about whether they had any plans of becoming a coach or continuing as a coach in the future. There was no difference between the different athletes’ groups. Concerning future plans about the role of becoming a sport administrator, the percentage was much lower, only 30 per cent. For this variable it turned out that there was a significant relationship between performance level and plans of becoming a sport administrator. As many as 38 per cent of the elite level athletes, compared to only 22 per cent among the exercisers said that they had such plans. As reasons for not being involved in either of the roles, were “no interest”, “too much time required”, “low payment”, “lack of respect” and “the milieu is too dominated by men”. These results are discussed with reference to feminist theory and its practical implications.
026
Mothers Leading the Way in New Zealand Elite Sport
Farah Palmer and Sarah Leberman
Massey University, Palmerston North, New Zealand
One of the identity issues and experiences unique to women, is motherhood. For many women, being pregnant, giving birth, and becoming a mother significantly changes their lifestyles, motives, and directions in life. Anecdotal evidence, suggests that motherhood often signals the ‘end’ of involvement in elite sport. The number of women in New Zealand elite sport who have become mothers and maintained their roles as elite coaches, administrators and managers appears to have increased. Nonetheless, research that investigates the costs and benefits of being a mother in sport leadership roles, is virtually non-existent. This paper is based on in-depth interviews with mothers involved in elite sport as coaches, administrators, and managers. The research focused on identifying the strategies, access to support systems, personal attributes, and experiences these women had in order to attain and remain involved in sport leadership roles. The findings suggest that external support systems (family, friends, peers, sport and work organizations) were essential for women to integrate motherhood with sport leadership. Personal attributes such as passion for sport, determination to succeed, being a mother, and adaptability were also significant in overcoming structural, interpersonal and intrapersonal constraints. Findings from this research will encourage policy and decision-makers within sports organizations to consider the involvement of mothers in leadership roles and that motherhood does not necessarily mean involvement in elite sport must come to an end.
027
Shred Bettys: Women of Canadian Snowboarding
Megan Popovic
University of Western Ontario, London, Ontario, Canada
Current participation rates in snowboarding within Canada are the equal between men and women. However, beyond recreational levels, women’s association and visible identity within the snowboarding significantly declines. There is a small body of academic research addressing the issues of subculture and gender, yet none of these studies focus on the experiences of women involved in the sport. The main purpose of this study was to examine the women’s leadership in snowboarding in Canada and address the internal boundaries within the sport that inhibit women’s involvement at higher levels of competition, organization, and business. As part of a larger project, this study utilized a multi-method approach to research and the method of triangulation was administered to identify the most pertinent information. Data were collected from various organizational sources, print and electronic media sources, and personal interviews. Specific to this study, five women were selected for in-depth, open-ended interviews based on their personal involvement in snowboarding as participants, instructors, coaches, members of provincial and national organizations, and in the snowboard industry. I am interested in women’s individual experiences within snowboarding, implicit and perceived barriers to involvement in upper echelons, and potential ways to encourage women’s leadership in the sport.
028
Lip Gloss, Labels and Leadership: Women's Voices
Rachel Saunders
University of Waikato, Hamilton, New Zealand
Traditionally, many schools in New Zealand/Aotearoa, expect senior students to express leadership qualities and undertake leadership roles. Leadership programs, too often constructed from the adults’ perspectives, can change what should be a positive experience to a demoralizing ordeal. The purpose of this paper is to present the findings of a qualitative study which uncovered young women’s views on leadership and leadership programs. The study was located in a single sex urban girls’ school with a mid to high socio-economic rating. Action research was used as a framework for this study. 18 young women were involved in focus group interviews to allow their voices to be heard as they shared their perceptions of leadership and constructed their ‘ideal’ leadership program. Students viewed leadership as performance. Like lip gloss, it was an accessory they sometimes used. It was also an attractive label that defined who could ‘do’ leadership. Leadership was ultimately about the doing of pre-defined specific jobs and tasks. Students viewed existing leadership programs as incongruent with their needs. They identified sisterhood, school pride, and acceptance as essential components, yet existing programs focused on task completion and running meetings. This study discusses the extent to which adult constructed programs meet the needs of the institution rather than of the students. It explores the contexts of single sex schools in relation to limited, superficial, romantic views of leadership. This paper makes the argument that schools must listen to the voices of their students in order to co-construct meaningful and relevant leadership curriculum.
THEME: Women and Coaching (Part 1)
029
The Impact of Female Role Models in Coaching
Guylaine Demers and Andrea Woodburn
Université Laval, Québec, Québec, Canada
Most authors agree that the shortage of female role models is one factor that could explain the under-representation of women in the coaching profession. Interestingly, no articles measuring the impact of female role models were found in the literature. The purpose of this study was to describe female coaches’ perception of their influence on the decision of the athletes they coach to become involved in coaching. Four one-on-one interviews with four high performance coaches were performed. All coaches found it difficult to identify what impact they might have on the athletes’ interest in coaching. In their opinion, their influence in this regard may be less a direct result of their status as female role models and more an indirect effect of the fit of their personalities, philosophies, and values with those of the athletes. The results also showed that the female coaches recognized the need for more women in the profession and therefore have already begun introducing measures to encourage the athletes they coach to consider coaching, including: hiring graduating students as assistant coaches; recruiting athletes as coaches in their club summer camps; and presenting a variety of strategies to show how to balance a career in coaching and a personal life. The coaches also claimed to be vigilant in identifying athletes with coaching potential and subsequently referring them to clubs and schools that need coaches. These and other measures offer promise as means of increasing the representation of women in the coaching profession.
030
Varsity Women Coaches’ Perceptions of their Emotional Intelligence
Leith Drury
University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Coaches are leaders requiring abilities such as modeling, visioning, empowering and caring. Currently, women coaches are underrepresented as head coaches and coaches of elite athletes. Nevertheless, the coaching environment is shifting and the athlete-centered model suggests that coaches must now lead by influencing, engaging and inspiring their athletes. Coaches, in an athlete-centered system, develop athletes by creating physically and emotionally safe environments with-in which athletes grow and realize their athletic abilities while becoming well-rounded people, with a life-long commitment to sport, health and physical activity. This shift may work to female coaches’ advantage because this new coaching environment requires abilities of relationship building and connectedness, qualities identified as feminine strengths. This paper will present data from a study of the perceptions of eight female varsity coaches at the University of Toronto about the influence of their emotional intelligence on their coaching practice. The data were collected from a questionnaire (BarOn EQ-i) measuring the respondent’s emotional intelligence, through semi-structured interviews with the coaches, and through observations of their coaching at practices and competitions. The discussion will stimulate ideas about the strengths and abilities that women coaches contribute to coaching and may prompt strategy sessions on ways to increase the number and the impact of female head coaches and women coaching elite athletes.
032
Leadership in Coaching
Penny Werthner
University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
The purpose of this paper is twofold: (i) to define what leadership means within the contexts of coaching and young woman participants and (ii) to discuss the leadership role that women coaches could play in the lives of girls and women. In Canada, very few young girls and young women athletes have had the opportunity to be coached by a woman. These young women participants are playing and competing in greater numbers but are still doing so within a sporting world that is dominated by a male perspective. So what is it that women coaches would bring to young girls and women? What is effective leadership and what is effective coaching? This paper investigates the qualities that women coaches bring to the sporting world. Within a post-positive paradigm, in-depth interviews were conducted with twenty women coaches and the ensuing dialogue examined (i) what they felt they brought to the sporting environment; (ii) what challenges they faced in the profession of coaching; (iii) how they interacted with the athletes that they coached that enabled them to be effective, in terms of both performance and lives lived outside sport; (iv) how they enabled the women they coached to become confident athletes and leaders in sport. This study suggests that women coaches have unique qualities that enable them to effectively lead and coach young women athletes and concludes with a model for women and coaching in Canada. This research is conducted in conjunction with the Coaching Association of Canada’s Women in Coaching Program.
THEME: Celebrating Women’s Leadership
033
A Collective Biography: Anstey College England
Tansin Benn
University of Birmingham, Birmingham, England
The paper is a collective biography of women Principals who were exemplary leaders in the training and education of women specialist teachers of Physical Training / Education at Anstey College from 1897 - 1975. They inspired hundreds of young women to pursue their love of physical activity and, in turn become inspirational teachers of thousands more. The purpose of this paper is to raise the profile of the lives and actions of pioneers in physical education who are currently outside of the central narrative of teacher training. A provisional collective biography presents a coherent strategy for making clear the impact these women made, and the debt the profession owes to them for their perseverance in making and retaining opportunities for women in this field. This is an opportunity to begin to explore what can be learned about why and how they became leaders, what factors in education influenced their leadership and how they inspired others. It would be impossible to do justice to the work of all six women Principals who led Anstey through 78 years of teacher training, so greater emphasis will be placed on those who served the longest. Rhoda Anstey, founder Principal for 23 years; Marion Squire, Principal 1927 – 1955; and Muriel Webster, Principal for 14 years, who was instrumental in the early days of the IAPESGW. More detailed archives of their lives will follow and act as a catalyst for other researchers to engage with equally important women in other teacher training institutions, including their lives, standards and leadership.
034
Successful Struggling for a Girl and Woman-Friendly Physical Education--and Then?
Barbro Carli
Orebro, Sweden
Up to the late twentieth century the development of physical education (PE) in Sweden was investigated and described mainly by men, often in a sex/gender neutral way, as if it were a homogeneous process. According to my experience and knowledge of the field, the development of Swedish PE, including school subject and teacher training, has during one and three quarters of a century been two-sided. With this paper (based on my newly presented thesis) I wish to illustrate the duality and, above all, to make visible women teachers’ and girls’ involvement, conditions, activity. That is, my study aims at filling up (at least to some extent) “the gender-gap” in the history of Swedish PE. The study is also raising issues concerning consequences of the turn towards co-educational PE in school and teacher training. The development of this particular field is described and analyzed in relation to contemporary development in the surrounding society, particularly in school and sports. Questions about gender and power, patriarchal structures, hegemony and resistance, rationalities and ethics, are essential. Document analysis, descriptive statistics, and interviews are being used. Together these show that women have been present in the field of PE in Sweden nearly as long as men, but that female and male tradition developed in different directions. The female PE culture went through an intensive development up to the mid 1970s, thereafter it gradually has declined. Although several other changes in society, school and sports occurred about simultaneously, the co-education reform seems to have played a key role in this process.
035
Marie Thérèse Eyquem: “Une militante exemplairé”
Patricia Prestwich
University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
Throughout her life, Marie Thérèse Eyquem, a past president of IPESGW, worked to expand opportunities for women. An influential civil servant in postwar France, a dedicated advocate of women’s sport, author, political activist in the French Socialist party, and practising Catholic, Eyquem is an excellent example of the complexities of feminism in the mid-twentieth century. This presentation will draw on private archives and public material to illustrate Eyquem’s unusual path to feminism and her many talents. Eyquem’s achievements are even more impressive as she was born to a family of modest means and had to interrupt her studies in order to earn her living. As a young girl in the 1930S she discovered women’s sports thanks to the efforts of Catholic youth organizations. This experience helped to find her a position as a secretary in the Ministry of Sports. By the early 1960s, she has risen to become an inspector-general in the Ministry and the most important figure in the promotion of women’s sport in France. In this period she was also a successful author. In 1945 she published a highly romanticized novel about women's sport, Jeunes Filles Au Soleil and later, under a pseudonym, a controversial novel --for the period--about the love between two young women. She also wrote well-received biographies of the French dancer Irene Popard and of Pierre de Coubertin, founder of the modern Olympics. By the late 1960s Eyquem had found new outlets for her feminism and her talents in the emerging French feminist movement and in the reconstruction of the French Socialist party under François Mitterand. She was instrumental in assuring that women’s issues had a major place in the party’s platform and in opening a dialogue between Catholics and Socialists. Eyquem died of cancer before Mitterand’s election as President of France in 1981. Had she lived she would have been a strong candidate for the position of Minister of Women’s Issues in the new government.
036
Celebrating Sport Leadership: A Successful Model
Marilyn Mather
Dowling College Oakdale, New York, USA
The objective will be to discuss the model for celebrating women’s sports leadership that has been developed by the Connecticut (USA) Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame. It is hoped that this model may then be duplicated by others to enhance the visibility and celebrate women in sport leadership. Despite the growth of women’s sports, the lack of media support continues to relegate women’s sports events and personalities to the back page of most publications. From this position of relative obscurity women in sport leadership, whether on the playing fields or behind the scenes, are all but invisible, and their accomplishments unknown. The invisibility of women’s sports continues to place potential women role models below the line of sight. Leaders of women’s sports need to be identified, recognized, and celebrated. Some women’s sports organizations have begun to fill that void. The Connecticut (USA) Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame has created a successful template for celebrating leadership. In existence since 1987, they hold an annual awards dinner, raise funds for scholarships, camp fee enrollments, have a website, and as of 2002, a permanent home. They now have 80 lifetime members and 106 inductees. The success of the Connecticut Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame has spawned new women’s sports halls of fame in Connecticut. Using the model provided by Women’s Basketball, the sports of Women’s Softball, Women’s Volleyball, and Women’s Field Hockey now successfully celebrate leadership in their sports.
SESSION II: WORKSHOPS
W03
CAAWS Women and Leadership Workshop: Effective Communication (1)
Nora Scheffe (Canada)
The Canadian Association for the Advancement of Women and Sport and Physical Activity (CAAWS) Women and Leadership Program was developed with the purpose of preparing women to take leadership roles in sport and active living communities. The program has been designed for women by women. Each session blends theory with practical applications and provides an opportunity for women working or volunteering in the sport or active living communities, recreation field or school system, to share experiences, reflect on ideas and apply specific techniques.
This particular workshop focuses on effective communication (part 1). Specific topics include:
• Discuss aggressive and assertive communication styles
• Review the components of a clear message
• Practice using assertive communication in sport-related scenarios
Note: This is part 1 of a 6-part series of workshops. Although delegates are welcome to attend any of these workshops, you would probably gain the most benefit by attending them all.
W04
Promising Practices and Practical Tips: Girls in PE
Organizer: Sydney Millar, CAAWS, Canada
Presenters: Jennifer Fenton, ProMOTION plus, British
Columbia, Canada
Farida Gabbani, Nova Scotia Office of Health Promotion, Nova Scotia, Canada
Sandra Gibbons, University of Victoria, British Columbia, Canada
Louise Humbert, University of Saskatchewan, Saskatchewan, Canada
Bryna Kopelow, Action Schools! BC, British Columbia, Canada
Sydney Millar, CAAWS, Canada
To provide teachers and school administrators with practical tips and "how tos" to develop quality physical education programs and school-based physical activity opportunities for girls and young women, the Canadian Association for the Advancement of Women and Sport and Physical Activity (CAAWS), in collaboration with the Canadian Association for Health, Physical Education, Recreation and Dance (CAHPERD), has assembled a collection of promising practices from across Canada. This interactive workshop, lead by a team of teachers, program developers, administrators and teacher educators from across Canada, will share these promising practices, highlighting a variety of areas including course content, scheduling options, evaluation, school environment, and school/community partnerships. Issues for both elementary and secondary schools will be addressed. Participants will be asked to discuss their promising practices, and successes and challenges, to continue expanding the knowledge base.
W05
Empowering Women through Experiential Education
Vanessa Fiaud, Janet Wood and Nancy Burkhalter
Texas Woman's University, Denton, Texas, USA
One of the missions of our university is to facilitate leadership development in our students. Over the years, this has proven to be a challenging goal to achieve. More recently, the experiential education model (‘learning by doing’) has been introduced into our curriculum and has proven to be a critical element for leadership development. This model provides an invaluable set of tools not only for personal growth and change, but also for group development, leadership and team building. This model: • Promotes responsibility for self and others • Develops leadership, decision making, goal-setting and healthy risk-taking habits • Improves self-awareness and positive self-esteem • Promotes trust in self and others • Builds a sense of accomplishment and competency • Teaches teamwork and communication skills • Teaches conflict resolution skills • Promotes an improved sense of belonging. The purpose of this workshop is to present selected strategies from the experiential education model to foster the development of leadership qualities in women. This participatory workshop will include a variety of experiential initiatives used to facilitate the development of leadership skills, as recognized in the working world. The speakers will demonstrate strategies for properly sequencing activities to reach maximum potential of the model. The second part of the model involves processing the activity. Processing is an in-depth discussion, ultimately resulting in the participants relating their experiences to real life situations.
SESSION III: POSTERS
038
Effect of Tai Chi Chuan Exercise on Psychological Variables and Performance Levels for Female Karate and Taekwondo Sport Teams
Azza Elwasiemy
University of Tanta, Tanta, Egypt
Tai chi chuan (TCC) is a Chinese conditioning exercise and is well known for its slow and graceful movements. Recent investigations have found that TCC is beneficial for psychological, physiological and physical wellbeing. Tai chi literally means "moving life force”. Tai chi's choreographed movements, called "forms" resemble a slow, graceful dance. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effectiveness of Tai-Chi Chuan exercise on some psychological variables and performance levels of female Karate and Taekwondo teams in Tanta University. Tai Chi -type of exercises were performed by 10 female undergraduate students (5 Karate and 5 Taekwondo players; exercises were performed for 12 weeks. The subjects were required to synchronize the task movements with auditory stimuli. The control group constituted 10 players 5 from Karate and 5 Taekwondo teams, who did not participate in Tai chi chuan exercises. All subjects performed the tests of self–confidence, anxiety, achievement motivation in addition to performance level pre and post training. The two groups were compared to each other and the results were statistically analysed. The results showed that there was a significant difference between TCE practicing group and the control group in favour of the TCE practicing group regarding all the studied variables. Conclusion: Tai chi is safe and has positive effects on psychological profile and performance level of female Karate and Taekwondo sport players.
SESSION III: PAPERS
THEME: Women and Coaching (Part 2)
043
A Coaching Education Program for Young Women
Joan Cowdery* and Meg Seng**
* University of Michigan, Flint, Michigan, USA
** The Academy for Sport Leadership
Female participation in sports is at an all-time high. However, representation of females in coaching careers is the lowest in history. The percentage of women in coaching has continued to fall over the past 30 years. In an effort to reverse this trend a coaches training and education program aimed at young women was designed and implemented. This paper will provide an overview of a comprehensive career pathways approach to the education and training of young women for careers in sport leadership. Objectives include identifying program components, and developing strategies to increase the number of women in sport leadership positions. Key program components include mentor training, future coaching camp, internship, and job placement. Results of a recent survey, which examined the interests, benefits and barriers that female athletes have in pursuing coaching as a career, will be presented. Results showed that although 50% of the sample indicated an interest in becoming involved in coaching, barriers identified to pursuing coaching as a career included salary (57.1%), and interference with family time (45.2%). Overwhelmingly, respondents identified the opportunity to stay involved in sports as the primary benefit to pursuing a coaching career (85.7%). Although 71.4% felt somewhat to very confident that they could pursue a coaching job only 19.0% stated that they had been highly encouraged by either coaches or mentors to do so. Given these results it is imperative that women in sport leadership positions embrace their role and responsibility as mentors and leaders for young women pursuing coaching careers.
O44
Athletes’ Perceptions of the Coaching Profession
Guylaine Demers and Andrea Woodburn
Université Laval, Québec, Québec, Canada
The under-representation of women in the coaching profession continues to be a dilemma in Canadian sport. High performance female athletes are one possible source of future female coaches, given their expertise in and prior commitment to sport. The purpose of this study was to identify factors that either supported or discouraged female high performance athletes from entering the coaching profession. Four group interviews with 18 high performance female athletes were performed. Results showed that the athletes perceived the coaching profession to be demanding, under-recognized, centred upon holistic athlete development, stimulating, and to be one that requires strong leadership skills. The athletes identified five reasons that would either encourage them to or discourage them from considering coaching as a profession: 1) their perception of their competence, 2) the type of position and the remuneration offered, 3) the work schedule, 4) the availability of adequate training and support, and 5) their love of the sport. The athletes also recognized the following three principle areas of challenge for female coaches: 1) perceived competence and the balancing of work and family life, 2) financing of coaching positions and of sport in general, and 3) the motivation of the next generation of high performance athletes, whom the athletes felt to be lacking in their commitment to training. Results showed that the athletes doubted their readiness to coach, suggesting that specific measure directed at this target group might lead these athletes to consider coaching as a profession.
045
Gender Training for Coaches: A Pilot Project
Rosa Diketmüller
University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
Gender training for the persons who coach girls and women in sport seem to be a very important step in the way of implementing gender mainstreaming en route to the goal of gender equality at all levels of sport. While in Austria gender is sporadical an obligatory topic in some educational courses for teachers and sport-scientists, in the education of coaches, gender is neither an obligatory topic, nor is it systematically or regularly addressed in advanced training. The main aim of the project ‘Gender Training for coaches’ is to develop modules for ‘gender sensitive education in sport’ and strategies of incorporating these modules into coaches’ education and vocational training. Through this project, a specific gender training for volleyball-coaches was developed, realized and evaluated. The basis for the development of the gender training for the coaches is the analysis of typical coaching situations in the sport club. Therefore, methods like observation of the coaching, interviews and questionnaires with instructors and athletes were used. The basic outline of the gender training and the following project measures were agreed upon and coordinated by an expert team. The advanced gender training for coaches was evaluated in a complex program evaluation and by the evaluation of the effects on coaching processes or attitudes of the coaches. Additionally, it was intended to observe an ongoing process and culture of reflection, where the coaches and ‘observers’ discuss their experiences, verify their aims or together to develop different strategies for change and diversification. Finally, different strategies, how gender could be integrated into the curricula of educational and vocational training for coaches, are presented and discussed.
062
Can Family and Career Coincide for NCAA Division I Coaches?
Kristy Sweeney* and Nancy Lough**
* Xavier University, Cincinnati, Ohio, USA
** University of New Mexico, USA
The purpose of this research was to examine the relationship between career salience and family commitment among coaches of women’s sport. Head and assistant coaches of elite NCAA Division I-A women’s programs were surveyed utilizing career salience and family commitment instruments. No significant differences were found for measures of career salience or family commitment between male and female coaches. Additionally, completion of a correlation study utilizing gender as the independent variable and individual item scores from the surveys as the dependent variables resulted in no significant difference. Thus, the findings suggest that work family conflict and low career salience are not adequate explanations for the decreasing representation of women in coaching. The findings support the argument that the majority of women are not leaving professional careers to spend time with their families; they are leaving because of dissatisfaction with advancement in their career, sexual bias and discrimination, and limited flexibility in the work schedule.
THEME: Physical Education Teacher Education & Curriculum
046
Gymnastics in the PE Teacher Training Program at GCI/GIH (Sweden) from 1944-92
Jane Meckbach and Suzanne Lundvall
Stockholm University, Stockholm, Sweden
The objective of the study has been to follow and describe the subject gymnastics and its development at the PE teacher-training program at the Royal Central Institute of Gymnastics/ Stockholm College of PE and Sports over the studied time period. The methods used are interview, text analysis and visual analysis. Triangulation has been used to be able to follow the changes of the subject’s content, figuration and representation. Results and comments from the 1940s to the 1970s, there existed two separate gymnastics discourses, one male and one female, expressed in the movement content, in the figuration of movements and in the body images at the Institute. Over the years, the male discourse was maintained almost intact, without any changes. Instead, the female was continually changed and developed over the actual period of time, strongly influenced by rhythmic and dance. When coeducation was implemented in the late 1970s a new body movement culture was developed – a unisex. The over all findings show that changes in society, e.g. equality, gender roles, co-education and the impact of the sport discourse almost outweighed the gymnastics movement culture. Due to an opposition and counter discourse among the female teachers, an arena for gymnastics and dance for both sexes could be kept at the Institute.
047
Female Student Teachers at a Sport Alternative School
Nancy Melnychuk
University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
The intent of this case study was to investigate the experiences of secondary school physical education student teachers assigned to a (Ice) Hockey Alternative School for their final practicum. Specifically, the intent was to assess the strengths and weaknesses of the nine week practicum, as perceived by three female university hockey players/student teachers, and to determine the appropriateness of a sports alternative program as a pre-service teacher learning environment. A variety of case study techniques were applied to systematically investigate the field experience of the student teachers: document analysis, participatory and non-participatory observation, field note-taking, conversation, group interactive sessions of student teachers with their university facilitator, and individual semi-structured interviews. Through emergent themes, the student teachers reveal that their practicum was a positive experience overall. However, they also indicate that their professional knowledge, skills, and expertise were not recognized, and claim that they were not afforded the same opportunities as their male counterparts to plan, teach and evaluate. Specific changes to the role and responsibilities of student teachers in the hockey and physical education programs are recommended. As well, implications for the education and preparation of physical education teachers and/or coaches are presented.
048
Influencing Teacher Professional Development
Jeanne Keay
Roehampton University, London, UK
While previous research has provided much needed insight into the experiences and socialisation of PE teachers, there has been little focus on how PE teachers develop. Recent research found that newly qualified teachers (NQTs) relied on experienced teachers of PE to guide their professional practice, specifically adopting approaches demonstrated by male PE teachers. Drawing on this research, and considering claims made by Penney and Evans that PE has developed in ‘explicitly gendered ways’, this paper explores the influences of colleagues within a school-based subject community on the professional development of female PE teachers. The paper reports on the third stage of a methodology that used a grounded theory approach. While the first two stages of the research explored the professional development experiences of NQTs during their induction year, the third stage focused on two female teachers, now in their fifth year of teaching, who had originally participated in the case study approach of Stage 2. Through semi-structured interviews, the influences on the professional development of these teachers were explored. Their experiences are presented and analyzed using a figurational sociological perspective. The paper concludes with challenges for all those involved in the initial teacher education and induction of teachers into the PE profession, particularly focusing on the roles of experienced PE teachers. Recommendations are made for the professional development of female PE teachers in order to ensure that they become influential and effective members of their school-based subject communities.
049
Information Literacy Skills for Research and Life
Nancy Goebel
University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
The saying goes “Information is Power”. Positioning women successfully into positions of power in sport organizations (corporate and learning) requires that those women are information literate. Information Literacy is the ability to locate, assess and use information. When a woman is information literate, she is best positioned to be successful in career, in competition and, in general, life. In 2001, I proposed a university credit course called “Physical Education: Information Literacy and Physical Education”. It received wholehearted approval from Physical Education faculty and has been taught at our university since. The course teaches students how to manage information in the context of Physical Education and/or Sport. The course covers: information organization; library research databases; plagiarism; critical thinking; searching the Internet; using library catalogues; and how to cite research in a research paper – all in relation to Physical Education and/or Sport. These skills ensure that the person knows how to find information, how to critically assess it, and how to apply that information in research and in other aspects of life. The paper will discuss the development of the course, giving practical examples for people to take back to their institutions. It will review results from the pre-/post tests that all students who take the course complete (giving an indication of the knowledge/skill development in the time period of the course). It will be argued that this kind of course would advance the preparedness and confidence of women in sport and physical education whether those women are administrators, educators or athletes/competitors.
THEME: Youth & Sport: Barriers to Sport Involvement
042
Teaching Gender Awareness through Pictures
Christa Zipprich
University of Hannover, Hannover, Germany
Young people, pupils and even teachers are not familiar with gender issues in sports. As part of the physical education teacher preparation our students have to fulfill a course concerning aesthetic education. In choosing the topic of “pictures of female and male athletes”, I tried the
future teachers to get acquainted with the perception of everyday pictures in sports as well as to shoot their own pictures presenting female and male athletes. The topic was approached in three steps: 1. Analyzing the present research findings in the context of pictures in sports within the daily newspapers and journals; 2. Preparing colleagues on selected aspects of gender in sports using pictures from newspapers and journals; 3. Presenting two self-made pictures one with females, one with males practicing in sports. From a more recipient role of dealing with sports and gender issues the students had to become active in
selecting their own topic and deciding what to present. First ideas were discussed, rejected, new ones emerged. With the final presentation it became clear that most of the students' pictures showed similar situations within their chosen sport than to point out gender differences within sports. In reflecting the individual positions each set of pictures received a commentary, altogether included within an exhibition. Some of the final results will be shown.
050
I Am Not a Tomboy: Gender Barriers in Sport
Jeanne Kentel
Brock University, St Catharines, Ontario, Canada
This narrative inquiry was inspired by the words of a young female participant in a research study conducted in Kenya. “It is not appropriate for girls to play football,” she stated with conviction. I was left wondering if those were her words or the words of another. Compelled by her apparent ingenuousness I began to explore my own stories of growing up and the gender boundaries I encountered as a young girl interested in sport. This further provoked me to appraise the label of “tomboy” in my personal life experience. Through reflecting and revisiting the autobiographical and research narratives situated in stories of gender and sport several unexpected parallels arose. These temporal, spatial, and personal-social dimensions of inquiry were inherent in the stories of self as a child, young woman, teacher, mother, and researcher. The subsequent ruminations questioned how narrative inquiry has transformed my understanding of pedagogy and the lived curriculum in my classroom experiences. This exploration aspires to challenge the prevailing gender boundaries that persist in sport. It questions what it means to be a woman or girl in a world, which continues as one dominated by males, albeit efforts seeking boundary permeation and acceptance of diversity. Sport itself is not gendered, however, individuals who engage in sport can be subjected to stereotypical limitations imposed by the status quo. Narrative inquiry permits pervasion of the boundaries inherent in sport involvement as we fully consider the stories that shape our lives.
051
Women’s Performance in Sport: Acquisition of Skills and Capabilities
Elaine Romero and Irles Maria Braz
Castelo Branco University, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
This work analyzes the acquisition of skills and capabilities for the performance of women in sport. The used methodology consisted in the revision of literature, approaching three topics: the woman in the XXI century, the woman in sport and the girl on physical education at school. Concerning the first topic, studies have shown that beyond the preconceptions in society, the performance of women in the Brazilian community can be perceived in sectors of politics, business and asset management and professions once considered “masculine”, such as in the police, as airplane pilots, bank CEOs and others. Regarding the second topic, we raise the following questioning: what chances are given to girls, future athletes, so that they try their potential corporally? Does physical education accomplishes playful activities which interest girls, or it only separates them, with sexist connotations, in feminine and masculine, inhibiting the healthful motor development when hindering the experimentation of the mentioned activities for both the genders? In the third topic we infer that the body is not “given", but produced in the culture and the speech, where the identity of the citizens is built and carved. We conclude that women have increasingly occupied new spaces in the world scene, becoming visible in its body and subjectivity. In the construction of an identity to be valued by its skills, capabilities and talents, it is the role of the school to reflect about the relations of gender established in physical education classes.
052
"GO SKI ": Cross Country Skiing for Teenage Girls
Gail Niinimaa
Foothills Nordic Ski Club, Calgary, Alberta, Canada
GO SKI - Girls on Skis was developed in 2001 in response to a need to provide "girls only" programming for Cross Country Skiing in the Foothills Nordic Ski Club. The concept was for teenage girls who were either are not interested in competitive skiing or who needed to develop their skills to be able to do so in a safe and non-competitive environment. The program was offered once a week for 4 months in the winter period and included participation in ski weekends, loppetts, as well as weekly skill development. Initially the program had only 4 participants but tripled the following year and doubled again the next year. In the 4th year of running the program 50% of the participants are new to the club, and "graduates" of the program have moved into other Youth Racing and Biathlon programs within the club, resulting in almost equal numbers of girls and boys within the other programs of the club. Offering a "girls only" program with female coaches and a program that suits the needs of teenage girls has proven to be a viable way to attract and keep teenage girls in a sport within a club program. This paper will highlight the successes of the program, what has been learned over the last 4 years and how the program is now being developed as a basic program within other Cross Country Alberta clubs as well as an initiative to be launched nationally through the Cross Country Canada Women's Committee.
SESSION III: WORKSHOPS
W06
CAAWS Women and Leadership Workshop: Effective Communication (2)
Nora Scheffe (Canada)
The Canadian Association for the Advancement of Women and Sport and Physical Activity (CAAWS) Women and Leadership Program was developed with the purpose of preparing women to take leadership roles in sport and active living communities. The program has been designed for women by women. Each session blends theory with practical applications and provides an opportunity for women working or volunteering in the sport or active living communities, recreation field or school system, to share experiences, reflect on ideas and apply specific techniques.
This particular workshop focuses on effective communication (part 2). Specific topics include:
• Discuss aggressive and assertive communication styles
• Review the components of a clear message
• Practice using assertive communication in sport-related scenarios
Note: This is part 2 of a 6-part series of workshops. Although delegates are welcome to attend any of these workshops, you would probably gain the most benefit by attending them all.
W07
Emotional Intelligence: A key Factor for Leadership in Sport.
Johanna Vescio* and Geoff Scott**
* University of Technology, Sydney, Australia
** University of Western Sydney, Sydney, Australia
This presentation explores the capabilities that are seen as most important for leadership in sport. It is based on a recent Australian study which tracked successful graduates in the sport industry, part of a larger project tracking successful graduates in the early stages of their career across a wide range of professions. These successful graduates are the leaders of the future. The research was guided by a comprehensive professional capability framework comprising of four interlocked components: Emotional intelligence, cognitive intelligence and creative thinking, as well as appropriate profession-specific skills and knowledge and ‘generic skills’. The aim of the study was to identify the importance of these capabilities for successful professional practice. The study was conducted in two phases: in-depth interviews (n = 22, sub-study sport: n = 4) and a survey (n = 194, sub-study sport: n = 24). We discovered that although a high level of profession-specific knowledge is necessary for successful leadership it is clearly not sufficient. A range of ‘emotional intelligence’, cognitive capabilities and generic skills are being identified as crucial success factors. It is the combination of key elements of emotional intelligence, cognitive capabilities, generic and job specific skills and knowledge that is telling, not excellence in one domain. Finally, we suggest that the key finding that emotional intelligence is a crucial factor for leadership in sport offers great potential for women in leadership positions as they essentially demonstrate strong emotional intelligence capabilities.
W08
Leadership: A Personal Journey Inward
Linda Koehler
University of the Pacific, Stockton, California, USA
This workshop is a time-out. It is a 90-minute respite from the fast pace, relentless demands and exhaustive expectations that oftentimes characterize our professional lives as leaders in sport, Physical Education, and dance. The purpose of the workshop is to shift the focus from the external circumstances of life and leadership responsibilities to the internal condition of the mind and body. Those attending will have an opportunity to quiet the mind, relax the body, and experience the wonderment of positive self-talk. Through the techniques of guided visualization and affirmations, attendees can reconnect with the inner resources and energies that are always available. Particular importance is placed on inner balance; confidence; creativity; self-empowerment; openness; speaking one’s truth; intuition; perspective; and, above all else, peace. The workshop proceeds from two basic premises: 1) The condition of our outer world reflects the condition of our inner world, and 2) We are no good for anything else, until we are good to ourselves.
SESSION IV: POSTERS
054
Development of Japanese Regional Sports
Roka Iida
Keio University, Kawasaki, Kanagawa, Japan
The development of sports in Japan has always been led by its schools. However, since the establishment of J-League (the Japanese professional soccer league) in 1993, the situation surrounding Japanese sports in general has altered dramatically; the transition has seen the traditional school-oriented sporting activities replaced by the more European, club-oriented model. In line with such developments, Japanese Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology has installed the regional “comprehensive community sports clubs” at the center of nation’s development of sports? Although on the whole, such government policies are yet to make a significant progress. However, the current presentation will analyze the success of a dance club (chiefly run by females) that has established itself regionally. Y Exercise Club began its life as a modest private dance club, however, by 2003 had three groups scattered around the Y prefecture, providing 104 classes for its 2359 members. The current presentation bases its analysis on the numerous rounds of interviews and questionnaires answered by the club’s instructors and members, that were collected continuously since August 1999. The contents of club’s commemorative publications, and the recorded number of members and their pattern of distribution are the main source materials. Other, hitherto uncollected information were obtained through the aforementioned interviews. From those data, a chronological shift in number of staff could be drawn up, thus documenting the fluxion of coaching personnel, and therefore the structural change of the club as a whole.
055
Go Girl: A One Day Get Active Workshop
Joanne Gesell
InMotion Network, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
Physical inactivity represents a significant health burden in Canada. More than half of Canada's children and youth are not active enough for healthy growth and development. Teenaged girls are particularly prone to sedentary behavior during puberty, when their self image and confidence levels are challenged. Go Girl is a one day get active workshop in which teenaged girls are invited to see-and-try a variety of physical activities and sports. They also have the opportunity to participate in sessions and information on nutrition, body image and wellness issues. Go Girl is an opportunity for less active girls to move beyond some of the barriers to participating in physical activity. The objectives of this InMotion Network program are to: •Provide girls with a low cost, community based event in a supervised recreational setting •Provide opportunities for girls to actively engage in a variety of indoor and outdoor physical activities of choice, including both individual and team sports •Provide participants with essential information to pursue activities of their choice •Meet needs of girls of different ability/disability levels, ages and cultural backgrounds •Ensure a fun and inviting atmosphere along with opportunities for girls to socialize and meet new people. In 2004, 10 communities promoted and supported healthy, active lifestyles for teen girls in the province of Alberta. As a result of attending Go Girl events, over 1,000 girls experienced a range of physical activity adventures, met other teens and gained new friendships.
056
Female Soccer in Germany: Results of a Current Research Study
Marit Möehwald and Yvonne Weigelt
Friedrich-Alexander University, Erlangen-Nuremberg, Germany
Due to the demographic development and declining membership in soccer, the Deutsche Football Bund (German Soccer Association) expects to have a growth especially in the field of female soccer. The goal of this study is to unveil decisive factors that motivate or keep girls from a long-term membership in a soccer club. Based on the results, a sports-pedagogical concept for integrating more female members in soccer clubs has to be developed. The theoretical approach is carried out by social theoretical and environmental concepts of adolescence research as well as certain aspects of gender-studies. Qualitative methods (guideline based intensive interviews, N=31 and group interviews, N=2) have been applied to get the necessary information. The interviewed target group on the one hand consists of girls currently playing soccer as well as girls that have played and/or do not play soccer at all and on the other hand those who can be considered as experts (teachers and coaches). The evaluation was performed by qualitative content analysis according to Mayring. The results cover certain topics of the social, organizational, interactive and individual context concerning soccer-playing in local associations or at school. Finally, we propose several strategies to encourage/motivate more girls to play soccer, e.g. by promoting cooperations between schools and soccer clubs, providing better qualification for teachers/coaches etc.
SESSION IV: PAPERS
THEME: Changing Face of Women’s Sport: Cultural Perspectives
057
Participation of Venezuelan Women in Elite Sport
Rosa López de D'Amico and Josil Murillo
Universidad Pedagógica Experimental Libertador (UPEL), Maracay, Aragua, Venezuela
The purpose of this study is to analyze and compare the participation and performance of women in competitive sport (elite level) in Venezuela, particularly a case study in Aragua state as a representative region of Venezuelan sport population. The importance of this research is to know and analyze the tendencies and variables that have affected the practice of sport by women, besides it provides a theoretical framework to a practical problem in the Venezuelan sport. This study was based on the theoretical, philosophical and legal framework of sport. The methodology was addressed as a documental descriptive research with an important testimonial support basically from the media (newspaper and videos), archival review and interviews. The selective interview technique was applied to six (6) important women in the Venezuelan sport who have had experience as athletes, judges (referees), managers and coaches. A questionnaire was also applied to 40 participants; all of them were female athletes from different sports. For the purpose of this study, the results of three important sport events were chosen: 1) Bolivarian Games 2) Pan-American Games (Winnipeg 1999); and 3) National Junior Sport Games. According to this study the number of Venezuelan women who participate in competitive sport is less than men; the variables are related with sociocultural (stereotypes, mass media), religious, educational, technological and economical limitations. However, the performance female athletes have obtained, in the selected important sport events, is better than the ones of male athletes. Even though these results represent a case study, it is significant because it reflects a tendency not just in Aragua state, but in other two states and even more, in the Venezuelan sport. On the other hand all the data obtained provide and incredible input to continue exploring in this area specifically in the understanding of those variables that affect women participation in sport. Another conclusion of this research is that publications are needed in order to acknowledge the historical support and the influence of Venezue
