Cultural influence on sport development (Essay Sample)

Cultural influence on sport development
Name
Institution
Cultural influence on sport development
Culture is perhaps the single factor that has the greatest influence on sport. The reason for that is that culture is behavioral influence. Though culture does not determine the sport, it influences how the community perceives and accepts the sport. In this respect, sport is a product of culture (Jarvie, 2013). For instance, football has traditionally been played by men, though the recent gender equality changes have encouraged more women to play football.
Culture influences sport through three key features. Firstly, dominant ideology determines the opportunities afforded for the involvement in a sport. In this case, the presentation of the sport limits whether it is accepted by the local communities. For that matter, if the sport were perceived as unworthy of attention then it would be unpopular in the area (Duncan, 2004). For instance, bull fighting is popular in Spain but unpopular in other countries. In this respect, the dominant ideology governs whether the sport is accepted or not.
Secondly, the sport personalities are key in promoting the sport. In this case, endorsement limits who engages in the sport. For that matter, the endorsement identifies the most skilled personalities and correlates them with the sport thereby creating a stereotypical differentiation (Aledda, Fabbris & Spallino, 2006). For instance, short distance running – such as the 100 and 200 meters – have been synonymous with athletes from the Caribbean and United States. Thus, whichever way the sport personalities are perceived determines how the sport is received in the locality.
Finally, social institutions’ emphasis on the elite nature and mass participation of a sport determines its popularity. In this case, the social institutions create a hierarchical system for sports (Giardina & Donnelly, 2012). For instance, polo is perceived as a sport for the more af...