Andrew R. Meyer

The contemporary muscular Christian instrument: A scale developed for contemporary sport

Social scientists have conducted quantitative research investigations since at least the early 1980s. However, to date no valid, reliable and objective survey instrument has been developed for sport sociologists to measure important religious ideals in contemporary sport. Historical and theoretical scholarship identifies muscular Christianity as primary to modern sport ideals. Therefore we developed and validated The Contemporary Muscular Christian Instrument, an easily distributable survey that measures the prevalence of muscular Christian values among contemporary participants and consumers of recreation and sport. Our aim in developing this quantitative instrument is to provide social sport scholars a research tool that informs their understanding of these muscular Christian values as they continue to influence notions of sport, recreation, the body, physical activity, and other social indices. This valid and reliable scale allows scholars to examine larger populations and provides data suited to identify differences in levels of the constructs measured, thus allowing researchers and theorists alike to deepen their understanding of the relationship sport and religion have in the globalized social context.

Radical Orthodoxy and the Emergence of Spiritual Hero-Athletes: Examining Lance Armstrong's “Illness” Narrative

This essay examines how stories of overcoming illness are important components of popular narratives, media representations, and cultural understandings surrounding American hero–athletes such as Lance Armstrong and his portrayal as a cancer survivor. Understood through the theology of radical orthodoxy, Armstrongs experience with cancer put him at the center of the global effort to fight cancer and, in turn, he arguably became a figure imbued with latent spiritualistic themes. This essay identifies, offers examples of, and critiques how illness narratives lend spiritual attractiveness to hero-athletes. The theory of radical orthodoxy, as presented in the writings of scholars such as Graham Ward and John Milbank, will be utilized to examine the hero-athlete, Armstrong. As Ward (2000, p. 214) states, hero-athletes, such as Armstrong, are examples of angelic hosts who “re-enchant” the world with a “theological imaginary.” In conclusion, while Armstrongs athletic accomplishments, illness, recovery, and subsequent charity work through the Livestrong Foundation may have some spiritually and religiously significant “imagery” with regard to legitimizing the “hero–athlete” rhetoric in the contemporary western sport context, when gazing through the lens of radical orthodoxy these activities are largely “spiritually empty” and “idolatrous in nature,”

An Examination of the Situational Factors Associated with the Misuse of Prescription Analgesics among College Students.

The current study examined the effect that students’ educational environment has on the prevalence and motivations associated with the misuse of prescription analgesics (MPA). A sample of 893 undergraduate students was recruited from one religiously affiliated private university and one public university in the Southern United States. Participants completed an in-class survey assessing MPA-related behavior and their associated motivations. Results indicated that students attending the religiously affiliated university displayed lower rates of MPA. Multivariate analyses revealed that a positive drug abuse screening, prescription status, and grade point average are the strongest predictors of past-year MPA for both schools. Some motivations for medical misuse differed significantly between campuses. Implications as to how these differences can inform programs aimed at the reduction of prescription analgesic abuse are discussed.

One dark night with the sole: examining spiritual sport experiences amongst recreational endurance runners

Abstract Examinations of spiritual experiences and holistic approaches towards athletes and sport experiences often identify catharsis and flow as important theoretical constructs. However, empirical data supporting these theoretical discussions is sparse. This is partly due to the difficulty of defining, or identifying ‘spiritual experiences’. Our study examined recreational endurance runners competing in a 120-mile team relay race. Through post-race interviews and open-ended surveys, participants reported that the race was a deeply meaningful and personally powerful experience, experienced inward reflections, and acknowledged their connections to larger external realities. We identified three themes related to these experiences: the impact of a one-time race experience; the organic development of the spiritual experience; and feeling completely alone and yet fully connected. This study informs the growing understanding of how physically strenuous endurance athletic events can positively influence an athlete’s mental and spiritual well-being and provide a more holistic understanding of such experiences.

Bringing Service Into Science: Community-Engaged Service-Learning for Undergraduate and Graduate Epidemiology Students

Service-learning is an effective and important teaching pedagogy for public health students that bridges classroom learning with meaningful practice in an effort to meet a community’s needs. Undergraduate and graduate epidemiology courses provide unique opportunities for experiential service-learning in public health education. However, best practices and effective examples for implementing and evaluating such experiences have been limited, leaving instructors seeking guidance. The purpose of this study was to describe the methods for developing and evaluating community-partnered service-learning activities in introductory graduate and undergraduate epidemiology courses. We present qualitative and quantitative findings from student assessment evaluations of three distinct service-learning activities over three separate semesters. Findings suggest that service-learning activities are highly valued by students and often represent their first experiences in population health research and primary data collection. Our findings also indicate that these initial experiences are opportune times for students to learn effective and important lessons for conducting health research as well as meaningfully engaging in their community. For health course instructors, the authors provide a timeline for developing such service-learning projects and describe techniques for overcoming challenges that arise in service-learning activity development and implementation.

Measurement of muscular Christian ideals in sport: Validation of the Contemporary Muscular Christian Instrument

Muscular Christianity’s influential role in establishing Western sport values and ideals during the 19th century has long been acknowledged by sport scholars. Yet these relatively dated sets of physical moral constructs are rarely understood as having lasting relevance, or as forming part of the contemporary attraction to sport, and thus have been missing in critical sociological analyses of sport. While shown to be valid and reliable, initial results from developing the Contemporary Muscular Christian Instrument (CMCI) also suggested that modifications to item wording could enhance readability and capture all six theorized factors of muscular Christianity, supported by literature. The current scale development study is aimed to strengthen the instrument and verify its structural validity and internal consistency among a more diverse sample population: spectators at the 2014 Tour de France. Following data collection and cleaning of data, a confirmatory factor analysis was conducted, and internal consistencies were examined. Results indicate strong support for the structural validity of the revised 20-item, 6-factor CMCI, showing strong factor loadings across all items and acceptable internal consistencies for all six-theorized factors. Findings among this international sample of sport spectators suggest that historic muscular Christian themes used to develop this instrument continue to shape and influence perceptions of what is deemed good, right, and valuable in sport. Our findings point to the importance of understanding these six moral constructs as contemporary discussions on the social value and importance of such activities evolve. The revised CMCI provides sociologists of sport a tool by which to examine theorized muscular Christian constructs, promoting certain values about sport and its social “good,” and allows for further investigation into sports’ social significance, meanings, and values within related topics. This paper details the improvements to the survey instrument, the CFA results, and recommendations for future application and research using the survey instrument.

Constructing Positive Meanings in Cancer: Coping Resources and Cancer Survivors’ Job Loss

Utilizing Lazarus & Folkman’s (1984) cognitive appraisal model of stress coping, we examined how resources facilitating emotion-focused coping versus problem-focused coping will influence cancer su...

How Can We Help? The Role of the Local Church and Other Religious Organizations When the Games Come to Town

Examining how faith-based organizations engage with local communities during mega-sporting events offer unique opportunities for positive social initiatives different from ordinary outreach. Our investigation of the 2012 London Olympic Games reveals how, consistent with ecumenical aims, this mega-sporting event provided outreach opportunities for local religious and para-church organizations to meet their communitys needs through relational meetings, consistent with the virtue of hospitality. Our findings detail that while mega-sporting events are fraught with moral and social issues, often disrupting the infrastructure of the host city had the event not happened, these outreach efforts also would not have occurred. Our findings and discussion reveal how faith-based organizations can provide communities with vital resources and positive social support through relational meetings before, during, and after the Games come to town.