Gyöngyi Szabó Földesi

Post-transformational trends in Hungarian sport (1995-2004)

Abstract The radical political and economic changes of 1989-1990 in Hungary affected all societal subsystems. In sport, there was no revolution from below, nor were there relevant reforms from above prior to the regime change. The aim of this article is to reveal the further development that is demonstrated by the post-transformational trends in Hungarian sport. The topic is approached from modernization perspectives. The information for the study was gained by various methods, such as the analysis of documents, in-depth interviews, and participant observation. The results are analysed in three major dimensions: over-politicization, re-centralization, and paternalism. The findings show that sport underwent changes in a very controversial manner, for they were incremental rather than discontinuous. Neither a modernized sport model nor a national sport strategy emerged, on the basis of which a new model should have been built. In Hungarian sport there seems to be an aversion and resistance to modernization. In conclusion the author states that Hungarian sport has won a few battles but lost the war. A more democratic and a truly modern direction in the institution of sport is still expected. The transformation of Hungarian sport continues.

Social and Demographic Characteristics of Hungarian Football Fans and their Motivations for Attending Matches

Since football, as the most popular sport, had special political functions in Hungary, the spectators enjoyed surprisingly high degree of freedom. However, their behavior was not allowed to report on either by researchers or journalists. This paper is based on an empirical survey that was ever carried out on this topic in the Eastern European region. The aim of the contribution is to give information about the main social and demographic characteristics of Hungarian football fans, about their motivations for attending first league matches as well as about their behavior in the stadia. Presenting the methods some special issues related to sampling are discussed. The methods for collecting the data were questionnaire, in-depth interview and participant observation. The findings show that in the early 1990s first league football matches were attended mostly by young (and old) men with low education, low social status, low motivation in connection with the game and relatively little knowledge on football. Finally the increasing of the gap between supply and demand is argued. In conclusion the author states: it is quite probable that though many Hungarian fans still like the football but they do not like the way it is. Sport and travel agencies underestimate the amount of time and money that the football supporters would be willing to spend on their hobby if it was organized and displayed in different way.

Introduction to Olympism in Sport Sociology

No doubt, if Francois Mauriac’s well-known old phrase proved to be true and the XXth century has been indeed &dquo;the strange century of sport&dquo;, the Olympic Movement has made an immense contribution to this process. And if sport has become really one of today’s largest social and cultural institution, it owes its existence to a very high degree to the rebirth and spread of the Olympic Games which had originally aimed at promoting not only&dquo; those physical qualities which are basis of sport&dquo;, but moral ones, too, and which has provided an opportunity for common physical activities, like running, throwing, jumping, swimming etc. to be metamorphosed into the symbols of international good will and mutual understanding.

Assessing the sociology of sport: on world inequalities and unequal development.

On the 50th anniversary of the ISSA and IRSS, a key foundational scholar to the development of the sociology of sport in Eastern Europe and the internationalization of the ISSA, Gyongyi Foldesi, considers the development of the sociology of sport in Eastern Europe. Foldesi considers the struggles of the sub-discipline in this setting, noting in particular distinctions in development from “sport sociology” to “sociology of sport” as studies increasingly embraced the “sociological imagination”. The essay notes three challenges for the sociology of sport: (1) questions over the value of multidisciplinarity; (2) ongoing debates over the definition of sport; and (3) how non-English speaking scholars can have a meaningful voice in the sociology of sport. The essay closes with a look to the future for sociology of sport in Eastern Europe, noting reasons for optimism given theoretical developments and more engagement with scholarship across the world.

East-West: The Practise of Sports as Revealing Aspects of French and Hungarian Societies

The same sociological study was carried out in Hungary and in France (C. Louveau and M. Metoudi 1987).

Declared Pedagogical Values of Coaches at Hungarian Football Academies

Abstract This paper is based on empirical research that was carried out in the total population of the coaches employed at Hungarian football academies (N=196). The main objectives of the investigation were to reveal the coaches’ opinions about some major pedagogical views and to discover whether they realize their declared pedagogical values or not. The methods for collecting the data were a self-administered questionnaire, analysis of documents, and semi-structured interviews. The results are presented according to the following sub-topics: The content and the structure of the coaches’ pedagogical values and the place of education in coaching effectiveness. Based on the findings, it is concluded that the disregard of pedagogical values can cause continuous harm to both the athletes and the coaches. The personality of young players suffering from educational and emotional neglect might develop in a one-sided manner. The effect of dysfunctional consequences with the coaches might prevent them from achieving their goals. In the worst case scenario, ignoring the young players’ education can hinder the realization of the coaches’ intended objectives and can result in unintended and adverse outcomes.

Gyöngyi Szabó Földesi as Scientist and University Teacher in Hungarian and International Perspective

Abstract This is the third article of the cycle of portraits of the members of the Editorial Board and Editorial Advisory Board of the journal Physical Culture and Sport. Studies and Research, who are eminent social scientists researching the issue of sport. Among them, there are many world-class professors, rectors and deans of excellent universities, founders, presidents and secretaries-general of continental and international scientific societies and editors of high-scoring journals related to social sciences focusing on sport. The journal Physical Culture and Sport. Studies and Research started its activities in 2008 and gathered many readers, distinguished authors and outstanding reviewers. It is worth taking a moment to present the profiles of the individual editors, thanks to whom the journal keeps getting better and better. The journal is increasingly appreciated internationally particular among the scientists from the humanist and social areas of investigations. The rapidly increasing number of its readers and its surprisingly wide reception, indicated by the number of visits and downloads in English-speaking countries, including hundreds of universities (up to 791 were interested in the content of issue 62 of our magazine), research institutes and related libraries, as well as academics, researchers and students, should be celebrated. These data are derived only from one bibliographic data base (EBSCO). It must be noted that the journal is indexed in 41 bases.

Effects of Regional Inequalities on the Sporting Activity of School Pupils: The Hungarian Case

Abstract In this study, the sporting activity of Hungarian school pupils is investigated with a focus on regional differences. The objective of the paper is to answer the following questions: Are there regional differences in pupils’ sporting activity, and, if yes, what is their relationship with the socio-cultural background of the pupils and the infrastructural and staffing conditions of schools? Has the 2012 introduction of daily physical education had a different effect on pupils’ leisure-time sporting activity in disadvantaged and affluent regions? Can the trends in the sporting activity of pupils be characterized as convergent or divergent since the introduction of daily physical education? The paper is based on an extensive study that relies on the most comprehensive database on physical education in schools, the National Assessment of Basic Competencies (NABC). The present study statistically analyzed eighth-grade pupil and school data from the 2010 and 2014 NABC. The results present the regional differences in pupils’ participation in sporting activity, their recent modification, and the main reasons behind the changes. In conclusion, the authors state that social, economic, and cultural inequalities are not clearly reflected in the sporting activity of students; however, certain data still call attention to the need to examine regional differences.

Post-transformational Trends in Hungarian Sport (1995-2004)

Post-transformational Trends in Hungarian Sport (1995-2004) The radical political and economic changes of 1989-1990 in Hungary affected all societal subsystems. In sport there was neither revolution from below nor relevant reforms from above prior to the regime change. The aim of this paper is to present the further development that are the post-transformational trends in Hungarian sport. The topic is approached from modernization perspectives. The information for the study was gained by various methods, such as analysis of documents, in-depth interviews, and participant observation. The results are analysed by three major dimensions: over-politicization, re-centralization, and paternalism. The findings show that the changes in sport were undergone in a very controversial manner, they were rather incremental than discontinuous. Neither a modernized sport model nor a national sport strategy on the basis of which a new model should have been built was founded. In Hungarian sport there seems to be an aversion and resistance to modernization. In conclusion the author states that Hungarian sport won a few battles, but it lost the war. A more democratic and a truly modern turnaround in the institution of sport is still expected. The transformation of Hungarian sport is continuing.

Can We Talk about European Public Policy in the Field of Sport

Can We Talk about European Public Policy in the Field of Sport? Despite the continuous deepening, development and enlargement, the members of the European Union still diverge in their policies and have to find a way to diminish this divergence. The social, economical and cultural significance of sport is well known in the whole of Europe. Accordingly, in the recent past, the various institutions of the European Union have come to pay more attention to sport issues. An important milestone of this was the European Commission issuing a White Paper on sport, and the inclusion of sport in the Lisbon Treaty. However the question is raised: Is there a European public policy of sport? The authors objective was to investigate this question. This paper aims to highlight the European sport policy and tries to find the answer to the following question: can we talk about European public policy in the field of sport? The research examines through the analysis of documents whether sport can be regarded as an element of public policy. We can talk about common public policy of a certain area if it corresponds to the following five criteria: content, social competence, coercive factor, normative orientation and programme. In the first part, the content and the social competence are analyzed, and then some critical issues of the definition, namely of the public policy will be discussed. In the opinion of the author, the most problematic criterion is the programme, which presumes at least a mid-term European sport conception. It is especially important that sport could fulfil its community building, identity-forming role to which it is suited in the continuously enlarging Europe. Finally the author draws the conclusion that the European sport policy corresponds partly to the above-mentioned criteria; however, the realization of the Pierre de Coubertin Action Plan included in the White Paper, and the ratification of the Lisbon Treaty can create opportunities for sport to become a public policy of the European Union.