Laurel R. Davis-Delano

Apologetic Behavior Among Female Athletes A New Questionnaire and Initial Results

Most studies that report apologetic behavior by female athletes employ observation or in-depth interviews. Although these studies provide great insight, they do not enable us to systematically compare apologetic behavior across a wide variety of athletes, sports, geographical locations, and time periods. The authors developed a questionnaire for such comparative purposes. The authors then used this questionnaire to study apologetic behavior on three collegiate teams. Most respondents reported that they either engaged in numerous apologetic behaviors on an occasional basis or a few apologetic behaviors on a more regular basis. The most common apologetic behaviors involved efforts to look feminine, apologize for aggression, and mark themselves as heterosexual. Softball players engaged in more apologetic behavior than soccer and basketball players. The authors urge others to utilize this questionnaire for comparative purposes.

Using Social Movement Theory To Study Outcomes in Sport-Related Social Movements

In this study, we systematically examine the relevance of five bodies of social movement theory to the outcomes of two sport-related social movements — struggles over funding of sport facilities and struggles over Native American mascots. Thirty-eight themes were culled from the five bodies of social movement theory and explored via 83 semi-structured interviews with social movement and countermovement actors from 20 different sites in the United States. Surprisingly, we found only eight of the 38 themes that we studied are pivotal to the outcomes of both social movements. The analysis also reveals that no single theoretical approach adequately explains the outcomes of both movements. Parts of Resource Mobilization theory are useful, while Political Process and Cultural theories offer the most explanatory power. We find that a few internal aspects of social movement groups interact with some cultural and structural forces external to these groups to shape social movement outcomes. Sport sociologists are urged to continue the systematic study of social movement theory, but to move beyond the limitations of this study to focus on other social movements, geographical locations, and aspects of social movements.

Eliminating Native American Mascots Ingredients for Success

Many scholars have written about the problems with Native American mascots. Yet no scholar has systematically studied what factors affect the outcomes of struggles over Native American mascots. In this study, the author compares seven cases in which Native American mascots were eliminated to seven cases, where they in which retained to discover factors that affect these outcomes. In all 14 cases, the author interviewed two opponents and two supporters of the mascots. In this article, the author not only describe her findings, the factors that influence outcomes of struggles over Native American mascots, but also utilizes these findings to make concrete suggestions for activists and practitioners who are attempting to eliminate these mascots.

Sport as context for the development of women's same-sex relationships.

Based on semistructured interviews with 56 women who had at least one same-sex relationship prior to age 30, I conclude that sport both nurtures, and to a lesser degree hinders, development of these relationships. Homophobia on particular teams, sometimes triggered by the masculine reputation of sport, often hindered the development of these women’s same-sex attractions/relationships. In contrast, sport often nurtured these attractions/relationships due to its: sex-segregation, demonstration of women’s capabilities, lack of heteronormative climate, emotional intensity, time-consuming nature, and similarity-inducing tendencies. In addition, sport more often nurtured these attractions/relationships when lesbian/bisexuals were present, teams were accepting of same-sex relationships, and the sport was perceived as gender neutral. I discuss the occupation of coaching, and the sport of softball, relative to these more general trends.

Heterosexual Marking and Binary Cultural Conceptions of Sexual Orientation

Abstract In this article, the authors focus on cultural conceptions of sexual orientation revealed through their examination of heterosexual marking. Heterosexual marking consists of behaviors believed to convey heterosexual status, regardless of intent and accuracy. Data is from 12 focus groups with 57 young adults. The authors found that a common motive for heterosexual marking is to fend off the possibility that one could be perceived as gay or lesbian, and that some behaviors used to mark heterosexuality involve direct conveyance that one is not gay or lesbian. The authors also describe various ways that the heterosexual marking system delineated by participants obscures the existence of bisexuality and other nonbinary sexual identities. The authors conclude that this system reflects and reinforces antonymous and dichotomous conceptions of sexual orientation. Lastly, the authors discuss these findings in relation to past research and highlight the significance of these findings for the identity practices of bisexuals and others.

Characteristics of Activities That Affect the Development of Women’s Same-Sex Relationships

The author utilized semistructured interviews with 56 women to explore how a wide range of activities affected the development of the participants’ same-sex attractions and relationships. The researcher was able to identify and describe some aspects of the process by which eight characteristics of activities that are more or less present in various social contexts have the potential to impact whether these contexts are more or less conducive or hindering to the development of women’s same-sex attractions and relationships. Activities were more apt to nurture the development of the participants’ same-sex attractions and relationships when the activity (a) included lesbians, (b) was composed primarily of women, (c) affirmed women, (d) facilitated bonding, (e) featured a climate of acceptance of lesbians/gays/bisexuals, (f) did not feature a climate that emphasized heteronormativity, (g) was perceived as gender neutral, and (h) generated or drew participants who were similar to each other.

Heterosexual Identity Management: How Social Context Affects Heterosexual Marking Practices

ABSTRACT It is well established that heterosexism shapes identity management practices of sexual minorities in the United States, but we know little about how such social forces shape heterosexual identity management. This exploratory research is focused on heterosexual marking, defined as behaviors interpreted as signifying a heterosexual identity. Using data from 12 focus groups with young adults, we provide an overview of heterosexual marking in a northeastern United States context and explain how three social forces—cultural assumptions of heterosexuality, sexual orientation ambiguity and suspicion, and heterosexism—are intertwined with these identity practices. Results indicated that this social context generates heterosexual marking that is sometimes intentional and conscious but at other times unintentional and unconscious, depending on levels of heteronormativity and heterosexism.

When Heterosexuality is Questioned: Stifling Suspicion Through Public Displays of Heterosexual Identity

ABSTRACT This study examined public heterosexual identity management practices of heterosexual-identified young adults in the United States. Analysis of 415 participants’ written narratives indicated that 41% (n = 169) described consciously engaging in public displays of their heterosexual status in relation to suspicion about their sexual orientation. This article describes our findings regarding five aspects of these narratives of suspicion: types of suspicion, causes of suspicion, reasons for concern about suspicion, the types of public displays of heterosexual status employed to quell suspicion, and intended audiences for these displays. Overall, the results indicated that heterosexual identity suspicion is multifaceted, this suspicion serves as a catalyst for public displays of heterosexual status, and the climate of suspicion described by our participants reflects and reinforces contemporary heterosexism.

Summer camp as context for girls’ and women’s same-sex attractions and relationships

Abstract This article focuses on the leisure activity of summer camp as a context that nurtured the development of 23 female camp participants’ romantic or sexual attractions toward and relationships with other females. Results of analysis of oral surveys with participants indicated that five aspects of the camps nurtured the development of these participants’ attractions toward and relationships with other females: (a) enabling significant time spent with others, (b) generating emotional intensity, (c) occurring during key developmental periods while embedded in a youthful context, (d) including climates with low levels of homophobia and heteronormativity, and (e) including climates that challenged gender expectations. Findings from this exploratory project add to the literature on aspects of youth leisure contexts (specifically camp), extend the concept of social development in leisure research to romantic development, and broaden the literature on couple formation in leisure contexts. Implications for research and practice are discussed.