The effects of social class on participation in sport

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Sport Culture & Society Summative Essay

The Effects of Social Class on Participation in Sport

This essay is going to look at how social class affects sport participation in relation to the stratified nature of our society today. I will try to explain how social inequalities have been challenged and perpetuated, and how this impacts people's participation.

Are people free to participate in whichever sport they choose? On the whole the answer is NO. Social class is often a fundamental determinant of what sports certain people can play/participate in. There are many sociological theories that try to explain the mechanics of society. In terms of social class Marxism is perhaps the best way of explaining the various social mechanisms involved with sports participation. According to Coakley (2007) Marxism (conflict theory) describes society as a system of structures and relationships shaped by economic forces. The theory proposes that sports promote economic exploitation and capitalist expansion, and perpetuate power and privilege of elite groups in society.

Society today is stratified/arranged into layers of social classes. Social class refers to categories of people who share a position in society based on: Income, wealth, education, occupation