SPORT & INTERNATIONAL
DEVELOPMENT
Introduction to Course + History of Globalization of Economies &
Sport
SPMT 651 - Spring 2014
Meghan Ferriter, Ph.D.
mferrite@gmu.edu
27 January 2014

WELCOME!
•
SPMT 651: Sport & International Development
•
Mondays - 7:20 pm - 10:00 pm
•
Enterprise Hall 77
•
January 27 - May 14

COURSE OBJECTIVES
We will explore historical and contemporary events,
perspectives, and applied approaches to sport and
international development, in order to:
1. explain international economic development strategies.
2. describe the theoretical underpinnings in development studies.
3. analyze the role of the globalization in international development.
4. explain how sport fits into development studies and practices.
5. outline the role of international sport organizations in developing
countries.
6. demonstrate how sport can foster development within societies.
7. conduct research on a specific sport and development issue.

READINGS
Darnell, S. (2012). Sport for development and peace: A critical sociology. London:
Bloomsbury.
Gibbs, T., & Leech, G. (2009). The failure of global capitalism. Nova Scotia, Canada:
Cape Breton University Press.
Levermore, R., & Beacom, A. (Eds.). (2009). Sport and international development.
Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan.
Pillay, U., Tomlinson, R., & Bass, O. (Eds.). (2009). Development and dreams:The
urban legacy of the 2010 Football World Cup. Pretoria: HSRC Press. Free
download available at:
http://www.hsrcpress.ac.za/product.php?cat=24&freedownload=1&productid=2259
Other assigned articles available via the E-Journals collection at Mason.

COURSE CALENDAR
Date
Topic
February 3
The Global Economy and the Concept of “Development.”
February 10
Histories of Sport in the Colonial Era
February 17
Understanding the Role of Sport in Liberation Politics
February 24
Sport and Development: Mapping the Field and Introduction of Sport & International Development
Communication Platforms
March 3
The Emergence of Development Studies and Development Theories.
March 10
(Spring Break)
March 17
Research Posters and Presentations: Case Study of Sport and Development
March 24
Development in Practice: Theory to Action
March 31
Ways of Doing Sport Development
April 7
Gender and Sport Development
April 14
International Organizations and Sport Development
April 21
Mega-Events and Sport in Development
April 28
Future Directions for Sport and Development
May 5
Review of Sport and International Development

MORE INTROS
•
Me: Cultural Anthropologist/Sociologist (PhD&BA) & Historian
(MA/BA)
•
Identity, Discourse, Communication, Media, Cultural Studies,
Community, Narrative, Online Communities, Digital Studies, Digital
Humanities, Knowledge production, Wikipedia…and more
•
Project Coordinator - Smithsonian Institution Transcription Center
- Collaborative transcription & review to unlock, then make
available all kinds of knowledge: discovery, community, history,
science, art

PATRON OR SPECTATOR?
Absorbing Olympics Discourses:
Amateurism, Nationalism, Equality, Fair Play, and
Nostalgia

TOP RESEARCH QUESTIONS
•
In what ways do people become and remain fans of sport and
communicate with each other using digital tools and technologies?
•
In what ways are the cultural meanings of professional sport
associated with gender, ethnicity, and age changing in the UK and
the US in the context of international social processes?
•
In an international environment of modernization, technological
advance,and restructured economic and political hierarchies, in
what ways did Irish nationalists react to internal and external
catalysts to create a sustained identity?

TELL ME MORE
•
About You and Your Interests, Please!
•
Program & focus, Objectives, Plans or interests in
Sport Management/Development, etc
•
How can we make this course best augment your
career goals?

INTERNATIONAL
DEVELOPMENT
• “…the
processes by which there is an attempt to
improve life chances throughout the world but
particularly in countries considered to be “lowincome”.”
Levermore & Beacom (2012: 7)

DEVELOPMENT
•
suggests linear movement
•
discourses of “progress” + “modernization”
•
rooted in religious, political, & economic contexts
•
grew out of imperialism::colonialism, race for
trade, and entrenched social-political
relationships

A LOT OF DICHOTOMIES
•
Global vs. Local
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Cosmopolitan (Center) vs. Periphery
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Modern vs. Traditional
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West vs. “Global South”
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Capitalism vs. Communism
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Amateur vs. Professional

CONCEPTS OF NOTE
•
Globalization
“the intensification of world-wide social relationships which link
distant places in such a way that local happenings are shaped
by events occurring many miles away and vice-versa”
- Giddens in Beynon & Dunkerley (2000: 64).
•
New? … Not really
•
Suggested as constant, rapidly increasing & intensifying
•
Reinforces/Defines: LOCAL v GLOBAL & understanding
of world

CONCEPTS OF NOTE
Imperialism
“…an unequal human and territorial relationship, usually in the
form of an empire, based on ideas of superiority and practices
of dominance, and involving the extension of authority and
control of one state or people over another.”
- Gregory et al (2009: 373)
Concept/Project
Practice
“(The) establishment, exploitation, maintenance, acquisition, and
expansion of colonies in one territory by people from another
territory… (featuring) a set of unequal relationships between the
colonial power and the colony and often between the colonists and
the indigenous population.”
Colonialism

COLONIALISM
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repressive vs PROGRESSIVE
•
much of what we’ll explore stems from
philosophical positions of PROGRESSIVE
COLONIALISM
•
critique of perspectives, including anthropological
approaches

IF THIS IS THE HISTORY…
Does that mean Development is GOOD or BAD?
GOOD
BAD
improving infrastructure, health, &
living conditions
reinforcing global power
relationships, in favor of “West”
empowering people
creating new hierarchies
stabilizing political systems
limiting access to resources
(controlled/rationed)
addressing systemic abuse and
inequality
destabilizing/ losing ways of life
& damaging cultural heritage

HMMM
So, does this bode well for Sport and International
Development??
The Answer: “It’s Complicated…”
That’s what we’re here to critically
analyze, study, and address - through
our discussions and research

GLOBALIZATION & SPORT
•
What kinds of sport do we mean?
•
amateur, local, national, professional, Olympic
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with intersecting gender, racial(ized), ethnic, and national identities
•
Globalization of sport invents, reinforces, and exposes relationships
between nations, regions, and political-economic approaches
•
Actors include media, marketing, politics, economic interventions,
social exchange, and of course THE SPORTS THEMSELVES

ALWAYS CONSIDER
•
Questions to Ask:
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Who benefits and how?
•
Who brings which resources?
•
What happens after?
•
In all projects, there are social actors grounded perspectives, historical patterns, and
cultural contexts
•
WHY is this important?
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Because the ways we understand and interact with each other and the world, plus
our actions and activities - including sport - are socially constructed … it can
change!

THINKING IN THIS WAY…
Allows us
•
to question what we think is normal, natural, or
obvious and
•
challenge our assumptions by problematizing
power relations

NEXT WEEK
On 03 February, we’ll discuss issues & debates surrounding:
The Global Economy and the Concept of “Development.”
Reading:
Gibbs, T., & Leech, G. (2009). The Failure of Global Capitalism.