How young men shape their masculinity through sport.
For many of us, playing active sport peaks in our late teens or early 20s and then slowly descends due to a combination of increased responsibilities (partner, family) or work commitments (shift work, hours of work).
However, all of us look back on those ‘glory days’ with warm memories- that wonder-strike at Chester Hill Oval or that massive 6 over the bowler’s head playing for St. Thomas’. Better still, is watching the next generation (whether sons, daughters or grandchildren) take to the courts and fields to live their sporting dreams.
Young Men’s Health Research
Research published by scholars from Flinders University in South Australia has examined young males, masculinity and mental wellbeing through sport. Survey and interview questions were put to male cricket and AFL participants (aged 18-24 years) their families and coaches.
A series of themes emerged as the parents and young men provided answers to the interviewer. These themes are listed below.
Theme 1: The Sporting Club as a Second Family
Sporting clubs are a place for meeting and socialisation for both young men and family members. As one young man said (quotes taken directly from text),
“Like some of my teammates, I’ve had, like I said, like the old B grade captain. He is 40 years old, and I am 25. Like, he’s a real good mate, like there’s blokes that are 10 years older than me that I have been to their wedding and held their kids and all that sort of thing, and they’re really close mates, and I think it might be because of cricket, because cricket is such a shit game without those teammates to kind of lean on to get you through those tough times”.
The role the club performs in the structure of these young men’s lives was also observed by the parents. One father remarked,
“He definitely feels safe and I’m lucky I’ve got kids that speak about their feelings, and I’ve got one, my middle child suffers from anxiety and depression, so he feels safe around his sporting club. He uses it to deal with some of those issues”.
Theme 2: Shaping Young Men’s Identities
The researcher noted; ‘there were many comments by the parents and key stakeholders, such as coaches and the young males themselves, that implied the sporting club provided the opportunity to experience certain traditional male rites of passage and “become men”. One key club stakeholder observed,
“Coming through as a young kid even though as a 14-year-old I was still expected to be a man when I played senior cricket and still expected to act like a man when you were playing senior cricket. It doesn’t matter whether you were 14 or 40 you are still; I was still expected to be a man”.
It was also noted that sentiments were expressed that spoke of the sporting club as a nurturing space where young men could develop role-modelling and mentorship practices between older and more younger men.
“The reason why I’m so passionate about sport, and we’ve got to have a bit more of a care for it moving forward, is that it was good for me as a young kid. Between 11 and 17, I probably had male role models. My Mum and Dad parted ways when I was about 10 or 11, so my Mum, luckily, she felt so comfortable having good people around me, male role models at the cricket club”.
The sense of social connection to the club often extended well into a man’s life.
“The cricket club has been a very big influence on who I am as a human, and when I retire, like even when these older blokes retire and whatnot, I will still play because I kind of feel indebted to the club. I kind of feel like I owe them something”.
Theme 3: Respectful Relationships
Navigating relationships with older male teammates and young men of the same age is an aspect of club life that participants spoke of. The key relationship in most sports is between coach and player. A respectful coach was highly valued, as one young man observed,
“He’s always been honest with me with my feedback in games. So, I mean it’s sort of a two-way street. And I mean, yeah, it’s sort of put everything on the table. Nothing’s going to hurt anyone’s feelings. It’s going to just make him a better coach, or better players. So, I guess we’ve always had that mutual respect”.
Respectful coaches were seen as being ideal role-models to impressionable young men.
“The coach and I actually had about an hour conversation after a game once just on players, and who we reckon is going to play. And his coaching style, and where he needs to improve. And he got all this feedback from me, and I was quite surprised. I was like, “wow, I didn’t know he valued it (my opinion) that much”.
Theme 4: Communication & Transparency is Key
Honest and open communication in sporting clubs particularly surrounding promotion and demotion and the timing of this information was highlighted by some parents.
“You’re not actually selected until the day before, and often when it comes out on the Friday, it’s a whole different way of living. So, you would plan what you’re doing for the weekend, but you can’t when you play cricket. It comes out – the team is posted usually Friday morning. The kids are usually at school, so there’s no backup system to deal with if you’re dropped a grade or not, or whatever”
In addition to lack of communication regarding selections, the absence of selection transparency could affect individual young men’s development,
“There was a lack of open communication as to why they’re where they’re at. They would go for weeks, sometimes months at a time, where there’s no conversation with coaches about selection”.
Conclusion
The researchers in this study concluded their findings by noting that, ‘sport is a significant factor within the social construction of masculinity in males in western culture’. Sporting clubs are impressionable settings for impressionable minds, therefore sport has the opportunity to be an ‘important vehicle for change’.
Expert Opinion: Devlin Higgins (Accredited Exercise Physiologist).
The psycho-social health benefits of team sport is well documented.
Considering the health burdens experienced by young men in Australia and reduced help seeking behaviour, team sport is a good option not only for the physical health burden but for the ongoing and clear mental health burden.
The positive experiences of team sport is not unique to Australia. In Rohingya refugee camps in Cox’s Bazar, Bangladesh, Australian exercise physiology and psychological researchers have investigated informal cricket, ‘kolom’ (a type of volleyball) and soccer teams that have been formed there, with team members confirming that the team-based sport helped alleviate their stress. Community members unanimously reported “physical activity lifts tension and is a source of community psychosocial support” and “described how community football matches draw large crowds and help build ties within and between communities.”
While the physical, social and psychological benefits of team sport are positive in general; the culture of sporting teams are unpredictable and the pressure in competitive sport can be immense. While coaches, respected idols and teammates can often act as informal ‘counsellors’, there is possibly some work to be done to investigate how sport psychologists can be implemented into our local sporting teams, just as physiotherapists routinely are.
