Abstract
The purpose of this paper is to introduce the Special Issue on gender and sex diversity in sport organizations. In doing so, we first provide a brief outline of the extant literature, emphasizing the research and theoretical developments at the macro, meso, and micro level of analysis. Based on this framework and review, we allude to the communalities and intricacies in the existing understanding of sex and gender in the sport workplace. Further, we highlight how the contributions in the Special Issue address these voids and can serve as a catalyst to continued scholarly work in the area.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Acosta, R. V., & Carpenter, L. J. (2006). Women in intercollegiate sport: A longitudinal study—twenty nine year update-1977–2006. Unpublished manuscript, Brooklyn College, Brooklyn, NY.
Aitchison, C., Jordan, F., & Brackenridge, C. (1999). Women in leisure management: A survey on gender equity. Women in Management Review, 14(4), 121–127.
Anderson, E. (2008). “Being masculine is not about who you sleep with...:” Heterosexual athletes contesting masculinity and the one-time rule of homosexuality. Sex Roles, 58, 1–2.
Anderson, K. (2001). Where are all the women coaches? Sports Illustrated for Women, 3(1), 86–91 January/February.
Angelini, J. R., (2008). How did sport make you feel? Looking at three dimensions of emotion through a gender lens. Sex Roles, 58, 1–2.
Avery, D. R., Tonidandel, S., & Phillips, M. G. (2008). Similarity on sports sidelines: How mentor–protégé sex similarity affects mentoring. Sex Roles, 58, 1–2.
Becker, G. S. (1993). Human capital. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.
Benschop, Y. (2006). Of small steps and the longing for giant leaps: Research on the intersection of sex and gender within workplaces and organizations. In A. M. Knorad, P. Prasad, & J. K. Pringle (Eds.) Handbook of workplace diversity (pp. 273–298). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
Bruening, J. E., & Dixon, M. A. (2008). Situating work–family negotiations with a life course perspective: Insights on the gendered experiences of NCAA Division I head coaching mothers. Sex Roles, 58, 1–2.
Claringbould, I., & Knoppers, A. (2008). Doing and undoing gender in sport governance. Sex Roles, 58, 1–2.
Claringbould, I., & Knoppers, A. (2007). Finding a ‘normal’ woman: Selection processes for board membership. Sex Roles, 56, 495–507.
Cunningham, G. B. (2007). Diversity in sport organizations. Scottsdale, AZ: Holcomb-Hathaway.
Cunningham, G. B. (2008). Creating and sustaining gender diversity in sport organizations. Sex Roles, 58, 1–2.
Cunningham, G. B., Doherty, A. J., & Gregg, M. J. (2007). Using social cognitive career theory to understand head coaching intentions among assistant coaches of women’s teams. Sex Roles, 56, 365–372.
Cunningham, G. B., & Fink, J. S. (2006). Diversity issues in sport and leisure: Introduction to a special issue. Journal of Sport Management, 20, 455–465.
Cunningham, G. B., & Sagas, M. (2002). The differential effects of human capital for male and female Division I basketball coaches. Research Quarterly for Exercise and Sport, 73, 489–495.
Cunningham, G. B., Sagas, M., & Ashley, F. B. (2003). Coaching self-efficacy, desire to head coach, and occupational turnover intent: Gender differences between NCAA assistant coaches of women’s teams. International Journal of Sport Psychology, 34, 125–137.
Dixon, M. A., & Cunningham, G. B. (2006). Multi-level analysis in sport management: Conceptual issues and review of aggregation techniques. Measurement in Physical Education and Exercise Science, 10(2), 85–107.
Dixon, M. A., & Sagas, M. (2007). The relationship between organizational support, work–family conflict, and the job-life satisfaction of university coaches. Research Quarterly for Exercise & Sport, 78, 236–247.
Eisenberger, R., Huntington, R., Hutchison, S., & Sowa, D. (1986). Perceived organizational support. Journal of Applied Psychology, 71, 500–507.
Fielding-Lloyd, B., & Mean, L. J. (2008). Standards and separatism: The discursive construction of gender in English soccer coach education. Sex Roles, 58, 1–2.
Fink, J. S. (2008). Gender and sex diversity in sport organizations: Concluding remarks. Sex Roles, 58, 1–2.
Fink, J. S., Pastore, D. L., & Riemer, H. A. (2001). Do differences make a difference? Managing diversity in Division IA intercollegiate athletics. Journal of Sport Management, 15, 10–50.
Fink, J. S., Trail, G. T., & Anderson, D. F. (2002). Environmental factors associated with spectator attendance and sport consumption behavior. Gender and team differences. Sport Marketing Quarterly, 11, 8–19.
Frisby, W. (2005). The good, the bad, and the ugly. Critical sport management research. Journal of Sport Management, 19, 1–12.
Frisby, W., Crawford, S., & Dorer, T. (1997). Reflections on participatory action research: The case of low-income women accessing local physical activity services. Journal of Sport Management, 11, 8–28.
Hall, M. A., Cullen, D., & Slack, T. (1989). Organizational elites recreating themselves: The gendered structure of national sport organizations. Quest, 41, 28–45.
Hart, B. A., Hasbrook, C. A., & Mathes, S. A. (1986). An examination of the reduction in the number of female interscholastic coaches. Research Quarterly for Exercise and Sport, 57, 68–77.
Hearn, J., & Collinson, D. (2006). Men, masculinities and workplace diversity/diversion: Power, intersections and contradictions. In A. M. Knorad, P. Prasad, & J. K. Pringle (Eds.) Handbook of workplace diversity (pp. 299–322). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
Hoeber, L. (2008). Gender equity for athletes: Multiple understandings of an organizational value. Sex Roles, 58, 1–2.
Hoeber, L. & Frisby, W. (2001). Gender equity for athletes: Rewriting the narrative for this organizational value. European Sport Management Quarterly, 1, 179–209.
Humphreys, B. R. (2000). Equal pay on the hardwood: The earnings gap between male and female NCAA Division I basketball coaches. Journal of Sports Economics, 1, 299–307.
Knoppers, A. (1987). Gender and the coaching profession. Quest, 39, 3–22.
Knoppers, A. (1992). Explaining male dominance and sex segregation in coaching: Three approaches. Quest, 44, 210–227.
Knoppers, A., & Anthonissen, A. (2008). Gendered managerial discourses in sport organizations: Multiplicity and complexity. Sex Roles, 58, 1–2.
Knoppers, A., Meyer, B. B., Ewing, M., & Forrest, L. (1991). Opportunity and work behavior in college coaching. Journal of Sport and Social Issues, 10, 1–20.
Kozlowski, S. W. J., & Klein, K. J. (2000). A multilevel approach to theory and research in organizations: Contextual, temporal, and emergent processes. In K. J. Klein, & S. W. J. Kozlowski (Eds.) Multilevel theory, research, and methods in organizations: Foundations, extensions, and new directions (pp. 3–90). San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
Lent, R. W., Brown, S. D., & Hackett, G. (1994). Toward a unifying social cognitive theory of career and academic interest, choice, and performance. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 45, 79–122.
Lovett, D. J., & Lowry, C. D. (1994). “Good old boys” and “good old girls” clubs: Myth or reality? Journal of Sport Management, 8, 27–35.
Lowry, C. D., & Lovett, D. J. (1997). Women coaches: Does when dictate why they leave? Applied Research in Coaching and Athletics Annual, 1997, 35–53.
Messner, M., & Sabo, D. (1990). Sport, men, and the gender order. Champaign, IL: Human Kinetics.
Meyerson, D. E., & Kolb, D. M. (2000). Moving out of the “armchair”: Developing a framework to bridge the gap between feminist theory and practice. Organization, 7, 553–571.
Nordhaug, O. (1993). Human capital in organizations. New York: Oxford.
Parker, H. M., & Fink, J. S. (2008). The effect of sport commentator framing on consumer attitudes. Sex Roles, 58, 1–2.
Ross, S. R., & Shinew, K. J. (2008). Perspectives of women college athletes on sport and gender. Sex Roles, 58, 1–2.
Sagas, M., & Batista, P. J. (2001). The importance of Title IX compliance on the job satisfaction and occupational turnover intent of intercollegiate coaches. Applied Research in Coaching and Athletics Annual, 16, 15–43.
Sagas, M., & Cunningham, G. B. (2004). Does having the “right stuff” matter? Gender differences in the determinants of career success among intercollegiate athletic administrators. Sex Roles, 50, 411–421.
Sagas, M., Cunningham, G. B., & Ashley, F. B. (2000). Examining the women’s coaching deficit through the perspective of assistant coaches. International Journal of Sport Management, 1, 267–282.
Sagas, M., Cunningham, G. B., & Pastore, D. L. (2006). Predicting head coaching intentions of male and female assistant coaches: An application of the Theory of Planned Behavior. Sex Roles, 54, 695–705.
Sartore, M. L., & Cunningham, G. B. (2007). Ideological gender beliefs, identity control and self-limiting behavior within sport organizations. Quest, 59, 244–265.
Sartore, M. L., & Sagas, M. (2006). A trend analysis of the proportion of women in college coaching. International Journal of Sport Management, 8, 226–244.
Schein, V. E. (1973). The relationship between sex role stereotypes and requisite management characteristics. Journal of Applied Psychology, 57, 95–100.
Schein, V. E. (1975). Relationships between sex role stereotypes and requisite management characteristics among female managers. Journal of Applied Psychology, 60, 340–344.
Seibert, S. E., Kraimer, M. L., & Liden, R. C. (2001). A social capital theory of career success. Academy of Management Journal, 44, 219–237.
Shaw, S. (2006). Scratching the back of “Mr. X”: Analyzing gendered social processes in sport organizations. Journal of Sport Management, 20, 510–534.
Shaw, S., & Frisby, W. (2006). Can gender equity be more equitable?: Promoting and alternative frame for sport management research, education, and practice. Journal of Sport Management, 20, 483–509.
Shaw, S., & Hoeber, L. (2003). “A strong man is direct and a direct woman is a bitch”: Gendered discourses and their influence on employment roles in sport organizations. Journal of Sport Management, 17, 347–375.
Stangl, J. M., & Kane, M. J. (1991). Structural variables that offer explanatory power for the underrepresentation of women coaches since Title IX: The case of homologous reproduction. Sociology of Sport Journal, 8, 47–60.
Swanson, S. R., Gwinner, K., Larson, B. V., & Janda, S. (2003). Motivations of college student game attendance and word-of-mouth behavior: The impact of gender differences. Sport Marketing Quarterly, 12, 151–162.
Tajfel, H., & Turner, J. C. (1979). An integrative theory of intergroup conflict. In W. G. Austin, & S. Worchel (Eds.) The social psychology of intergroup relations (pp. 33–47). Monterey, CA: Brooks/Cole.
Whisenant, W. A., Pederson, P. M., & Obenour, B. L. (2002). Success and gender: Determining the rate of advancement for intercollegiate athletic directors. Sex Roles, 47, 485–491.
Zimbalist, A. (1999). Unpaid professionals. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Cunningham, G.B., Sagas, M. Gender and Sex Diversity in Sport Organizations: Introduction to a Special Issue. Sex Roles 58, 3–9 (2008). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11199-007-9360-8
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11199-007-9360-8