This week we are discussing what constitutes deviance within the sporting realm. This will include notions of under conformity as well as over-conformity to norms. Often when athletes are caught under-conforming to the norms, the issue of athletes as role-models is brought up. Charles Barkley has repeatedly said he is not a role model, just because he can dunk a basketball, rather he believes parents should be role models not athletes. What do you think about Barkley's argument? Are athletes role models? What is a role model? When athletes over-conform to the norms is this just as dangerous to children, as when athletes under-conform to the norms? If athletes are role models, what qualities are they demonstrating that would make them role models? Do we know enough about any particular athlete to situate them as role-models? If you were a parent would you want your child to look to athletes as role models or elsewhere? Below is a link to a commercial in which Barkley states he is not a role model.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R8vh2MwXZ6o
football and concussions
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/09/15/sports/football/15concussions.html?fta=y
http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/page2/story?page=keown/091027&sportCat=nfl
Code of Silence
Mike Messner (2002) Taking the field: Women, men and sports
Text-book
pp. 163-172
football and concussions
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/09/15/sports/football/15concussions.html?fta=y
http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/page2/story?page=keown/091027&sportCat=nfl
Code of Silence
Mike Messner (2002) Taking the field: Women, men and sports
Text-book
pp. 163-172
I think that Charles Barkley is wrong in the sense that he doesn't have to be a role model if he doesn't want to be. The fact of the matter is children look up to these athletes and see them all of the time on commercials as well as playing their sports. Children are going to try to emulate these successful figures therefore making them role models not by choice but just by default. That being said, Athletes are not required to be "role models" but they are under the public eye and do have people that look up to them.
ReplyDeleteI totally agree with what Barkley is saying about how he says he isn't a role model. But the fact of the matter is that kids are always going to look up to these "super hero" figures and want to be them, it's inevitable. The way i've always defined a role model is someone that has an influence on someone else, whether it is good or bad. these kids should be looking at their parents for guidance before a professional athlete. I think it is ok to drive to be as good as a professional athlete, but doing everything like them is something i dont agree with. If i was a parent right now there might be a few athletes that I might let my child look to as a role model (to strive to be the best), but most of all i would want to teach my child the ways to live their own life, not just someone elses.
ReplyDeleteI would have to disagree with Barkley’s argument. In some cases kids don’t have the best role models in their life such as good parents. So they look at athletes and what they are doing as them because they know that they have made it. So yes in some cases athletes are role models. I think some put there self’s in that situation by going places to help with kids that are less fortunate and that give back to people that need it. Some people have come up from very little to being very successful and that is what kids look up to a lot. They see this player that came from a city, town or whatever it might be and make it to the pros by hard work and dedication. In my eyes I believe a role model is someone who is hard working, dedicated to their job, shows leadership, strong, smart those are just some of the things that I believe you need. If you look at those that is everything t hat a great athlete should be. When athletes over-conform I don’t believe that it is that bad for the kids. It shows them at a young age that being in a sport sometimes you have to go beyond the norms to be great. I think it is worse when the athletes under conform because that is when you get the kids who slake in games and don’t give it their all. They see there favorite player not care and they think why should I. As I said before athletes show leadership, hardworking, dedication, passion, leadership, and love for what they are doing. I don’t believe you have to know some one’s life story to consider them a role model. I believe a role model is just someone you look up to in anyway. So many kids don’t know Michael Jordan but so many kids would say they want to be like him and he is my role-model. That’s because they know what he has accomplished and how hard he worked to get it. If I was a parent I would of course want my child to look at me as a role model but at the same time I wouldn’t care if he looked at an athlete figure such as Michael Jordan or some others. There are some athletes who I believe could be called a role model but others not.
ReplyDeleteI would like to think that I would be able to say no, and not go back in a game if my life or health was in jeopardy. However, I know that there have been times when I have been hurt, yet continued to play, but I think that if I knew that my life was on the line as with concusions I would come out. I can understand why kids don't come out of the game, but I think it is important that the coaches make sure that the kids are okay before allowing them to play. They also need to make sure that kids know that it is okay if they come out of the game.
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