Deviance And Violence In Sport Is Out Of Control In Today’s World 

I have been asked to discuss the notion that deviance and violence in sport is out of control in today’s world. In this essay I will talk about some of the many different aspects of deviance and violence, including hazing (also known as initiation), hooliganism, gambling and of course, substance abuse. These issues are predominantly seen amongst athletes, and between athletes and fans. Sport can be seen as a great and powerful thing that brings both people and societies together, but the level of violence and deviance seen in sporting has most definitely spun out of control.

‘Hazing and peer sexual abuse are complex issues that have the potential to lead to physical, emotional, and mental harm.’ It consists of actions that intentionally ‘demean, abuse, harass, or embarrass individuals who are being initiated into a group’ (Jay Coakley). This can include different forms of abuse, from name calling and neglect, to sexual misconduct, violence and psychological mistreatment. Sometimes the victim may be forced to put on and wear humiliating items, or have their clothes taken from them in the changing rooms. Most would find this amusing, but the victim most definitely does not. Being forced in to a situation like this, may seem like a joke, but it can have devastating emotional effects on a person. In many cases, substance exposure is also seen, for example being forced to take drugs or drink alcohol against their will. Although hazing can be thought of as bullying, this is not the case. Instead of aiming to alienate the victim, the aim is to initiate them onto the team. “Hazing ultimately attempts to initiate the victim into the group, in contrast to bullying which aims to alienate the target.”

Hazing is a universal issue. “Internationally, researchers have discovered many instances of hazing in Japanese sumo wrestling, where one death occurred in 2007, at colleges and universities in Portugal, in club sports, in the Russian military and within amateur and professional sports as well.” It is also a very common issue, Allen and Madden (2008) found that 47% of high school student-athletes experienced hazing. Another study by the same authors found that 55% of US college students that were part of clubs, teams or other groups, also experienced some extent of hazing during their college life's. Hoover (1999) carried out a national survey on hazing and athletes, and the results were shocking to say the least. While 80% of athletes disclosed information on them experiencing activities that would fall under the category of hazing, only 12% of these athletes reported the incidents. Hazing has a large impact on its victims, physically and psychologically, indicating that it is one of the more serious aspects of violence and deviance in sport in today’s world.

Another example of violence and deviance in sport is hooliganism. Hooliganism is a term that is used in relation to sport related violence. It can be seen between fans, spectators, in crowds, at matches, or even on the streets. “Pre- or post-event violence caused by spectators away from the sports arena, such as celebration or defeat riots”, are also taken into account under the term hooliganism. It can be seen at all levels of sport, from amateur to professional, hooliganism is a common occurrence all over the world. Often resulting in death, it is not a subject to be taken lightly. There are seven main categories in which hooliganism is seen.

• Assault: the application of physical force to the body of, or to clothing or equipment worn by, another person with intent to inflict (or being reckless as to the infliction of) bodily injury or damage;
• Fighting: the mutual application of physical force with intent to inflict or being reckless as to the infliction of bodily injury;
• Verbal abuse: obscene, indecent, or threatening language that incites hatred towards or serious contempt for a person or a group of persons;
• Pitch invasion: unauthorized entry into the playing field of sporting venues, thereby disrupting play;
• Discharge of missile: the throwing or kicking of a projectile (e.g., a bottle, flare, or coin) onto the playing field or in the direction of another person;
• Vandalism: the wilful or malicious destruction of public or private property;
• Terrorism: a politically motivated act of violence that is committed with the aim of intimidating a population or destabilizing the fundamental political, economic, or social structures of a society.

Hooliganism can occur individually or collectively as mass violence. Where the individual incident is considered and carried out by a single person, without reference to collective planning or coordinated efforts. A collective mass violence, involves at least two people or ‘perpetrators’. It is also a result of coordination amongst the people who carried out the damaging acts. It is a very serious matter and sadly many people have died as a result of this malicious behaviour. One example of this is, in 1964, a match between Peru and Argentina took place. Six hundred people died, and a further three hundred were injured. This is known as the 1964 Lima Tragedy, and is the worst disaster in football history to date. This kind of incident is considered deviance and violence in sport due to the disruptiveness of its nature.

Gambling, also known as sports betting, is another example of deviance in sport that is out of control in today’s world. Sports betting, is a form of gambling that involves placing a wager, also known as a bet, on the outcome of a sporting event. Although it may not always involve violence, it is without doubt a cause for concern. “Gambling on sport can date back to ancient periods such as the Roman Empire.” Though it has been around for thousands of years, it has become more of an issue in the last couple of decades, which I will discuss in the following;

A study entitled “determining perception on sports betting” was carried out on 363 students in Turkey. These students were studying at Anadolu University. They answered a series of questions relating to, “the nature of their involvement in sports betting, their thoughts on the difference between sports betting and gambling and their perception of sports betting”. A staggering 60% of male students who responded to the survey stated that they were involved in some form of sport betting, while only 14.4% of females stated they were involved in sports betting. Just over a half of those who admitted to sports betting participated once a week.10 The survey also found that Football was the major sporting activity that was the object of betting (88.41%). “The use of betting platforms was fairly evenly split between the internet (51.22%) and iddaa dealers (48.78%)”. It is clear that the internet has created a medium in which young people can place bets and gamble, causing numbers of participants to rise. Would the statistics still be this high if gambling was not available through internet access?

The last aspect of violence and deviance in sport I will be discussing, is substance abuse. Substance abuse, doping and steroid use, has been a very controversial problem in sporting history for years. Doping is defined as “use of substances or adoption of medical practices not justified by pathological conditions, aimed at improving competitive performance”. Widely occurring at both professional and amateur level, it is a problem that concerns public heath, “given the considerable spread of the phenomenon”. An organisation has been set up, called the World Anti-Doping Agency. They have deemed their education programme central to fostering a lasting anti-doping culture Under the WADA code, drugs including EPO, human growth hormone, steroids, and stimulants both enhance performance and constitute a health risk, and therefore remain banned. Illicit drugs are also banned, “However, unlike the all-year-round ban on performance-enhancing drugs, the illicit drug ban only applies to in-competition or in-season use” WADA have deemed their educational programme central to fostering a lasting anti-doping culture.

Random tests are now carried out, “on both non-game days and game days” in order to take control of the deviance, but many think “the war on drugs in sport will never be won”. It is not just for improving competitive performance that these substances are used. The most dangerous usage of these drugs is found in groups which are primarily interested in “recreational performance and image-enhancement, be it to build muscle, strip fat, or iron-out cellulite” Maybe it is too ambitions to expect athletes to stop using drugs to enhance their performance, when the society we live in “relies on drugs to help its members cope with the pressures and tensions of daily living and to help them feel psychologically and physically better”.

In conclusion, there are many problems in the sporting world. From violent issues of hazing and hooliganism, to the psychological and physical damage caused to athletes due to issues of gambling and substance abuse, it is fair to say that violence and deviance in sport is out of control in today’s world.

Bibliography

• Jeckell, Aaron Slone et al. “The Spectrum of Hazing and Peer Sexual Abuse in Sports: A Current Perspective.” Sports health vol. 10,6 (2018): 558-564. doi:10.1177/1941738118797322
• Hoover J, Milner C. Are hazing and bullying related to love and belongingness? Reclaim Children Youth. 1998;7:138-141.
• Crow, R. B. and Macintosh, E. (2009) ‘Conceptualizing a Meaningful Definition of Hazing in Sport’, European Sport Management Quarterly, 9(4), pp. 433–451.
• Allan EJ, Madden M. Hazing in view: high school students at risk. 2008.
• Allan EJ, Madden M. Hazing in view: college students at risk. 2008.
• Hoover NC. National Survey: Initiation Rites and Athletics for NCAA Sports Teams. Alfred, NY: Alfred University; 1999
• Spaaij, R. (2014) ‘Sports crowd violence: An interdisciplinary synthesis’, Aggression and Violent Behavior, 19(2), pp. 146–155. doi: 10.1016/j.avb.2014.02.002.
• Gumusgul Osman and Acet Mehmet (2016) ‘The Open Sore of Football: Aggressive Violent Behavior and Hooliganism’, Physical Culture and Sport: Studies and Research, (1), p. 30. doi: 10.1515/pcssr-2016-0015.
• Li, E. et al. (2018) ‘Gambling and Sport: Implicit Association and Explicit Intention Among Underage Youth’, Journal of Gambling Studies, 34(3), pp. 739–756. doi: 10.1007/s10899-018-9756-0.
• Yüce, S. G., Yüce, A. and Katırcı, H. (2017) ‘Sports betting or gambling? A study on determining perception on sports betting’, International Sports Studies, 39(2), pp. 35–45. Available at: http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=s3h&AN=127159175&site=eds-live
• Mazzeo, F. and Di Onofrio, V. (2019) ‘Sport, Drugs and Health promotion: Pharmacological and Epidemiological aspects’, Sport Mont, 17(2), pp. 81–85. Available at: http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=s3h&AN=137936192&site=eds-live
• Patterson, L. B., Backhouse, S. H. and Lara-Bercial, S. (2019) ‘Examining Coaches’ Experiences and Opinions of Anti-Doping Education’, International Sport Coaching Journal, 6(2), pp. 145–159. Available at: http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=s3h&AN=136827119&site=eds-live
• ‘Why the war on drugs in sport will never be won’ (2015). doi: 10.1186/s12954-015-0087-5.