Ethnographic analysis of skateboarding culture and subculture demographics

Ethnographic study of a culture reveals the insider perspective of that culture. In this article, the author chose an interesting sub-culture i.e. skateboarders and tried to present an insider view of the world of skateboarders including their psyche, their clothing, their beliefs etc.

Authors believe that skateboarding is a culture in itself which is rather debatable because authors have not described culture in detail and hence it is difficult to fathom why skateboarding qualifies as a culture. But we can suppose that since not everyone is interested in skateboarding and only a certain people religious follow this activity, it can be classified as a culture. Authors have selected some specific genres in skateboarding including street skateboards, vert skaters and air skaters. This has been done because of the variety that these sections of skateboarders offer from the very amateur to highly professionals.

It is found that street skateboarders are usually young teens who have just started out in skateboarding while older adults are mostly into air skating. Demographic patterns have been identified quite well in this article. There has been a steady pattern observed in all different types of skateboarding. Females are not as well represented as men and majority of skateboards are white Caucasians with Hispanics and African-Americans making up small minority.

Interestingly no specific dress code was found, neither was there a specific type of clothing that skateboarders preferred. Instead they saw it as an opportunity to express themselves and thus chose to wear clothes that highlighted their individuality. It was seen that skateboarders have a similar attitude towards life. They appeared rebellious and in a happy, comfortable manner chose to speak against authority or simply adopted a non-conformist attitude. Females who adopted this sport also held a non-conformist attitude and instead of being openly rebellious chose a harmonious way to stamp their individuality.