Violence in sports: causes, consequences, and prevention

¶ … social history, one of the most often neglected activities that has helped shape the American Experience has been the way in which sports and sporting events have evolved in American popular culture. Thinking about sports, one often focuses on simply the activity and entertainment value. Of course, that is quite important, but there are numerous other factors that are involved that make sports and sporting events a bit more of a microcosm of culture: race relations, advertising, community, economics, alternative focus, and more. For example, baseball was integrated far earlier and Black players accepted far earlier than in other aspects of American society, and basketball and football post-1955 allowed more Black athletes to integrated into teams. This, combined with the era of televised sports made a huge cultural impact in America (Johnson, 2008). Similarly, if one were to focus on the way sporting events and sporting figures evolved into almost mythical proportions, particularly after 1900, studies of popular culture would not be complete without an emphasis on the way sports became integrated into almost every aspect of American life (Berger, 2002; Gorn, 2004).

As part of popular culture, and a way to trace numerous normative behaviors and ideologies within American life, sports often provide a symposium of activities that mirror, and sometimes precede, a change in overall values. After the mid-late 19th century, during a period of historical precedence in which America grew rapidly as a country and defined a greater self-ideology, sports became an epitome of both the best and the worst within society (Gorn; Nelson, 2008). This period in American history saw the end of the Civil War, the balances of Reconstruction and western migration, and above all, the urbanization, electrification, and industrialization of the major cities east of the Mississippi. Sports, in fact, became part of a new cultural heritage and pride in America that helped to coalesce divergent social and ethnic fans into a greater, single-minded, competitive goal. In fact, the great European immigration during the Industrial Revolution in America was not only mirrored in many sporting events, but allowed new immigrants to feel more "Americanized" by becoming fans of their favorite set of teams (Ashby, 2004).

For instance, not only did the new wave of immigration help pave the way for greater ethnic integration into sporting teams, the economic benefits of industrialization and the ability for the working person to have spending money and free weekend time also contributed to the Area ("Ballpark") mentality (Baker, 1988). Where else could a day-laborer from Europe who barely spoke English attend an event with the owner of his company and be able, if not to sit together, but to at least share the experience of the home team and the civic pride and conviviality engendered? Additionally, the idea of civic pride can be seen as just the tip of the iceberg when using sports as a metaphor for the growing idea of Americanization. Certainly the resentments that remained after the Civil War ended in 1865 were not so easily healed, and as cities became larger, civic pride increased, finally by the end of World War I, the idea of national pride and a national consciousness was more highly developed thanks in part to sports (Davies, 2006; Riess, 1995).

Through the Depression and World War II eras, too, sports took the public's mind off their problems and issues, and combined with motion pictures, allowed the average American to find solace and hope through games and sports heroes. "Despite widespread misgivings, baseball (for example) successfully invaded the nation's popular culture (Rader, 2008, p. 65). The civic pride expressed internally was combined with rapid corporate industrialization, which enriched a newer class of owners and managers, the so-called nouveau riche. This class tended to patronize organized sporting events as part of their entry into more socially acceptable venues (the society clubs, opera, the symphony, etc.) (Ibid, p. 93).

Thus, sports are a multi-billion dollar extremely important aspect of the culture of the United States. That said, American sporting "culture" is unique; American's prefer a different set of sports than most of the rest of the world, spend more per capita on sporting events, and have a wildly different idea about competition.

Combined with American "fervor" and excess in many parts of popular culture, the major leagues of each of the popular American sports enjoy massive media exposure and are considered preeminent competitors in their respective fields. This is partially due to the League's strong financial power, huge domestic market, and that relatively few other countries play these sports to the degree within the United States. Additionally, unlike most other countries, there is no system of promotion and regulation in the United States; the major sports leagues operate as associations of franchises. Also, all major U.S. sports leagues agree upon a schedule with playoff tournaments after the regular season. College and university teams are also more important in American culture. Competition between national teams is either less important or non-existent than in the global sporting culture (Riess, 1996; Wiggins, 1994).

Violence and Sports- However, here is another sociological side to American sport -- that of both sanctioned and unsanctioned violence. There are normal levels of physical activity in many sports, but violence refers to those acts that are beyond the normal levels of contact. These activities may include attempts to injure players, threats of physical harm, or actual harm, typically designed to give one player or team and advantage over others. One generalized theory holds that the heightened sense of competition, hormones (in both genders), fan fervor, and the psychological impact of the urge to win often combine to cause explosions of violence. High testosterone levels, whether normal or enhanced are also causes for violence behavior. In fact ethology studies show that human's animalistic and territorial sides are often strongly emphasized during sporting activities (Ateyo, 1979, intro).

Historically, violence in sporting events is really nothing new. In fact, 20th and 21st century episodes are far fewer and to less intensity that many historical examples. We cannot know when the idea of violence within a sporting event began, but we do know that in Ancient societies, athletics were incredibly rough, and perhaps part of training for battle. While the Greeks had athletic ideals which incorporated courage, endurance, modesty, dignity, and fair-mindedness. Of course, the Roman Gladiatorial system was often violent for violence sake, not just with slaves or the conquered, but endorsed by the government and public alike (Kyle, 2007).

There are numerous types of violence, though, within the modicum of sporting events.

Brutal Body Contact/Borderline Violence -- Brutal body contact often conforms to the official rules of the particular sport, and is difficult to prove since it is a sense of degree. It is relatively legitimate in some sports (ice hockey, for instance) and one might even say that it is encouraged in sports like boxing, kick-boxing, wrestling, rugby, and even American football. In some ways, it is taken for granted that when one participates in these types of sports, the player accepts that rough contact, minor injuries, and even the potential of serious injury are part of the equation. Borderline violence, however, violates the official rules, is often penalized, but is accepted by players and fans alike, again on a sliding scale of degree (Boxill, 2002, 205).

Quasi-Criminal Violence/Criminal Violence -- Moving upwards a notch, both quasi-criminal and criminal violence are seen as relatively illegitimate forms of roughness in sports. Both violate the official rules of the sport, typically the legal requirements of assault in most countries, and even player norms. These types of violence are intentional and meant to cause grievous bodily harm, typically with the intent of removing that player from the game. Breaking legs, arms, purposefully trying to injury and hurt for the sake of hurting. Unfortunately, because of the degree of seriousness, sporting officials must give way to law enforcement, often resulting in the offending player being not only banned from play but also facing legal indictment. This also depends on the sport, the accepted norms for that sport, and the level of visible intent (Ibid., 208-10).

Field Violence -- Field violence is even more difficult to prove since it is any interpersonal behavior that is intended to cause physical or mental stress. This could be as simple as making a derogatory remark to a player or amping up the level of a block, tackle, or steal, or even sliding into a catcher with cleats out. Most see it as a degree of intentional bodily violence, more psychological than anything -- the intent is based on what one can see as verifiable actions, aggressiveness, and hyper-assault that goes far beyond the scope of the game (Taylor, 2007).

Fan Violence -- Fan violence is often seen as a bit of hyper-nationalism coupled with the frenzy of the game and group psychology. Studies show it is often alcohol related, which only intensifies emotions and lack of self-control. Fan violence is recorded as far back as Ancient Rome, during which chariot races often degraded into violence. The Nika riots, based on antipathy between Blue and Green racing teams resulted in 30,000 deaths ("The Nika Riot," 1997). In the 1980s fans were so violent that some English teams were banned from European competition. In high-stakes European soccer matches local governments regularly warn that violence could cause forfeiture of the game. Still, there remain a number of violent events from fans resulting in property damage, physical injury, and even death. Some see a similarity between modern fan violence and Gladiatorial attitudes (Nosotro, 2000).