Journal of Sport Management, 1993,7,194-198

O 1993 Human Kinetics Publishers, Inc.

Sport Management and the

Interdependence With Sport Sociology:
Sport as a Social Product

James E. Bryant
San Jose State University

This perspective suggests that sport management is interdependentwith sport

sociology as specialization areas, and that in order for researchers in sport
management to understand the social product of sport it is critical that they
recognize a positive theoretical relationship between sport management and
sport sociology. This paper outlines examples of sport management interde-
pendence with sport sociology through brief discussions including deviance
and ethics, economics, social stratification, patriarchy, race and ethnicity,
and marketing and research. Through these examples it is suggested that
sport sociology provides a base for those in sport management to achieve
an understanding of the social product of sport.

It would seem that sport sociology and sport management have much in
common. As specializations they both function in a society that is influenced by
the institutions of family, religion, politics, education, media, and economics.
Sports organizations and management are generic social phenomena that require
a sociological analysis, and that analysis enables organizations and management
to understand and address service related to the community and economic devel-
opment (Snyder & Spreitzer, 1989). This commonality bridges into many sport
sociology topics including deviance and ethics in sport, sociability, and a connec-
tion between labor and economic situations. Social stratification of population
and dominant control through patriarchy and raciallethnic groups are also topics
that are part of a symbiotic content relationship between sport sociology and
sport management.
Hatfield (1992), when describing the goal of management, defines sport
as a product, with that product considered to be the feature that leads to consumer
satisfaction. When analyzing the preparation of sport managers, Slack (1991)
indicates that those who have acquired a degree often leave their university with
little or no understanding of sport as a social product that is related to social
organization and the larger social process.

James E. Bryant is with the Department of Human Performance, San Jose State
University, San Jose, CA 95192.
 Sport as Social Product 195

To not understand sport as a social product establishes the potential for

limited success on the part of the sport manager and projects failure that contri-
butes to long-range negative economic impact on the corporation or agency that a
sport manager represents. It basically represents a lack of caring, which ultimately
produces a consumer rejection of an otherwise marketable product.
It is my purpose in this perspective to suggest that sport sociology and
sport management are bedfellows, and that sport management as a profession
has, and will continue to have, an interdependence with sport sociology; sport
managers must understand this interdependence in order to truly understand the
social product of sport that is the specific focus in the sport business world. I
am suggesting that for present and future sport managers to disregard the necessity
for sport sociology as a theoretical base is to ignore the tools of research, literature,
and the instruments designed to provide solutions and understanding associated
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with the marketing of the social product of sport. In short, if there is no interdepen-
dence of sport management with sport sociology, there is no sport management.

Topics of Commonality
Deviance and Ethics
Ethical issues and deviant behavior are prominent in the business world and
the connecting sport industry. A proposed ethics creed already exists in sport
management from an academic preparation standpoint that includes reference to
a "high level of professional practice and service" and professional conduct
"based on application of sound management theory developed through a scientific
body of knowledge about developmental physical activity's role in the lives of
all people" (Zeigler, 1989, p. 4). These aspects of an ethics creed are of particular
importance when one is considering what sport sociology has to contribute to
the development and growth of sport management.
Impacting ethical issues in sport-related business that are clearly associated
with deviance include price fixing, collusion, political corruption, and fraudulent
business practices (Snyder & Spreitzer, 1989). Even the analysis of the impact
and assessment of stadium advertising is reflective of ethics and deviance. Stotlar
and Johnson (1989), although not focusing directly on ethics, addressed this issue
when they explored the effectiveness of stadium advertising on spectators in
Division I football and basketball programs. The ethical question related to
alcohol and tobacco advertising in order to reinforce a brand image is significant
when one is dealing with signage in intercollegiate athletics. NCAA rules ban
most advertising related to tobacco and alcohol, but the issue for the sport manager
is this: Since these two commodities are counterindicated in stadium advertising
in intercollegiate sport, should sport managers accept the NCAA restrictions and
assume social responsibility, or should they yield and seek an increase in profit
at the expense of the ethical issue? Sport sociologists discuss, investigate, and
analyze these ethical issues from a cultural perspective. Without this perspective
from sport sociology, it is easy to rationalize and make excuses for business
decisions that are good profit decisions but are not ethically acceptable, thus
theoretically not good business decisions.
Sociability
Sociability generally refers to social interaction that is freely engaged in by
participants with no agendized commitments. Melnick (1993) conducted a study
 Bryant

on sociability of spectators and related his findings to potential problems for

sport managers. He pointed out that attendance at sporting events is often due
to a desire for casual sociabilitythat enables the spectatorto engage in unhampered
verbal expression and' permits a venue for social integration without commitment.
From this premise he discussed the various restrictions that surface at sporting
events that have the potential to slow or stop sociability, which in the long haul
will impedeor significantly reduce attendanceat sports contests. These restrictions
include such items as banning spectators' banners, escalation of ticket prices,
and reduction of player-fan interaction.
This study of a phenomenon like spectator sociability is just another form
of assisting the sport manager in understanding and acting to meet needs of
clients while generating revenue for profit. It is a way of providing insight from
a sport sociology perspective on how to fill a stadium while also generating
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income for sport-related bnsiness.

Economics
Labor and economics are obvious aspects of sport management. Sport sociolo-
gists* in their role, investigate and analyze the impact of labor/management
conflict m d theeconomics of that conflict connected to sport. Extensive research,
from an ideological, theoretical, and applied perspective, occurs in sport sociology
regarding salaries of professional athletes and regarding the relationships between
municipalities and professional sport franchises, and through countless additional
studies devoted to economics and sport.
The process of establishing player salaries is interwoven with collective
bargaining, reserve clause, arbitration, free agency, and owner collusion (Had-
ley & Gustafson, 1991). Player personnel costs represent a significant portion
of professional team sport franchise total expenditures, and analysis from a
sociological perspective when coupled with economic reality provides insight
into the occupational marketplace of a player. These results from research are
important to the sport industry, and an increase in sport managers' understanding
of the sociological implications of economics and sport enhances an understanding
of how to cope with and adjust to economie situations associated with sport.
Municipality and sport relationships are also obviously impacted by political
considerations. Successful sport managers need to be able to comprehend the
political environment that their sport organization operates under in a municipality
(Johnson, 1993). It is imperative that sport managers see municipality govern-
ments from a sociological perspective that includes the function of the institution
of politics. For a sport enterprise to ignore major factors that influence municipal
management and the grassroots citizens, who by vote have at the very least
subliminal control, is a major error.
Sport Stratification
Sport socioIogists understand stratification, social class mobility, and status syrn-
bols. The sport business relationship is dependent on an understanding of who
participates in selected sport experiences. To have an in-depth understanding of
the relationship of economic wealth and class stratification with sport participation
and spectator interest provides a distinct advantage in managing a sport business.
Country club sports of tennis and golf meet a different client need than do
 Sport as Social Product

proletariat (prole) sports like motor cross and stock car racing. Pseudosports
including professional wrestling and roller derby provide a unique client base
that is totally different from that of either of the legitimate sport areas of country
club or prole sports.
When sport stratification and subsequent social mobility are explored from
a cultural and societal setting an understanding of the stratification within sports
and between sports begins to emerge, and that understanding directly contributes
to successfulbusiness practice. Of particular impoflance is that this understanding
of stratification can be enlarged to provide a wider base of understanding related
to gender, racism, ethnicity, ageism, and people who are disabled as stratification
objects within sport.
Patriarchy, Race, and Ethnicity
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It is critical for a business to understand how patriarchal control within society

dominates decision making within the sport world and controls what sport oppor-
tunities exist for males and females, and how the manipulationof sport experiences
for females impacts the total sport economy.
It is also imperative to understand, from a cultural perspective, how various
racial and ethnic populations engaged in sport experiences contribute to a univer-
sally better business strategy. As an example, "Air Jordan" basketball shoes
are marketed for a specific segment of society. That segment includes lower
socioeconomic African-American youngsters who identify with Michael J d a n
as a player, but because Jordan's race is secondary to his physical skills other
segments of society also identify with him and are vulnerable to marketing efforts
that emphasize his talents.
Marketing and Research
A sport sociology interdependence places sport management scholars in a position
to identify potential areas for market exploration, improvement, and development
(Yiannakis, 1989). Marketing research survey techniques are a necessary part of
a sport business and are associated directly with sport sociology survey techniques
that include demographic and lifestyle characteristics.
The emphasis on demographics research in sport marketing suggests a
recognition of the importance of research and the survey instrument pioneered
in sociology as a tool for better understanding of the marketplace. The new Sport
Marketing Quarterly in its first issue in 1992 published two demographic studies
that are examples of sport sociology survey techniques. Hofacre and Burman
(1992) produced an article on demographic changes into the 21st century and
their impact on sport marketing, and Graham (1992) presented a study of demo-
graphic and economic characteristics of spectators attending tennis clay court
championships.

Summary
Sport sociology is vital to the understanding of sociocu2tural forces that sport
managers must deal with on a regular basis: consequently, it has a major role to
play with the provision of information that will establish a systematic marketing
information base (Yiannakis, 1989). From my perspective it seems obvious that
 198 Bryant

the relationship between sport sociology and sport management exists and is
practiced. For sport managers to ignore or deny a sport sociology interrelationship
or interdependence is unacceptable. Sport management literature presently ac-
knowledges a sport sociology interdependence, and it is my guess that this
acknowledgment not only will continue but will increase.
Sport sociology is, in fact, the base from which sport managers can achieve
an understanding of the marketing of the social product of sport, and thus is an
interdependence need of sport management.

References
Graham, P.J. (1992). A study of the demographicand economic characteristicsof spectators
attending the U.S. men's clay court championships. Sport Marketing Quarterly,
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1(1), 25-28.
Hadley, L., & Gustafson, E. (1991). Major league baseball salaries: The impacts of
arbitration and free agency. Journal of Sport Management, 5, 111-127.
Hatfield, B.D. (1992, April). The role of sport science in sport management:An integrative
perspective. Paper presented at the Sport Management Theory Conference, New
Orleans, LA.
Hofacre, S., & Burman, T.K. (1992). Demographic changes in the U.S. into the twenty-
first century: Their impact on sport marketing. Sport Marketing Quarterly, 1(1),
31-36.
Johnson, A.T. (1993). Rethinking the sport-city relationship: In search of partnership.
Journal of Sport Management, 7 , 61-70.
Melnick, M.J. (1993). Searching for sociability in the stands: A theory of sports spectating.
Journal of Sport Management, 7 , 44-60.
Slack, T. (1991). Sport management: Some thoughts on future directions. Journal of Sport
Management, 5, 95-99.
Snyder, E.E., & Spreitzer, E.A. (1989). Social aspects of sport. Englewood Cliffs, NJ:
Prentice Hall.
Stotlar, D.K., & Johnson, D.A. (1989). Assessing the impact and effectiveness of stadium
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Yiannakis, A. (1989). Some contributions of sport sociology to the marketing of sport
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