Photo Elicitation: EZdon E. Snyder and Mary Jo Kane Bowling Green State University

Transcription

1 Journal of Sport Management, 1990, 4, Photo Elicitation: A Methodological Technique for Studying Sport EZdon E. Snyder and Mary Jo Kane Bowling Green State University Previous research has identified gender appropriate and inappropriate sports for females. The present study uses a photo elicitation technique to study respondents' attitudes toward two women's sports: college basketball and gymnastics. Interestingly, this methodology manifests different results from more traditional techniques. Contrary to the expected results based on previous studies, the photo elicitation technique indicates that the perceptions of female participation in basketball were similar to gymnastics. This method of gathering data as well as the results of this study have several important implications for the field of sport management. It is important for sport administration, management, and marketing to develop a thorough knowledge of the sport world. Specifically, this knowledge can be used when formulating and implementing policy and programs in sport organizations and agencies, developing and managing sport facilities, marketing sport programs and services, and serving as consultants to sport groups and organizations (Melnick, 1980). One important dimension of sport is to understand the way people perceive specific sport activities. Indeed, people's perceptions of a situation are primary in their behavior in that situation (Berger & Luclanam, 1966, pp ). More traditional techniques of gathering data on people's perceptions regarding sport activity include questionnaire items on surveys and interviews, content analysis of sport materials, and observational studies of sport behavior. The present study provides an additional methodological technique for tapping people's perceptions about sport, specifically perceptions of female athletic participation. The primary focus, then, is on the photo elicitation technique as an innovative approach to studying sport. In addition, the findings on female ath- Eldon E. Snyder is with the Dept. of Sociology at Bowling Green State University, Bowling Green, OH Mary Jo Kane, formerly of Bowling Green State University, is with the School of P.E. & Recreation, Cooke Hall, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN

2 22 Snyder and Kane letic involvement are presented to illustrate this method of gathering data with the suggestion that it may be adapted by other researchers for their particular area of study. In Western society, traditional attitudes regarding the female role have emphasized behavior and appearance that are passive, submissive, fragile, soft, and beautiful. As a result, female participation in sport has historically been defined as antithetical to the female role. That is, participation in sport, with the emphasis on aggressive behavior and competition, was defined as nonfeminine. However, Metheny developed an important theoretical model in 1965 that emphasized that sport is considered gender appropriate for females and therefore acceptable if it emphasizes the projection of the body in aesthetically pleasing patterns, utilizes a light implement, and involves no bodily contact (e.g., gymnastics, golf, tennis, swimming). Conversely, sports generally considered contradictory to the feminine role incorporate bodily contact with the opponent, the use of heavy equipment, hard running, and a display of strength (e.g., football, rugby, wrestling). To some extent, basketball, softball, and some track and field events (e.g., shot putting) would also be considered gender inappropriate for females. Previous research has provided general support for the Metheny model. For example, through a survey questionnaire, a sample of the general population was asked to rank sports according to their appropriateness for females. In terms of social desirability and acceptability, swimming, tennis, and gymnastics were at the top of the list; over two-thirds of the respondents felt that swimming enhanced femininity and over half felt that tennis and gymnastics enhanced a girl's or woman's feminine qualities. In contrast, only 14 to 15% of the respondents perceived participation in softball, basketball, and track as feminine (Snyder, Kivlin, & Spreitzer, 1975). A more recent study that also employed a questionnaire instrument to survey a sample of the general population indicated a similar ranking of the sports; however, the range of percentages was less extreme (Snyder & Spreitzer, 1983). These findings using survey research and statistical analysis provide research support for the Metheny hypothesis. On the other hand, a more recent study by Kane (1987) with a sample of high school students found that respondents perceived female athletes to be more physically attractive than female nonathletes. However, female athletes in gender-inappropriate sports (e.g., football) were perceived as less physically attractive than those in more socially approved or genderappropriate sports (e.g., volleyball). The findings reported above suggest both traditional and nontraditional attitudes toward female sport participation. Perhaps these conflicting attitudes reflect a state of flux almost 20 years after the advent of Title IX in Although participation rates have increased dramatically since Title Becker, 1986), it remains to be seen whether perceptions and attitudes have also been altered dramatically (Kane, 1988). Therefore it is desirable to gather additional empirical data to better understand how recent social changes and attitudes may be reflected in the sport world. It is in this social context that a photo elicitation technique was used to tap the current perceptions of the female athlete. Furthermore, this technique supplements the standard survey inslmments that have utilized a forcedchoice format in this research area. The following portions of this paper illustrate the potential effectiveness of the photo elicitation technique by examining current attitudes toward female sport participation.

3 Photo Elicitation 23 The Photo Elicitation Technique Photographs have long been used by social scientists to describe and illustrate family activities, work, socialization, and street life in different cultures (Bateson & Mead, 1942; Becker, 1986; Chalfen, 1987; Curry & Clark, 1978; Goffman, 1976; Oberschall, 1972; Suchar, 1988). In addition, photographs may also be used as a research tool that goes beyond the descriptive level to elicit people's attitudes and perceptions regarding a particular subject or social issue. For example, Harper (1984, pp ) used this technique to study the meaning of work; he described the use of photographs to interview respondents as follows: A phenomenological sense is gained as the informant explains what the objects in the photograph mean, where they have come from, and what may be missing. This method provides a way in which the interview can move from the concrete (as represented by the literal objects in the image) to the socially abstract (what the objects in the photograph mean to the individual being interviewed). A photographic technique for tapping attitudes and perceptions was also used by Phyllis Ewen (1979), who took photographs of women in beauty parlors. When these women then viewed the photographs, they elicited responses that reflected their own personal stories, dreams, and beauty experiences. Their responses provided shared meanings of the significance of physical attractiveness for females. One of the intriguing uses of this technique within a sport context is cited by Curry (1986), who uses photographs to interview athletes. He notes that the detailed information provided by the photo elicitation interview "is useful in examining the techniques, norms, and values found in sport subcultures" (p. 205). Additionally, "these photographs may elicit information about equipment, rules, and body movements that have special names and nuances an outsider would not know" (1986, p. 205). Further, according to Collier (1967, p. 47), photo elicitation is a projective technique that draws out "the interests and enthusiasm" of the respondent. This type of analysis seeks to understand and interpret the intersubjective meanings that are associated with a sport subculture. In short, photo elicitation is a useful technique for collecting data on the attitudes and meanings people associate with sport. A very important sport subculture that requires more analysis is the world of the female athlete. Thus the purpose of this paper was to use the photo elicitation technique to measure current attitudes toward female athletes based upon the theoretical sport typology model proposed by Metheny (1965). Subjects and Procedure Data were collected from 145 college students from a midsized midwestern university, 73 females and 72 males. Within a classroom setting, respondents were presented with eight in. x in. black and white photographs; four pictures were of women gymnasts and four were of women basketball players. All of the pictures were presented sequentially and the order of presentation was counterbalanced, that is, the four gymnastics and four basketball pictures were alternated. The sports of women's basketball and gymnastics were chosen to deter-

4 24 Snyder and Kane mine student perceptions of these two contrasting female sport types. According to the Metheny (1965) model, basketball is less socially acceptable for females than is gymnastics. Basketball and gymnastics were also chosen as representative of two sport types because at the university where these data were collected, both sports have successfully competed for conference championships and therefore received much media attention. All of the photographs were action shots that presented the female athletes in a competitive situation. The basketball pictures displayed females in the following action shots: (a) a player holding the ball while being trapped by two defenders, (b) two opponents struggling for a loose ball, (c) opponents battling over a rebound, and (d) a player shooting a jump shot. The gymnastics pictures included (a) a a straddle over the bar, (c) a handstand on the balance beam, and (d) an aerial somersault on the beam. These pictures were considered representative of common or typical action sequences within these sports. Below each picture, respondents were asked to write their reactions to the photograph. All answers were tabulated; closely related answers and words that were determined to be synonyms were combined. For example, the word "ability" was combined with words such as "talent" and "skill." These words obviously represented the general construct of ability. Finally, only those words that appeared 20 or more times were included in the data analysis because words that occurred this frequently represented a dominant response toward the two contrasting sports. Findings: Response to the Photographs According to the Metheny (1965) model, one would expect more "masculine" references for the photographs of the women basketball players than of the gymnasts. Indeed, many of the characteristics frequently listed for the basketball players could be viewed as more traditionally masculine than feminine in our society. For example, the words "battle" and "determined" ranked second and third, respectively, in terms of the most frequently occurring words used to describe women's basketball (see Williams & Bennett, 1975, for research on adjectives associated with gender). "Battle," which also included the synonyms "fight" and "struggle," was listed 49 times while "determined" appeared 45 times. Only a technical term, "jump ball," was used more frequently to describe basketball (56 times). Two other traditionally "masculine" characteristics that frequently appeared for basketball were "aggressive" (27 times) and "competitive" (25 times). These two words ranked 6th and Sth, respectively, out of a total of 12 words that appeared 20 or more times for basketball. See Table 1 for a detailed description of these results. Interestingly, the other most frequently occurring words used to describe women's basketball were technical in nature. Words like "go for it," "jump shot,'' and "trapped" were mentioned 20 or more times; these words characterized some technical or instructional detail involved with the individual pictures and thus did not actually reflect specific attitudes toward female sport participation. However, these responses do indicate that the respondents are informed about the technical aspects of the sport.

5 Photo Elicitation Table 1 Overall Responses to Women's Basketball and Gymnastics* Frequency Rank Basketball Jump ball Battle Determined Jump shot Go for it Aggressive Foul Competitive Trapped Block out Basketball Jumping Gymnastics Muscular Balance Dangerous Concentration Agility Ability Graceful Difficult Determined Brave Flying Gymnastics Balance beam Hurtlpain *20 or more total responses. While these results for basketball appear at first glance to support the Metheny (1965) hypothesis, many of the responses to the gymnastics pictures could also be considered traditionally masculine. In fact the most frequently occurring word used to describe gymnastics was the word "muscular." Several important points need to be made about this finding. First, it can be argued that of all the responses used to characterize both sports, muscular best represents the antithesis of femininity. Second, the frequency of this response was quite remarkable: It was used 116 times, or over twice as many times as the most frequently occurring word for basketball ("jump ball," 56 times). Finally, muscular was not even on the list for basketball, a much more traditionally physical sport.

6 26 Snyder and Kane One possible explanation for the high frequency of the word muscular used to describe gymnastics is that this response may reflect some artifact of the individual pictures (see Figures 1,2, and 3). Perhaps the gymnastics pictures emphasized power moves while the basketball pictures did not. It certainly can be argued that the first three gymnastics pictures representing a vault, a straddle, and a handstand require strength. In fact, muscular ranks either first or second in all three pictures. However, basketball in general, and Figure 6 in particular (fighting for a loose ball), are also often associated with being strong or muscular, yet the word did not appear for any of the basketball pictures. In addition to the word muscular, other traditionally masculine traits listed for gymnastics were "dangerous" (72 times) and "brave" (25 times). These words ranked 3rd and loth, respectively, out of 14 words that occurred 20 or more times. It should be emphasized that neither of these "masculine" words were used to describe basketball. In contrast to the use of several masculine words to describe both women's basketball and gymnastics, only one word that could be considered traditionally feminine appeared on the list of most frequently mentioned responses. The word "graceful" was mentioned 41 times (ranked 7th) by our respondents when asked to describe women's gymnastics. It is interesting to note that the same sport that elicited a response such as muscular would also be described as graceful. Apparently, despite their traditional associations as polar opposites in terms of female characteristics, these two words were not seen by our respondents as incompatible for female athletes. The findings described above examining masculine and feminine responses to women's basketball and gymnastics do not provide much support for the Metheny model of gender-appropriate sport involvement. Alternative explanations for our findings could be that (a) the respondents in this study do not perceive female athletic participation in terms of gender appropriateness, or (b) attitudes toward both sports may reflect the belief that gymnastics and basketball are equally acceptable for females. (See Figures 1-8.) Discussion As Howard Becker (1986, p. 298) notes, photographs are interesting because they tell us something about society beyond the immediate image and subject of the picture; in this study an analysis of student responses to the photographs provides insight into their attitudes about the post Title IX female athletic role. Such knowledge provides an opportunity to gain an understanding about sport that is not available from more traditional techniques. First, previous studies of female athletes using survey techniques suggest there is still a carryover of traditional attitudes toward female sport participation (Kane, 1987; Snyder & Spreitzer, 1983). In contrast, the use of a photo elicitation technique provides quite different results. In fact, the findings indicate that the respondents' perceptions of female participation in basketball were very similar to gymnastics. For example, rather than expressing negative attitudes or stereotypes (e.g., "manly") toward women's basketball, the respondents were much more likely to use words like "battle" or "determined," which reflected an admiring attitude toward female basketball players. In addition, many of the respondents used technical terms to describe the pictures.

7 Photo Elicitation 27 Figure 1 - A vault. Figure 2 - A straddle over the bar. Figure 3 - A handstand on the balance beam. Figure 4 - An aerial somersault on the beam.

8 1 i Snyder and Kane! Figure 6 - Opponents struggling for a loose ball. Figure 5 - Player trapped by two defenders. Figure 7 - Opponents battling over a rebound. Figure 8 - Player shooting a jump shot.

9 Photo Elicitation 29 One interpretation of this finding is that both male and female respondents have moved beyond the old stereotypes that express negative feelings; in commenting upon the unusual nature of the activity (women engaging in sport), they concentrated instead on the technical components of each picture. In a similar manner, many technical words were used to describe women's gymnastics. The word muscular was perhaps not used in a negative context but as a technical requirement needed to effectively perform the various gymnastics maneuvers. Positive attitudes toward female gymnasts were also reflected in such words as "brave" and "courageous. " Jn this sense there were very accepting attitudes expressed toward both sports, an indication perhaps that progress has been made toward accepting female sport participation. What is important about the findings from this investigation is that with other more traditional methodological approaches, the opposite result emerged. Further, in order to gain a greater understanding of sport in general and women's sport in particular, it is desirable to explore as many theoretical and methodological approaches as prove effective. Academics, practitioners, and athletes all suffer when we continue to rely exclusively or even primarily on the methodological techniques of the past. Implications The results from this study offer several important implications for the field of sport management. The first involves marketing and promoting techniques traditionally employed toward female athletes. Past strategies have focused primarily on females in such "feminine" sports as golf and tennis. However, the findings from this investigation suggest a broader, more accepting attitude that may be reflected in a more diversified sport interest for females. More specifically, the current perceptions of female interest and participation in various sport activities may be a result of increasing involvement in sports that traditionally were not considered socially acceptable for females (e.g., rugby, body building, flag football, basketball, and softball). Although previous studies suggested caution in marketing and promoting these sports for females, data from the present study suggest the use of diversified marketing strategies to tap a potentially wider audience. Second, photographic images are often used to market athletic goods and services. This study demonstrates the desirability of analyzing respondents' perceptions of visual images in sport contexts. The understanding and knowledge that are available from responses to photographs can be utilized in the visual displays for sport marketing. Further, segments of the market can be analyzed by the use of photo elicitation data from people of different ages, gender, and social status. Third, the photo elicitation technique has implications for the sport management cumculum. This method of gathering data should be incorporated into the research methodology courses taught in the management field. Also, the data provided by the present research using this technique suggest that sport management courses should give attention to the diversity and importance of perceptions associated with female sport participation. In short, courses like "Women and Sport" should be an integral part of the cumculum and should pay particular attention to the perceptions of female sport involvement.

10 30 Snyder and Kane In summary, it is hoped that this description of the photo elicitation technique will encourage other researchers in the sport management field to seek data via photographs appropriate to their research setting. It is particularly important to emphasize that photographs often serve as a catalyst in eliciting data from respondents that would otherwise remain disguised. Thus the breadth of information available from this technique contributes to the management and marketing of sport in a changing society. References Bateson, G., &Mead, M. (1942). Balinese character: Aphotographic analysis. New York: The Academy of Sciences. Becker, D. (1986, September 16). Courts kick the teeth out of Title IX. USA Today, pp. 1C-2C. Becker, H. (1986). Doing things together: Selectedpapers. Evanston, IL: Northwestern University Press. Berger, P., & Luckmann, T. (1966). me social construction of realiiy. Garden City, NY: Doubleday. Chalfen, R. (1987). Snapshot versions of life. Bowling Green, OH: Popular Press. Collier, J. (1967). Visual anthropology: Photography as a research method. New York: Holt, Rinehart & Winston. Curry, T. (1986). A visual method of studying sports: The photoelicitation interview. Sociology of Sport Journal, 3, Curry, T., & Clark, A. (1978). Introducing visual sociology. Dubuque, IA: Kendall-Hunt. Ewen, P. (1979). The beauty ritual. In J. Wagner (Ed.), Images of information (pp ). Beverly Hills: Sage. Goffman, E. (1976). Gender advertisements. Studies in the Anthropology of Visual Communication, 3, Harper, D. (1984). Meaning and work: A study in photo elicitation. International Journal of Visual Sociology, 2, Kane, M. (1987). The "new" female athlete: Socially sanctioned image on modem role for women. Medicine and Sport Science, 24, Kane, M. (1988). Media coverage of the female athlete before, during, and after Title IX. Sports Illustrated revisited. Journal of Sport Management, 2, Melnick, M. (1980). Toward an applied sociology of sport. Journal of Sport and Social Issues, 4, Metheny, E. (1965). Connotations of movement in sport and dance. Dubuque, IA: W.C. Brown. Oberschall, A. (1972). The institutionalization of American sociology. New York: Harper & Row. Snyder, E., Kivlin, J., & Spreitzer, E. (1975). The female athlete: An analysis of objective and subjective role conflict. In D. Landers (Ed.), Psychology of sport and motor behavior up ). University Park: Pennsylvania State University. Snyder, E., & Spreitzer, E. (1983). Change and variation in the social acceptance of female participation in sport. Journal of Sport Behavior, 6, 3-8. Suchar, C. (1988). Photographing the changing material culture of a gentrified community. Visual Sociology Review, 3, Williams, J., & Bennett, S. (1975). The definition of sex stereotypes via the adjective check list. Sex Roles, 1, Acknowledgment The authors wish to acknowledge the assistance of Nancy Shafer and Polly Sadler in the coding and analysis of data. 1