Sports Representatives as a Category «Affected» by Stigma in the Educational System

Abstract

The problem of such social phenomenon as stigmatization in the life activity of athletes is raised. The phenomenon is studied with the support of the dramaturgical approach, actualized by I. Hoffmann. Public perception of a particular social group is reflected in the process of identification of a person/group in modern society, which prompted the author to conduct a sociological study in order to identify the fact of stigmatization in the life of athletes and the causes of this social phenomenon. Materials and methods. Methodological basis of the research: the theory of stigmatization and the concept of “order of interaction” by I. Hoffmann, the theory of social construction by P. Berger and T. Lukman, the theory of marginality. Empirical basis of the research is in the fact that we interviewed representatives of sports of the following qualifications: candidates for master of sports, master of sports, master of sports of international class (n=36 people; respondents were selected by snowball method) of different age categories currently integrated into the sphere of sports as active athletes, or who completed their sports career. Results and scientific novelty. The public image of the athlete, constructed in modern society, is predominantly stigmatized in the perception of sports representatives. The starting point of the process of labeling this category of the population is the educational system of general education. The most common communicative means of stigmatizing athletes in the educational system are language (nicknames, hurtful nicknames), ways and styles of communication (threats in the interaction), the use of different scales of evaluation of academic achievements. The leading causes of stigmatization of athletes in the perception of the representatives of sports are: envy of the achievements of athletes, the erroneous perception of sports as activities not related to hard work, the presence of various manifestations of deviant behavior in athletes in public space. As a result, the need for correction of interpersonal interaction in the educational system in connection with the presence of stigmatization of trained athletes was revealed. The latter is the novelty of the study.