Performance versus Results

A Critique of Values in Contemporary Sport

By John H. Gibson

Subjects: Higher Education
Series: SUNY series, The Philosophy of Education
Paperback : 9780791413548, 150 pages, June 1993
Hardcover : 9780791413531, 150 pages, June 1993

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Table of contents

Acknowledgments

Introduction

Part One: An Archaeology of Contemporary Sport

1. The Problem of Values in Contemporary Society

2. The Development of Contemporary Sport

3. The Consequences of Contemporary Values for Sport

Part Two: The Game Is How You Play It

4. Contemporary Community: A Way Back?

5. Post-Modernity: The Way Forward

6. Sport as a Form of Contemporary Community

Conclusion

Notes

Bibliography

Index

Description

This study examines the consequences of cultural development on the emergence of contemporary sport. The current preoccupation with statistics and reductionist theories has objectified athletic performance to the extent that the scoreboard identifies excellence. Gibson offers an alternative position that focuses on the relationship of the athlete to the sport.

Reviews

"There are books about sport that say something about philosophy, and there are books about philosophy that say something about sport, but one or the other usually gets slighted. Gibson has something important to say about both. That is rare. " — Michael A. Oliker, Midwest Philosophy of Education Society

"Gibson addresses serious issues that are of concern to both those who study sport and those who experience it. One does not have to look far to see some of the problems in sport that deal with values: cheating, steroids, scholastic eligibility, showmanship, strikes, etc. With these problems in mind, the book is timely and insightful. I recommend it highly. " — Steven G. Estes, California State University at Fullerton