Enjoyment Beats Winning: Snowboarding and Changing Socialization Environment in Sport

Authors

• Anna-Liisa Ojala Jyväskylän yliopisto
• Hannu Itkonen Jyväskylän yliopisto

Abstract

Today’s youth create body culture which builds upon different norms concerning sports to the ones of previous generations. This study examines the changing socialization environments of youth sports in modern and postmodern eras. We investigate how the norms related to goals in snowboarding differ from athletic goals of modern youth sports. The data includes semi-structured interviews with Finnish professional snowboarders. Our study indicates how the socialization environments of youth sports have become more diverse due to the norms cherished in action sports. Although snowboarding competitions continue the goal traditions of modern sports, the diversity and versatility of snowboarding styles and the array of goals within the sport allow participants to construct their identities in more creative ways than athletes in modern sports. Moreover, snowboarders avoid the seriousness of modern sports by ironizing the goal and rule orientation of sports also in snowboarding competitions.