Violence in Sports

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Violence in Sports

Introduction

Sports violence , according to Hardcastle , is the behavior that leads to harm , taking place out of the rules of the sport , and is not related to the competitive aims of the sport (para , 1 . Hardcastle argues that aggression in sports portrays itself in two forms instrumental and reactive aggression . Instrumental aggression is non-emotional and task oriented , whereas reactive aggression contains an underlying emotional element , with injury as its main objective (para , 2 . Violence occurs as a result

of reactive aggression . A rise in both incidence and magnitude of practices of violence has been extensively documented as asserted by Margolis (p , 56 . Cases of violence are more common in sports where the participating teams are in contact , for example , hockey , rugby and soccer (Margolis

, 61 . Though most cases of violence originate from players , others , including parents , media , coaches , and fans , also take part in what has been regarded as an epidemic of violent behavior in sports presently . Significant studies have been done on onlooker violence . The core issue , according to Margolis , is to determine whether fans incite player violent behavior or reflect it (p , 62 . The verification is uncertain . Fans do take signal from players cheerleaders , coaches as well as one anther . Fans usually obtain a sense of social identity in addition to self esteem from a team . Imitation of best players is an aspect of this identification . Group unity with coaches and players results in a view of other teams...