300–500 words   

The Individual Projects for this course will build on each other—that is, each week leading to the final submission in Week 5, you will do 1 piece of the project that builds the complete assignment. The topic of your assignment is the sociology of sport. This is a large field within the discipline, and one that most people experience, in one way or another in their culture.

Field Observation Report: This week, you will attend and observe the sporting event you have chosen for your Week 2 Individual Project. If you are not able to attend a live game in-person, you may observe the sporting event on television or online, as long as you are able to clearly see the setting of the competition, the players and the fans. During your time at the game, you are to put on your “sociologist/ethnographer hat.” That is, you will not be a participant yourself, but an observer, noting the following and making notes on the social interactions you see:

Describe the setting of the competition—what are the key elements of space and environment that affect behavior?

Who is there? What are the fans like—their age, gender, status, socioeconomic status, ethnicity, education, etc.?

What about the players—how do they compare with the fans in terms of demographics?

What social behaviors stand out? For example, who hangs out with whom, and what are the moods and social dynamics?

What special language and knowledge characterizes the sport?

What notable or particular behavior of individuals or groups stands out in this event?

Figure out how you want to take notes by hand during the field observation. You will input them into the electronic form when you get to your computer (unless you are a tech-savvy person who takes notes right on your notebook device).

Use the attached template to record your observations electronically. The form is set up to accommodate all of the verbiage you need. Take as much space as you need to cover the topic.