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Distinction through SportCon sumpt ion Spectators of Soccer, Basketball, and Ski-

jum ping Article in International Review for the Sociology of Sport · September 2005Impact Factor: 0.83 · DOI: 10.1177/1012690205060159

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Sociology of SportInternational Review for the

DOI: 10.1177/10126902050601592005; 40; 321International Review for the Sociology of Sport

Ingar Mehusand Ski-jumping

Distinction through Sport Consumption: Spectators of Soccer, Basketball,

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DISTINCTION THROUGH SPORT CONSUMPTIONSpectators of Soccer, Basketball, and Ski-jumping

Ingar Mehus Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Norway

Abstract Drawing on the theoretical framework of Pierre Bourdieu, this study investigates therelationship between cultural capital and different forms of sport consumption by spectators of threedifferent sports ( N = 587). Main findings show a negative relationship between cultural capital andsport consumption, and a positive relationship between sport participation and sport consumption.The findings are partly at odds with previous studies, indicating a positive relationship between cul-tural capital and direct sport consumption. The findings are possibly explained by considering tastesas social communication in a society where mass consumption adds to the blurring of distinctiveborders between different groups of social belongingness, involving the ‘cultural omnivore’ thesis.

Key words • cultural capital • social class • sport consumption

The consumption of sport is an important cultural activity in Norway, where 62percent of the male population have attended sports events the last 12 months.This is high compared to many other cultural activities such as visiting thetheatre, art exhibitions, museums, public libraries, and the opera. Even thoughsports might be considered especially important for men, this is not to imply thatsports events are an insignificant cultural activity for women, since 51 percent of Norwegian women have attended a sports event in the last 12 months (SSB,2003). Television is another important source of sport consumption — 13 percentof all programs broadcast through the Norwegian national television channel(NRK) are sports related. Sport programs unite people in front of the television,and have achieved some of the highest ratings in the history of Norwegian televi-sion. The soccer match between Norway and Mexico in the 1994 football (soccer)World Cup attracted 2.1 million viewers, and the men’s cross country relay in the2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City attracted 1.6 million viewers. These arehigh ratings considering the Norwegian total population of about 4.5 million.

Consumption of sport can be categorized into direct consumption, whichincludes spectators attending sport events, while following sport through mass

media is considered indirect consumption (Wann et al., 2001). Recently, severalempirical studies have utilized Bourdieu’s (1978, 1984) theoretical framework when investigating the relationship between direct sport consumption, sport par-ticipation, and economic and cultural capital (Thrane, 2001; White and Wilson,

INTERNATIONAL REVIEW FOR THE SOCIOLOGY OF SPORT40/3(2005) 321–333 321

© Copyright ISSA and SAGE Publications (London, Thousand Oaks, CA, New Delhi)www.sagepublications.com10.1177/1012690205060159


https://www.researchgate.net/publication/232460366_Sport_Fans_The_Psychology_and_Social_Impact_of_Spectators?el=1_x_8&enrichId=rgreq-e1e9aaaa-5608-4dab-bafc-59d37b72f56c&enrichSource=Y292ZXJQYWdlOzIzNjExNjA3MDtBUzo5OTcxMzA2ODA0NDI5NEAxNDAwNzg0ODU2NDM5https://www.researchgate.net/publication/247627084_'Sport_and_Social_Class'?el=1_x_8&enrichId=rgreq-e1e9aaaa-5608-4dab-bafc-59d37b72f56c&enrichSource=Y292ZXJQYWdlOzIzNjExNjA3MDtBUzo5OTcxMzA2ODA0NDI5NEAxNDAwNzg0ODU2NDM5https://www.researchgate.net/publication/240710361_Sport_spectatorship_in_Scandinavia?el=1_x_8&enrichId=rgreq-e1e9aaaa-5608-4dab-bafc-59d37b72f56c&enrichSource=Y292ZXJQYWdlOzIzNjExNjA3MDtBUzo5OTcxMzA2ODA0NDI5NEAxNDAwNzg0ODU2NDM5http://irs.sagepub.com/http://irs.sagepub.com/http://irs.sagepub.com/https://www.researchgate.net/publication/232460366_Sport_Fans_The_Psychology_and_Social_Impact_of_Spectators?el=1_x_8&enrichId=rgreq-e1e9aaaa-5608-4dab-bafc-59d37b72f56c&enrichSource=Y292ZXJQYWdlOzIzNjExNjA3MDtBUzo5OTcxMzA2ODA0NDI5NEAxNDAwNzg0ODU2NDM5https://www.researchgate.net/publication/247627084_'Sport_and_Social_Class'?el=1_x_8&enrichId=rgreq-e1e9aaaa-5608-4dab-bafc-59d37b72f56c&enrichSource=Y292ZXJQYWdlOzIzNjExNjA3MDtBUzo5OTcxMzA2ODA0NDI5NEAxNDAwNzg0ODU2NDM5https://www.researchgate.net/publication/240710361_Sport_spectatorship_in_Scandinavia?el=1_x_8&enrichId=rgreq-e1e9aaaa-5608-4dab-bafc-59d37b72f56c&enrichSource=Y292ZXJQYWdlOzIzNjExNjA3MDtBUzo5OTcxMzA2ODA0NDI5NEAxNDAwNzg0ODU2NDM5http://irs.sagepub.com/


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1999; Wilson, 2002). Their results support a positive relationship between eco-nomical capital and direct consumption, partly confirming that the high cost of tickets excludes those with lower incomes from attending (Eitzen, 1996).However, the relationship between cultural capital and direct consumption seemsto be a little more complicated. First, there appear to be inconsistencies in find-ings between the North American context (White and Wilson, 1999; Wilson,2002) and the Scandinavian context, as well as within the Scandinavian context(Thrane, 2001). Second, Wilson (2002) notes a paradox where high social classis associated with a high level of involvement in sport in general, but such indi-viduals are less likely to be involved in ‘prole’ sports.

Indirect sport consumption has received little attention when mapping outthese relationships, despite the distinction between participation and consumptiondescribed by Bourdieu (1978), labelling indirect consumption through televisionas ‘simple passive consumption’. Over 25 years have passed since Bourdieu

described this relationship, but more recent research supports a negative relation-ship between consumption through television and social networks (Bankston III,2003; DiMaggio, 1987; Moy et al., 1999; Putnam, 1995, 2000). At the same time,sports and mass media have become more intertwined, making indirect con-sumption of sport more available for all social groups. Sport as mass consump-tion could be investigated in light of a suggested historical shift, where peoplehigh in cultural capital are becoming more open to appreciate a wider spectrumof cultural activities compared to people low in cultural capital — the so called‘omnivore-thesis’ (DiMaggio, 1987; DiMaggio and Mohr, 1985; Holt, 1998;Peterson, 1997; Peterson and Kern, 1996; Peterson and Simkus, 1992).

Utilizing Bourdieu’s (1978, 1984) theoretical framework, the aim of thisstudy is to provide a closer consideration of the relationship between direct andindirect sport consumption and cultural capital. The findings add to our know-ledge of consumption of sport as a social marker.

Cultural Capital, Taste, and Consumption

According to Bourdieu (1984) social class is dependent of three dimensions: first,the volume of capital attained, where capital can take the form of economic,

cultural or social capital; second, the composition of different forms of capital;and third, how these relationships change over time. Distinct from economic andsocial capital, cultural capital consists of a set of socially distinctive tastes, skills,knowledge, and practices, that are objectified in cultural objects and embodied asimplicit practical knowledge, skills, and dispositions. The phenomena of skills,knowledge, and practices embodied as ways of feeling, thinking, and acting,Bourdieu (1984: 170) terms ‘habitus’:

The habitus is not only a structuring structure, which organizes practices and the perceptionof practices, but also a structured structure: the principle of division into logical classes whichorganizes the perception of the social world is itself the product of internalization of thedivision into social classes.

The social world consists of many relatively autonomous fields, includingpolitics, education, arts, and sports. Cultural capital takes on a distinctive form in

322 INTERNATIONAL REVIEW FOR THE SOCIOLOGY OF SPORT 40(3)


https://www.researchgate.net/publication/249676015_Classism_In_Sport_The_Powerless_Bear_the_Burden?el=1_x_8&enrichId=rgreq-e1e9aaaa-5608-4dab-bafc-59d37b72f56c&enrichSource=Y292ZXJQYWdlOzIzNjExNjA3MDtBUzo5OTcxMzA2ODA0NDI5NEAxNDAwNzg0ODU2NDM5https://www.researchgate.net/publication/240710361_Sport_spectatorship_in_Scandinavia?el=1_x_8&enrichId=rgreq-e1e9aaaa-5608-4dab-bafc-59d37b72f56c&enrichSource=Y292ZXJQYWdlOzIzNjExNjA3MDtBUzo5OTcxMzA2ODA0NDI5NEAxNDAwNzg0ODU2NDM5https://www.researchgate.net/publication/247627084_'Sport_and_Social_Class'?el=1_x_8&enrichId=rgreq-e1e9aaaa-5608-4dab-bafc-59d37b72f56c&enrichSource=Y292ZXJQYWdlOzIzNjExNjA3MDtBUzo5OTcxMzA2ODA0NDI5NEAxNDAwNzg0ODU2NDM5https://www.researchgate.net/publication/235361942_Distinction_A_Social_Critique_of_Taste?el=1_x_8&enrichId=rgreq-e1e9aaaa-5608-4dab-bafc-59d37b72f56c&enrichSource=Y292ZXJQYWdlOzIzNjExNjA3MDtBUzo5OTcxMzA2ODA0NDI5NEAxNDAwNzg0ODU2NDM5https://www.researchgate.net/publication/235361942_Distinction_A_Social_Critique_of_Taste?el=1_x_8&enrichId=rgreq-e1e9aaaa-5608-4dab-bafc-59d37b72f56c&enrichSource=Y292ZXJQYWdlOzIzNjExNjA3MDtBUzo5OTcxMzA2ODA0NDI5NEAxNDAwNzg0ODU2NDM5http://irs.sagepub.com/http://irs.sagepub.com/http://irs.sagepub.com/https://www.researchgate.net/publication/249676015_Classism_In_Sport_The_Powerless_Bear_the_Burden?el=1_x_8&enrichId=rgreq-e1e9aaaa-5608-4dab-bafc-59d37b72f56c&enrichSource=Y292ZXJQYWdlOzIzNjExNjA3MDtBUzo5OTcxMzA2ODA0NDI5NEAxNDAwNzg0ODU2NDM5https://www.researchgate.net/publication/235361942_Distinction_A_Social_Critique_of_Taste?el=1_x_8&enrichId=rgreq-e1e9aaaa-5608-4dab-bafc-59d37b72f56c&enrichSource=Y292ZXJQYWdlOzIzNjExNjA3MDtBUzo5OTcxMzA2ODA0NDI5NEAxNDAwNzg0ODU2NDM5https://www.researchgate.net/publication/235361942_Distinction_A_Social_Critique_of_Taste?el=1_x_8&enrichId=rgreq-e1e9aaaa-5608-4dab-bafc-59d37b72f56c&enrichSource=Y292ZXJQYWdlOzIzNjExNjA3MDtBUzo5OTcxMzA2ODA0NDI5NEAxNDAwNzg0ODU2NDM5https://www.researchgate.net/publication/247627084_'Sport_and_Social_Class'?el=1_x_8&enrichId=rgreq-e1e9aaaa-5608-4dab-bafc-59d37b72f56c&enrichSource=Y292ZXJQYWdlOzIzNjExNjA3MDtBUzo5OTcxMzA2ODA0NDI5NEAxNDAwNzg0ODU2NDM5https://www.researchgate.net/publication/240710361_Sport_spectatorship_in_Scandinavia?el=1_x_8&enrichId=rgreq-e1e9aaaa-5608-4dab-bafc-59d37b72f56c&enrichSource=Y292ZXJQYWdlOzIzNjExNjA3MDtBUzo5OTcxMzA2ODA0NDI5NEAxNDAwNzg0ODU2NDM5http://irs.sagepub.com/


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each field, and is enacted in corresponding fields of consumption. Here culturalcapital is converted into tastes and consumption practices, where tastes refer tomanifested preferences. The manifestation of habitus through tastes and con-sumption practices across categories of goods and activities results in the con-struction of lifestyles. Thus, lifestyles are systematic products of habitus and canbe viewed as socially qualified sign systems (Bourdieu, 1984).

In Bourdieu’s theoretical framework, social class is of central importance,but differs from Marxist and neo-Marxist theses by defining the concept of socialclass from a cultural point of view (Clément, 1995). According to Brubaker(1985), Bourdieu defines class in the conceptual space of social relations ingeneral, ending up with a general conception of class where class divisions aredefined by differing conditions of existence, differing systems of dispositions,and different endowments of capital. Looking at social class as a group of agentswho share the same interests, social experiences, traditions, and value systems,

the concept of social class could be substituted with that of social belongingnessor social groups.

Tastes as Social Communication

In the work of DiMaggio (1987) and DiMaggio and Mohr (1985), tastes representa form of social communication. Tastes become means of constructing socialrelations and establishing networks of trust, which again will result in socialrewards such as prestigious jobs. The role of goods as important status-definershas become less important than that of taste, as subjects of conversation supplantobjects of display as bases of social evaluation. Having knowledge and the com-municative competence to show other people this knowledge is more importantthan having an expensive car. This line of thought is also found in the work of Holt (1998), claiming an historical shift where the importance of the objectifiedform has been surpassed by the embodied form in advanced capitalist societies.Holt (1998) finds support for this notion in theories of postmodernity, where amassive overproduction of commodity signs leads to ‘an anarchic welter of con-sumer symbols that are not readily assimilated by social groups in any coherentway’ (p. 5). A high degree of overlap in consumer preferences across social

categories, blurs borders between mass and high culture and cultural hierarchies,resulting in objectified cultural capital becoming a relatively weak symbolic signof social belongingness. In fields where there is great overlap in the objects con-sumed, embodied cultural capital becomes important for those high in culturalcapital to emphasize the distinctiveness of consumption practices themselves. Inother words, those high and low in cultural capital consume the same product indifferent ways.

DiMaggio (1987) focuses on the consumption of art as cultural currency, butadmits that there are other important fields of consumption: ‘If there is a commoncultural currency, the arts (supplemented by fashion, cuisine, and sports) consti-tute it’ (p. 443). Sport consumption as cultural currency implies that knowledgeabout sport, and sport as a subject of conversation, is important when establish-ing social networks. Since socioeconomic status is positively related to the size,complexity, and diversity of social networks, one would expect that ‘the number

MEHUS: DISTINCTION THROUGH SPORT CONSUMPTION 323


https://www.researchgate.net/publication/235361942_Distinction_A_Social_Critique_of_Taste?el=1_x_8&enrichId=rgreq-e1e9aaaa-5608-4dab-bafc-59d37b72f56c&enrichSource=Y292ZXJQYWdlOzIzNjExNjA3MDtBUzo5OTcxMzA2ODA0NDI5NEAxNDAwNzg0ODU2NDM5https://www.researchgate.net/publication/24098996_Does_Cultural_Capital_Structure_American_Consumption?el=1_x_8&enrichId=rgreq-e1e9aaaa-5608-4dab-bafc-59d37b72f56c&enrichSource=Y292ZXJQYWdlOzIzNjExNjA3MDtBUzo5OTcxMzA2ODA0NDI5NEAxNDAwNzg0ODU2NDM5https://www.researchgate.net/publication/24098996_Does_Cultural_Capital_Structure_American_Consumption?el=1_x_8&enrichId=rgreq-e1e9aaaa-5608-4dab-bafc-59d37b72f56c&enrichSource=Y292ZXJQYWdlOzIzNjExNjA3MDtBUzo5OTcxMzA2ODA0NDI5NEAxNDAwNzg0ODU2NDM5http://irs.sagepub.com/http://irs.sagepub.com/http://irs.sagepub.com/https://www.researchgate.net/publication/24098996_Does_Cultural_Capital_Structure_American_Consumption?el=1_x_8&enrichId=rgreq-e1e9aaaa-5608-4dab-bafc-59d37b72f56c&enrichSource=Y292ZXJQYWdlOzIzNjExNjA3MDtBUzo5OTcxMzA2ODA0NDI5NEAxNDAwNzg0ODU2NDM5https://www.researchgate.net/publication/24098996_Does_Cultural_Capital_Structure_American_Consumption?el=1_x_8&enrichId=rgreq-e1e9aaaa-5608-4dab-bafc-59d37b72f56c&enrichSource=Y292ZXJQYWdlOzIzNjExNjA3MDtBUzo5OTcxMzA2ODA0NDI5NEAxNDAwNzg0ODU2NDM5https://www.researchgate.net/publication/235361942_Distinction_A_Social_Critique_of_Taste?el=1_x_8&enrichId=rgreq-e1e9aaaa-5608-4dab-bafc-59d37b72f56c&enrichSource=Y292ZXJQYWdlOzIzNjExNjA3MDtBUzo5OTcxMzA2ODA0NDI5NEAxNDAwNzg0ODU2NDM5http://irs.sagepub.com/


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of genres that a person consumes is a function of his or her socioeconomicstatus’, and also that ‘persons with wide-ranging networks develop tastes for thewidest variety of cultural forms’ (DiMaggio, 1987: 444). This could be summedup by saying that well-educated people do and like more of almost everything,explained by wide-ranging networks requiring broad repertoires of taste. Holt(1998), also found that persons high in cultural capital consume a wider varietyof genres and styles, compared with persons low in cultural capital.

Considering tastes as a form of social communication implies a special rolefor consumption through television. By providing a common stock of symbols fornearly everyone, watching television stands in contrast to more arcane culturalforms enabling individuals to place one another in social groups. Persons report-ing little consumption of cultural goods or activities besides television are pre-dominantly low-income, blue-collar or unemployed — groups with a limitedrange of social contacts (DiMaggio, 1987). The negative relationship between

television and social networks has also been described and empirically testedwithin the theoretical framework of civil society theory (Bankston III, 2003; Moyet al., 1999; Putnam, 1995, 2000).

Cultural Capital and Direct Sport Consumption

As noted, indirect consumption of sport has received little attention in studiesconcerned with sport involvement and cultural capital. However, studies focus-ing on direct consumption provide this study with a point of departure. ACanadian study by White and Wilson (1999) investigated the relationshipbetween socioeconomic status and sport spectatorship, finding that income andeducation are positive predictors of male and female direct consumption. Incomewas a stronger predictor than education. Still, education as a positive and inde-pendent predictor of attendance at sport events, suggests that cultural factorsinfluence sport spectatorship. The study also found that age was inversely relatedto sport spectatorship, as younger Canadians of both sexes were more likely thantheir elders to have attended professional sport events. In this study education wasexpected to affect sport spectatorship indirectly, based on earlier research (Lascuet al., 1995) showing that the well-educated participate more in sport than the

poorly educated, with an expected spill over effect into sport spectatorship.White and Wilson’s (1999) study did not elaborate on, or control for theeffect of sport participation on direct consumption. However, this was done in afollow-up study by Thrane (2001), investigating the link between class and directsport consumption in the three Scandinavian countries — Norway, Sweden, andDenmark. The results supported White and Wilson’s (1999) predictions, indicat-ing that people who are active in sport are also the most typical sport spectators.The study also showed that high income groups were more likely to attendsporting events compared to the lowest income group. Arguing that culturalcapital involves more than just education, Thrane (2001) measured culturalcapital by including questions related to attending the theatre, classical concerts,art galleries, and museums, thus enabling him to calculate separate effects ofeducation and cultural capital. Regarding the relationship between education anddirect sport consumption, his findings indicated differences when comparing



https://www.researchgate.net/publication/240710354_DISTINCTIONS_IN_THE_STANDSAn_Investigation_of_Bourdieu's_Habitus'_Socioeconomic_Status_and_Sport_Spectatorship_in_Canada?el=1_x_8&enrichId=rgreq-e1e9aaaa-5608-4dab-bafc-59d37b72f56c&enrichSource=Y292ZXJQYWdlOzIzNjExNjA3MDtBUzo5OTcxMzA2ODA0NDI5NEAxNDAwNzg0ODU2NDM5http://irs.sagepub.com/http://irs.sagepub.com/http://irs.sagepub.com/https://www.researchgate.net/publication/240710354_DISTINCTIONS_IN_THE_STANDSAn_Investigation_of_Bourdieu's_Habitus'_Socioeconomic_Status_and_Sport_Spectatorship_in_Canada?el=1_x_8&enrichId=rgreq-e1e9aaaa-5608-4dab-bafc-59d37b72f56c&enrichSource=Y292ZXJQYWdlOzIzNjExNjA3MDtBUzo5OTcxMzA2ODA0NDI5NEAxNDAwNzg0ODU2NDM5http://irs.sagepub.com/


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Scandinavian countries. In Norway a positive relationship was found betweenlevel of education and sport spectatorship, while a negative relationship wasfound in Sweden, and in Denmark there was no significant relationship. Based onthese findings, Thrane (2001) concluded that there is no systematic relationshipbetween education and direct consumption. Findings concerning the effect ofcultural capital on sport spectatorship show that people who at least sometimesparticipated in high culture activities were more likely to attend sporting eventsthan people who never participated in high culture activities. However, inDenmark and Norway, people participating most frequently in high cultureactivities were not more likely to attend sport events when compared to peoplewho never participated in high culture activities. The effects of gender and age onsport spectatorship were similar across the three Nordic countries, as men andyounger persons in general were more likely to attend sporting events comparedto women and older persons.

An admitted weakness is that Thrane’s (2001) study lacks controls for theeffect of different sports. In another follow-up study to White and Wilson (1999),Wilson (2002) found that less-educated men are far more likely to attend auto andmotorcycle races (‘prole’ sports) compared to better educated men, with the sametendency among women. These findings contradict those concerning sportinvolvement in general, which show that better educated people are more likelyto attend sporting events regardless of their incomes. Findings showing thatpeople highest in cultural capital are generally more involved in sport appear tobe consistent with the omnivore thesis. However, findings showing that respon-dents highest in cultural capital dislike ‘prole’ sports suggest some limits tocultural omnivorism in sport tastes among the elite. Wilson (2002) concludes thathis findings provide little support for class-based differences in economic capitalas an explanation for the paradox of social class and sports involvement, whilethe concept of cultural capital provides a far better explanation.

Purpose of the Study

This study represents an attempt to add to our understanding of the determinantsof sport consumption, with specific interest in the relationship between sport

consumption and cultural capital, and using educational attainment as a proxy.The first aim of this article is to test the positive relationship between culturalcapital and direct sport consumption found in other studies (White and Wilson,1999; Wilson, 2002); a major difference being that instead of comparing specta-tors with non-spectators this study surveys spectators exclusively, comparing ahigh frequency of direct consumption with a low frequency of direct consump-tion.

The second aim is to investigate the relationship between cultural capital andindirect sport consumption through television. Following Bourdieu’s (1978)description of watching sport on television as simple passive consumption, andprevious studies indicating the negative effect of television on social networks(Bankston III, 2003; DiMaggio, 1985; Moy et al., 1999), a negative relationshipbetween cultural capital and indirect sport consumption was expected.

In addition to effects of age and gender, it was considered important to con-



https://www.researchgate.net/publication/240710361_Sport_spectatorship_in_Scandinavia?el=1_x_8&enrichId=rgreq-e1e9aaaa-5608-4dab-bafc-59d37b72f56c&enrichSource=Y292ZXJQYWdlOzIzNjExNjA3MDtBUzo5OTcxMzA2ODA0NDI5NEAxNDAwNzg0ODU2NDM5https://www.researchgate.net/publication/247627084_'Sport_and_Social_Class'?el=1_x_8&enrichId=rgreq-e1e9aaaa-5608-4dab-bafc-59d37b72f56c&enrichSource=Y292ZXJQYWdlOzIzNjExNjA3MDtBUzo5OTcxMzA2ODA0NDI5NEAxNDAwNzg0ODU2NDM5https://www.researchgate.net/publication/271994585_No_Bowling_at_all_Television_the_Vita_Inactiva_and_Social_Capital?el=1_x_8&enrichId=rgreq-e1e9aaaa-5608-4dab-bafc-59d37b72f56c&enrichSource=Y292ZXJQYWdlOzIzNjExNjA3MDtBUzo5OTcxMzA2ODA0NDI5NEAxNDAwNzg0ODU2NDM5http://irs.sagepub.com/http://irs.sagepub.com/http://irs.sagepub.com/https://www.researchgate.net/publication/271994585_No_Bowling_at_all_Television_the_Vita_Inactiva_and_Social_Capital?el=1_x_8&enrichId=rgreq-e1e9aaaa-5608-4dab-bafc-59d37b72f56c&enrichSource=Y292ZXJQYWdlOzIzNjExNjA3MDtBUzo5OTcxMzA2ODA0NDI5NEAxNDAwNzg0ODU2NDM5https://www.researchgate.net/publication/224818344_Television_Use_and_Social_Capital_Testing_Putnam's_Time_Displacement_Hypothesis?el=1_x_8&enrichId=rgreq-e1e9aaaa-5608-4dab-bafc-59d37b72f56c&enrichSource=Y292ZXJQYWdlOzIzNjExNjA3MDtBUzo5OTcxMzA2ODA0NDI5NEAxNDAwNzg0ODU2NDM5https://www.researchgate.net/publication/247627084_'Sport_and_Social_Class'?el=1_x_8&enrichId=rgreq-e1e9aaaa-5608-4dab-bafc-59d37b72f56c&enrichSource=Y292ZXJQYWdlOzIzNjExNjA3MDtBUzo5OTcxMzA2ODA0NDI5NEAxNDAwNzg0ODU2NDM5https://www.researchgate.net/publication/245822305_Cultural_Capital_Education_Attainment_and_Marital_Selection?el=1_x_8&enrichId=rgreq-e1e9aaaa-5608-4dab-bafc-59d37b72f56c&enrichSource=Y292ZXJQYWdlOzIzNjExNjA3MDtBUzo5OTcxMzA2ODA0NDI5NEAxNDAwNzg0ODU2NDM5https://www.researchgate.net/publication/240710361_Sport_spectatorship_in_Scandinavia?el=1_x_8&enrichId=rgreq-e1e9aaaa-5608-4dab-bafc-59d37b72f56c&enrichSource=Y292ZXJQYWdlOzIzNjExNjA3MDtBUzo5OTcxMzA2ODA0NDI5NEAxNDAwNzg0ODU2NDM5http://irs.sagepub.com/


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trol for the effects of participation in sport, and different preferences related totype of sport consumed, when testing the two main hypotheses.

Methods

Procedure

The data for this study were collected at three different sport events, includingmale professional soccer ( N = 212), ski-jumping ( N = 164), and male professionalbasketball ( N = 211). Surveyors were randomly assigned a block of the standswhere they distributed questionnaires to all spectators. Starting 90 minutes beforethe game, questionnaires were distributed and collected until the game started. Toensure that spectators were not distracted from the experience of the game,no questionnaires were administered after the game started. Participation wasvoluntary, but the surveyor’s request was rarely rejected.

Variables

Regarding sport spectatorship respondents were asked, ‘How often do you attendsporting events?’ Response categories were never , seldom , 1–3 times a month ,once a week , 2–3 times a week , 4–6 days a week , and every day. Respondents alsoanswered questions related to consumption of sport through television, withresponse categories matching those for attending sport events. To make thedirect and indirect consumption dependent variables comparable to other studiesinvestigating the phenomenon (Thrane, 2001; White and Wilson, 1999; Wilson,2002), responses were collapsed into those attending sport events less than oncea month (coded 0), and those attending sport events once a month or more (coded1). Those attending sport events once a month or more are above the populationmean, and were categorized as high in direct consumption. Respondents attend-ing sport events less than once a month were categorized as low in directconsumption. The same categories were created for indirect consumption, withspectators watching sport on television less than four times a week categorized aslow in indirect sport consumption (coded 0), and spectators watching sport on

television four times a week or more as high indirect consumers (coded 1).Independent variables were measured as follows: questions related to fre-

quency of participation in sport utilized the same response categories as con-sumption of sport. Education was measured on a four-point ordinal variable,ranging from completed secondary upper education or less (coded 0) to more thanfour years of tertiary education (coded 3). Control variables were gender (women= 1; men = 0), age in years, and type of sport with soccer serving as reference(coded 0).

RespondentsTable 1 provide information about means and standard deviations for centralvariables before collapsing them into categories; and the characteristics of thesamples.



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Results

The first step involved comparing spectators attending different sport events fordifference in educational attainment. A chi-square test showed no significantrelationship between educational attainment and sport event attended ( χ 2 =10.791, d.f. = 6, exact p = .095). These results indicate that spectators of soccer,ski-jumping, and basketball did not significantly differ in educational attainment.

Correlation coefficients were calculated for central variables when includingthe whole sample (Table 2), and for spectators at separate sporting events. Resultsfor the whole sample show a significant positive relationship between direct andindirect sport consumption, and between participating in sport and both forms of sport consumption. The relationship between education and both forms of con-sumption was negative. Only participation in sport correlated significantly withage, the negative relationship indicating that older spectators participate lessfrequently in sport than younger spectators. Note that the correlations arerelatively weak (most are less than .3).

Comparing correlations between spectators of different sports showed twointeresting differences between spectators. First, there was no significant negativecorrelation between education and indirect consumption for soccer and basketballspectators, only for ski-jump spectators. Second, a significant negative correla-tion between education and sport participation was only found for basketballspectators.

Next, a logistic regression analysis was performed with direct and indirect(television) consumption as dependent variables. Sample weights were used tocompensate for the lower representation of ski-jump spectators. All independentvariables, except age and sport participation, were entered as sets of dummyvariables with their lowest values serving as reference categories. Both modelsincluded a total of 587 cases. The e B column provides an indication of the changein the predicted odds of consumption for each unit change in the predictorvariable. Values less than 1 indicate that an increase in the value of the predictor


Table 1 Means and Standard Deviations (in parantheses) for CentralStudy Variables, and Sample Characteristics

Soccer Basketball Ski-jumping(n = 212) ( n = 211) ( n = 164)

Direct consumption 3.16 (1.02) 3.34 (0.93) 2.57 (0.87)Indirect consumption 5.67 (1.34) 4.86 (1.65) 5.11 (1.51)Education 2.16 (1.13) 2.11 (1.16) 2.20 (1.18)Sport participation 2.65 (1.86) 2.44 (1.77) 2.30 (1.63)Age 29.30 (10.63) 32.98 (12.79) 35.16 (12.88)

Sample characteristicsMales (%) 69.9 48.3 64< Tertiary education (%) 41 47.7 43.3Low sport participation (%) 63.2 64.5 69.5




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participating in sport. Also, soccer spectators watch more sport on TV comparedto basketball and ski-jump spectators.

Discussion

Sport Consumption and Cultural Capital

The first aim of this study was to determine if there is a positive relationshipbetween cultural capital, measured by educational attainment, and direct sport

consumption, as noted in previous studies (White and Wilson, 1999; Wilson,2002). Rather surprisingly a negative relationship was found, indicating thathighly educated spectators (HES) attend fewer sport events than spectators witha lower level of education (LES). The second hypothesis concerned a negativerelationship between indirect (television) consumption and cultural capital.Results in this present study support the hypothesis, with HES watching sport lessfrequently on TV compared to LES. The two hypotheses were generated bearingin mind a certain relationship between direct and indirect consumption, consider-ing indirect consumption as the more passive form. The results show littledifference in the models calculating the effects of education on direct andindirect consumption (Table 3).

Explaining these results requires consideration of two important differencesbetween this study and others. This study focuses exclusively on spectators, andtakes the frequency of consumption into consideration, as opposed to previous

Table 3 Direct and Indirect Sport Consumption by Type of Sport,Sport Participation, and Demographics

Direct consumption Indirect consumption

Variable β eB β eB

Education: a

< 1 year tertiary education –.275 .759 –.142 .8681–4 years tertiary education –.396 .673 .224 1.251> 4 years tertiary education –1.036*** .355 –.650* .522Gender (1 = women) –.301 .740 –1.192*** .304Age .025** 1.025 –.005 .995Sport participation .177** 1.193 .264*** 1.303

Type of sport: b

Ski-jumping –1.435*** .238 –.599** .550Basketball .659** 1.934 –.656** .519Constant .241 1.272 .194 1.214

Log likelihood 694.400 764.287Model chi-square 121.508*** 110.689***Degrees of freedom 8 8Number of observations 587 587

*p < .05, **p < .01, ***p < .0005.a Reference category = completed upper secondary education or less.b Reference category = soccer.




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studies that compared spectators and non-spectators and created a single categoryfor spectators attending one or 12 sport events (Thrane, 2001; White and Wilson,1999; Wilson, 2002).

Keeping these differences in mind, I argue that the results of this study do notcontradict the previous studies. Rather, they are interpreted as providing supportfor the idea that mass consumption blurs the borders between social groups(DiMaggio, 1987; Holt, 1998). This perspective hold that the number of genresconsumed is a function of a person’s socioeconomic status, implying that well-educated people do and like more of ‘everything’ — the omnivore thesis.Transferred to the field of sport, this line of thought suggests that HES have agreater likelihood of attending a sport event compared with LES simply becausethey attend more cultural activities. This explains the positive relationshipbetween attending sport events and cultural capital, when comparing spectatorsand non-spectators (White and Wilson, 1999; Wilson, 2002). However, attending

more diverse cultural activities should not be confused with attending a particu-lar cultural activity more frequently. The results of this study show that LESattend more events compared to HES, indicating that direct sport consumption isof higher relative importance in the lifestyle of LES. HES attend sport eventsbecause sport, as a cultural currency and subject of conversation, is importantwhen establishing social networks. But a high level of direct consumption is notnecessary in order to communicate competence in this field. Rather, a high levelof direct consumption could be interpreted as a sign that fewer genres are con-sumed in total, explaining the findings of a negative relationship between directconsumption and cultural capital.

The results indicate that the same phenomenon applies to indirect consump-tion, since HES watch less sport on television compared to LES. These resultsshow that the taste for consuming sport is stable across different forms ofconsumption, since people high in direct consumption are also high in indirectconsumption. Considering the consumption of sport as a manifestation ofhabitus, such findings should come as no surprise. Establishing the taste for sportas part of a lifestyle is not limited to one type of consumption; rather, one mightexpect people interested in sports to acquire information from a variety of sources. In light of these findings the categorization of active direct consumption

as opposed to passive indirect consumption seems problematic. Indirect con-sumption of sport through television might still be negatively related to socialnetworks (Bankston III, 2003; DiMaggio, 1987; Moy et al., 1999; Putnam, 1995,2000), but results of this study suggest that a similar relationship is to be foundbetween direct consumption and social networks. However, this hypothesis wasnot tested.

Sport Participation and Consumption

White and Wilson (1999) found a positive relationship between direct consump-tion and participation in sport. The results of subsequent studies (Thrane, 2001;Wilson, 2002) supported this hypothesis, showing that respondents who partici-pated in sport were more likely to attend sport events in person. This studyconfirms sport participation as a relatively powerful predictor of both direct and





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indirect consumption because respondents who participate frequently in sport aremore likely to be high in consumption. Still, the results concerning participationand education show a negative relationship, indicating that LES participate morefrequently in sport compared to HES. This finding is mostly caused by basketballspectators, and it contradicts the expected positive relationship between directconsumption and participation, derived from the idea that well-educated peopleparticipate more in sport than those with lower levels of education, with anexpected spill over effect into sport spectatorship (Lascu et al., 1995).

Again, respondents in this study are spectators attending specific sportevents, which by itself would indicate an interest in sports. Participation in sportand consumption of sport seem to be an important part of the lifestyle of LEStaking part in this study, more important than in the case of HES, and probablymore important compared to people with a lower level of education in general.Providing an answer to why sport is an important part of the habitus and lifestyle

of LES is beyond the scope of this study, and additional studies involvingqualitative methods might be more appropriate when investigating the meaningof participation and consumption in individual lives.

Between Sport Differences

The results show that spectators of different sports differ in both direct andindirect consumption. Soccer spectators are more likely to be high in indirectconsumption compared to both basketball and ski-jump spectators. Consideringthe fact that soccer is the most high profile sport on national television, and there-fore most available to consumption, it should come as no surprise that respon-dents interested in soccer are highest in indirect consumption. Also, the fact thatbasketball is shown fewer times on television than the other two sports couldexplain why basketball spectators are more likely to be high in direct consump-tion — there are few options if you are interested in watching basketball. Anotherinteresting feature of basketball spectators is the close to even distribution of male and female spectators. Part of the explanation lies in the marketing ofbasketball towards younger people, attracting many families to the matches.

Wilson (2002) found that men with less education were far more likely to

attend ‘prole’ sports compared to better educated men, with the same tendencyamong women. This suggests that different sports are fitted into lifestyles reflect-ing a certain habitus, and leads to the expectation of finding differences incultural capital between different sports. The results of this study show that LESare more likely to be high in direct consumption, but that there is no significantdifference in terms of the educational attainment of spectators when comparingthe different sports. Do these findings mean that all three sports included in thisstudy should be labelled ‘prole’ sports? When considering that over 50 percent of spectators in all three sports had gone beyond upper secondary education, it isdifficult to argue that these are ‘prole’ sports. However, it seems equally difficultto argue that they are highbrow sports since they apparently attract spectatorsfrom a wide range of social backgrounds. Perhaps comparing spectators of golf and ice hockey would have provided different results. Then again, this mightbe another result of mass consumption blurring the borders of social groups, as





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soccer, basketball, and ski-jumping are consumed by spectators from a widerange of social backgrounds. This would again suggest that the type of sportconsumed is becoming a poor indicator of social location.

Distinction through ConsumptionPrevious studies have found that people high in cultural capital are more likely toattend sport events than people low in cultural capital (Thrane, 2001; White andWilson, 1999; Wilson, 2002), suggesting that direct sport consumption as part of a lifestyle functions as a social marker for people high in cultural capital. AsWilson (2002) points out, this is not the case for all sports because some sportsattract those low in cultural capital. However, consuming sport as a culturalactivity is a widespread phenomenon in Norway, attracting spectators from awide variety of social groups (SSB, 2000, 2003). If we accept the idea that mass

consumption contributes to the blurring of borders between social groups, andthat people high in cultural capital are becoming more omnivorous (DiMaggio,1987; DiMaggio and Mohr, 1985; Holt, 1998; Peterson and Kern, 1996; Petersonand Simkus, 1992), the difference between attending and not attending might notbe a sufficient indicator of consumption as a social marker.

This study focused on frequency of consumption as an alternative indicator,with findings indicating that LES spend more time on sport consumption andparticipation compared to HES. The finding suggests that spectators attendingsoccer, basketball, and ski-jumping events come from a wide spectrum of socialgroups, and that social groups differ in the way they consume sport according totheir level of cultural capital. This is precisely what might be expected whenconsidering sport as an object of mass consumption. Distinction is not to be foundso much in the decision to consume or not, but in how one chooses to consumesport. Part of this difference can be traced back to the frequency of consumption,thus explaining the negative relationship between cultural capital, sport con-sumption and sport attendance.

Thus, the results of this study should not be seen as contradictory to previousstudies that utilized Bourdieu’s analytical tools to investigate the relationshipbetween sport consumption and cultural capital (Thrane, 2001; White and

Wilson, 1999; White, 2002). Rather, they should be viewed as complementary,indicating that sport consumption as a social marker is not a stable construct.Direct and indirect consumption of sport still function as social markers, but sinceall social groups are engaged in mass consumption, how sport is consumed mightbe more important than if sport is consumed or not.

Acknowledgements

The author would like to express his sincere appreciation to Prof. Arnulf Kolstad at the Department

of Psychology, Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU) for excellent commentson drafts of this article, and Jan E. Ingebrigtsen at the Department of Sport Science, NTNU, forvaluable discussions.





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Wilson, T.C. (2002) ‘The Paradox of Social Class and Sports Involvement: The Roles of Cultural andEconomic Capital’, International Review for the Sociology of Sport 37: 5–16.

Ingar Mehus is a doctoral student at the Norwegian University of Science andTechnology. His research interests include sport spectatorship and physical activ-ity and sport participation among young people.

Address: Department of Sociology and Political Science — Sport Science,Norwegian University of Science and Technology, NO-7491 Trondheim,Norway. Email: [email protected]


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