The datafication of everything:Toward a sociology of sport and big data

This paper explores the articulations of sport and ‘Big Data’—an important though to date understudied topic. That we have arrived at an ‘Age of Big Data’ is an increasingly accepted premise: the proliferation of tracking technologies, combined with the desire to record/monitor human activity, has radically amplified the volume and variety of data in circulation, as well as the velocity at which data move. Herein, we take initial steps toward addressing the implications of Big Data for sport (and vice versa), first by historicizing the relationship between sport and quantification and second by charting its contemporary manifestations. We then present four overlapping postulates on sport in the Age of Big Data. These go toward both showing and questioning the logic of ‘progress’ said to lie at the core of sport’s nascent statistical turn. We conclude with reflections on how a robust sociology of sport and Big Data might be achieved.</jats:p

'The bike breaks down. What are they going to do?' Actor-networks and the Bicycles for Development movement

This manuscript reports on an empirical study of ‘Bicycles for Development’ (BFD) – a nascent movement whereby used bicycles are collected (often in the global North) and distributed in development contexts (often in the global South) with the aim of achieving a range of positive social outcomes (e.g., access to education). Drawing from interviews (n=32) with participants from 19 BFD organizations, and informed by Actor-Network Theory (ANT), the analysis presented herein specifically highlights three key factors that facilitate and/or hinder BFD work: 1) government regulations that potentially stem or ease the flow of bicycles into development contexts; 2) the bicycle’s material constitution, and specifically its sturdiness (or lack thereof); and 3) environmental conditions that impact how bicycles are made, distributed, and used. A key theme that cuts across these findings is the potential for non-humans to cause ‘frictions’ that potentially disrupt, divert, but also help in realizing the programs of action of BFD organizations. We consider the relevance of these findings for both the BFD movement in particular and the wider Sport for Development and Peace (SDP) movement in general. Based on study findings, we argue for ANT as a useful framework for achieving a widened analytical focus and thus for delivering more robust accounts of development contexts under study

Inter-organizational governance and trilateral trust building: a case study of crowdsourcing-based open innovation in China

In a case study of a Chinese crowdsourcing intermediary, we explore the impact of inter-organizational governance on trilateral trust-building. We show that formal control and relational governance mechanisms are essential for swift and knowledge-based trust in R&D crowdsourcing. The case also indicates that Chinese businesses continue to use guanxi (informal personal connections) as a relational and contingent mechanism to maintain affect-based trust, but guanxi is shown to inhibit the growth of Internet-based crowdsourcing for open innovation in China

The datafication of everything:Toward a sociology of sport and big data

This paper explores the articulations of sport and 'Big Data'—an important though to date understudied topic. That we have arrived at an 'Age of Big Data' is an increasingly accepted premise: the proliferation of tracking technologies, combined with the desire to record/monitor human activity, has radically amplified the volume and variety of data in circulation, as well as the velocity at which data move. Herein, we take initial steps toward addressing the implications of Big Data for sport (and vice versa), first by historicizing the relationship between sport and quantification and second by charting its contemporary manifestations. We then present four overlapping postulates on sport in the Age of Big Data. These go toward both showing and questioning the logic of 'progress' said to lie at the core of sport's nascent statistical turn. We conclude with reflections on how a robust sociology of sport and Big Data might be achieved

'Quantify the invisible':Notes toward a future of posture

This paper contributes to the literature on the phenomenon termed mHealth through a critical examination of wearable posture-tracking technologies. The paper specifically reports on a qualitative document analysis of promotional materials for three devices, carried out with the aim of assessing their mode of operation, the logic underpinning their development and their purported benefits for users. Findings initially highlight how Lumo Lift and Lumo Back, made by the company Lumo Bodytech Inc., and Prana, made by Prana Tech LLC, are designed to enable haptic surveillance and discipline whereby the body is monitored and ‘reprimanded’ through the touch. These forms of interactive posture training are underpinned by scientific insight from fields such as biomechanics and by data science on consumer posture habits. In turn, the benefits for those engaging with commercial posture-tracking devices are said to include, unsurprisingly, better posture, but also a less tangible form of ‘optimised’ living. With these findings in mind, it is argued that the arrival of interactive posture technologies has two main implications. In one sense, whereas good posture has historically been imagined as a dividing line between ‘civilized’ humans and ‘uncivilized’ others, devices such as Lumo Lift make posture into a matter of posthuman optimisation: humans and non-humans are enfolded in the pursuit of self-betterment. In another sense, posture technologies are important in emboldening the wider mHealth phenomenon, privileging as they do the idea that commercial technologies are now allies and not foes when it comes to improving health

Golf and the environmental politics of modernization

In this critical review we reflect on findings from a socio-historical study of golf’s relationship with the environment. We focus especially on the golf industry’s pursuit of modernization from the early 1900s to the present. Golf’s quest to ‘be’ modern, we contend, has specifically constituted three particular ‘turns’: a first turn in the early 1900s involving the scientific rationalization of golf course development and maintenance; a second, ‘exemptionalist’ turn in the post-war years whereby science and technology fueled a perception of immense control over nature; and a third, more recent turn to ecological modernization (EM) whereby science and technology are leveraged toward environmental stewardship – or at least claims thereof. We ultimately argue that the golf industry’s recent adoption of EM principles in their environment-related work has political implications, as it ‘protects’ the industry from more radical environmental alternatives

The greening of golf: Sport, globalization and the environment

Golf is a major global industry. It is played by more than 60 million people worldwide, and there are more than 32,000 courses across the globe in 140 countries. This book looks at the power relationships in and around golf, examining whether the industry has demonstrated sufficient leadership on environmental matters for the government to be able to trust them to make decisions with implications for public health. It is the first comprehensive study of the varying impacts of golf on the environment, and is based on extensive empirical research, including interviews with major stakeholders in the golf industry and members of protest groups. The authors examine golf as a sport and as a global industry, drawing on three discrete literatures – the study of sport as a global social movement, environmental sociology and the study of corporate environmentalism