Should Minor League Mean Minor Pay: A Student Analysis of the Public Debate

Historically, and at the time of this study’s project, many minor league baseball players in the United States were paid below the federal minimum wage, which has been recently circulating in the media and has been a source of ongoing controversy (McDaniel, 2022). This article is a write-up to the first author’s end-of-term course project, which was supervised by the second author. The objective of the present study was to perform a historical and philosophical analysis of the public debate on minor league pay as well as describe ethical arguments within the debate. This should guide future debates on labor rights and fairness within sport, including professional leagues. Methods for a single-artifact descriptive case study (March 2021) were used to describe opposing views on the issue of minor league pay in baseball, which were then analyzed using historical and philosophical perspectives. The case study material was a 2019 popular press article of journalism covering both sides of the debate. Two modes of qualitative research were used: qualitative critical analysis and discourse analysis. Qualitative critical analysis entailed comparing discourse within the case article to information within one peer-reviewed research article, which presented historical and jurisprudence discourse and research on why Major League Baseball team-owners have been allowed to legally pay minor league players below the federal minimum wage cut-point. Fourteen parsimonious concepts from one undergraduate course on physical activity perspectives were used to describe and analyze data extracted vis-à-vis the qualitative critical analysis, followed by a discourse analysis of the extracted data. We discuss the study results, then present recommendations for future research. We conclude with a reflection from the first author about her project experience

An Infamous Tradition: The Real Weight Behind the Confederate Flag in Sport

The Confederate Battle Flag is one of the most hotly contested pieces of iconography in the United States, and each opposing viewpoint brings with it a host of reasons, which its adherents feel are valid. The purpose of this essay was to use methods for a critical commentary to analyze polarized viewpoints reported on through mass media (e.g., news articles/videos), as part of a term paper to one undergraduate course on Sport, Media, and American Popular Culture (2021 Fall Quarter). The chosen case material, a 2015 news article titled “NASCAR Faces ‘Southern Thunder’ as Confederate Flags Fly at Daytona,” presented viewpoints for and against the use of the Confederate Flag in public spaces and as a symbols of sport pride. Critical analysis of the discourse for and against the Confederate Flag in sport was framed using academic research, several sociological perspectives (e.g., symbolic interaction theory), and several psychosocial perspectives toward fandom (e.g., socialization). Critique of each perspective revealed how the social process of fandom enflames the controversy (e.g., polarizes debate/discussion). A symbolic interaction theoretical lens revealed how politics can affect the issue (e.g., mitigate and/or entrench the controversy), allowing for appreciation of the complex intersection of social structures (e.g., politics, sport, education). Through this paper, the premise that fans only cling to the Confederate Flag as a unifying symbol and overlook the societal and racial ramifications that come with their fandom is further explored

Empowering Students as Leaders of Behavior Change: An Experiential-Learning Project

The purpose of this resource is to allow university educators to implement an experiential-learning project in which students act as leaders of behavior change. Specifically, kinesiology students are paired with “clients” to engage with outside of the classroom and tasked with helping the clients achieve their physical activity goals. This semester-long behavior change project can be used in classes delivered in online, in-person, or hybrid formats. It is estimated that two hours are required for initial project instructions and set-up, with about 12 additional hours throughout the semester for continuous instruction, review, discussion, and presentation. Students are expected to benefit from practice and interaction with real clients. As a result, students are expected to increase their experience with behavior change theory, programming, measurement, evaluation, and refinement. Students are also expected to greatly enhance their communication skills as they interact with clients in a professional manner. This article includes all materials required to deliver this experiential-learning project to students in kinesiology, sport, or exercise science programs

Understanding and Communicating Physical Activity Guidelines: Creating a Training Video for Health Care Providers

Like Das et al.’s study (2018, TJACSM), studies over the last decade or so have shown that many health care providers have low knowledge of peer-reviewed physical activity guidelines (PAGs, e.g., Barton et al., 2021, Physical Therapy in Sport; Douglas et al., 2006, BMC Public Health). One remedy may be educational videos. PURPOSE: This presentation details a process to create a short, interactive, educational video to train health care providers in how to advise clients in a manner consistent with PAGs. METHODS: Over a four-month period (January to April of 2021), the second author developed a video summarizing the results of one peer-reviewed research article, which examined the extent online material matched US. PAGs at least once on average (Thomas et al., 2020, TJACSM). Methods described in the article to judge if advice matched PAGs were used to create an interactive exercise for the video. Canva and Excel were used to visually summarize key results from the research article to elicit understanding. Editorial feedback was provided by the first and third author. An oral slideshow presentation was developed in PowerPoint and narrated using a typed transcript. The presentation slides were converted into a video using the Screencast-o-Matic recording software. A checklist based on guidelines for “distraction-free” and “plain language” presentations was used to revise the video. The first author confirmed the accuracy of all content. Feedback on the clarity and utility of the video was requested from 14 undergraduates/alumni working in the first author’s lab, using a 100% optional and anonymous online survey (64% response rate, 7-day response window). RESULTS: After several iterations (PowerPoint slides & transcript = 4, video = 2), a less than 7-minute, interactive, educational video to help train health care providers to communicate PAGs was created (see Love et al., 2021, Cal Poly Digital Commons). The video was deemed clear and useful. Its features included English subtitles, a hyperlinked transcript, an interactive exercise, a summary slide with hyperlinked resources (QR codes), and a post-video review quiz (6 questions) with tailored feedback. CONCLUSION: Videos summarizing peer-reviewed research could be a viable way to improve provider PAG knowledge and communication. Future research in this area is warranted

Equity in communication: a policy template for promoting organizational health literacy

The policy template presented in this post provides the reader with ideas on how they could promote organizational health literacy within their own and other organizations. The reader may jump straight to the policy template, should they wish. Use the hyperlinked Table of Contents (next page) or the bookmarks tool within the PDF reader being used to view this post. This post contains an overview about the policy template, followed by the steps used to develop the policy template. A brief discussion is presented at the end

Online Physical Activity Advice for Older Adults during COVID-19: Results of a Pilot Study

Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic (March 2020-present), US. older adults in quarantine likely turned to the internet, often a first source for exercise information, for health and exercise advice. PURPOSE: Given adherence to physical activity guidelines (PAGs) lowers risk of sickness and death due to COVID-19, this presentation is to present results of a pilot study which determined the extent online physical activity promotion articles published during the COVID-19 pandemic, with messages tailored to older adults, aligned with US. 2018 PAGs. METHODS: Online articles were sought based on an apriori inclusion criteria (e.g., targeted older adults, published March 2020-February 2021). Three search engines set to private browsing were used: Bing, Google, and Yahoo. After piloting search terms, an internet search was conducted within a 24-hour period (February 10, 2021). Two review levels (title & full text) narrowed the initial sample from 763 articles to 15. The Content Analysis Approach to Theory-specified Persuasive Educational Communication (CAATSPEC) guided the line-by-line categorization of article messages into three categories: PAG-mismatch, -partial match, - full match. The coding form contained 15 PAGs across four categories: aerobic, muscle, older adult, sedentary adult. The coding form and procedures were refined across three practice phases using a random subset of like, pre-pandemic articles. Reliability was tested with a random subset of the study sample (n = 9/15). RESULTS: The coding form showed fair between-rater reliability (1st vs 2nd author, ICC = .56) and excellent within-rater reliability (1st author, 3-day grace period, ICC = .99). Articles in the pilot sample contained the following fitness topics: aerobic (100%), muscle (78%) and safety (78%). Twenty-six advisements had explicitly aligned with 8 PAGs. Most tallies were partial matches (92%). No mismatches were observed. Most tallies were older adult PAGs (46%), then sedentary lifestyle (36%), then muscle fitness (15%). Zero statements aligned with aerobic PAGs. CONCLUSION: Pilot data suggests older adults seeking credible advice for maintaining their health during COVID-19 likely receive little advice matching PAGs through online articles. Implication of these findings and project next steps will be presented