CHINESE STUDENT PERCEPTIONS OF SPORT DOPING

RobROTUNDA 1

Aiguang Zhou 2

Chenxiang Song 1

Stuart Ryan 1

  1. University of West Florida
  2. South China Normal University

Abstract

Aims:The objective of this exploratory study was to assess perceptions of cheating in sport, represented by the Lance Armstrong doping scandal, using Chinese college students majoring in the sports sciences.Written responses to a summary of Armstrong’s rise and fall were translated and coded into themes that emerged through qualitative analyses.

Background and Research Methods:Participantswere obtained from a large university in South China. Sixty participants aged 18 and older were recruited through classroom solicitations and in accordance with data collection procedures that protected the identities of the participants. Because little research exists on sports cheating using cross-cultural samples, this project utilized exploratory methods including qualitative analyses of participant-generated responses to a vignette of a recent and known sport scandal (e.g., Lance Armstrong and doping) that has received much international attention. Material presented to participants was translated into Mandarin with assistance from two bilingual doctoral level collaborators, and open-ended responses from students were then translated back into English. Final qualitative analyses were conducted in English. The central research question - how do those from an Eastern culture perceive a sports-related cheating phenomenon - will be hypothesis-neutral in that the responses from participants were mined for common themes, and categorized accordingly.
Findings: Results revealed generally negative perceptions of the specific doping actions Armstrong admitted. Themes of initial respect and admiration of his career and successful battle with cancer, were overshadowed by response themes of disappointment, sadness, and justice. Representative quotations from student responses will be presented to illustrate each major theme. Implications for educators, coaches, youth athletes and sport science professionals will be discussed.

Alignment to congress theme(s):This presentation aligns with the theme examining Eastern and indigenous perspectives on movement, health and well-being.

Rob Rotunda –

Word count:285