This research examines the competitive balance of the CSL since its formation using two popular within-season balance measures. Findings show that balance has been more volatile since league reorganization, but is neither consistently more nor less balanced. Furthermore, we question whether it is coincidental that the CSL was most balanced across all teams in the seasons immediately following its establishment and reorganization, hypothesizing that the traditional Chinese cultural value of harmony may be the root cause. Simple comparisons of win concentrations of top Chinese and UEFA teams do not suggest league imbalance. Given Chinese fan penchant for national team games, we propose that (contrary to the UOH) league interest could potentially be increased by greater imbalance skewed toward the top teams.

Book Summary: The international nature of the sport industry presents many management challenges and opportunities for sport organisations. This book brings together cutting-edge research from leading sport management scholars around the world, surveying a wide range of topics and issues facing the sport industry today. It represents an essential platform for the international exchange of ideas, best practice and research in sport management studies. The globalisation of the sport industry has brought increased complexity to organisations’ operations in terms of regulation, competition and multiculturalism. Drawing on a wealth of original research from fifteen countries, this book addresses a variety of global, regional, national and community issues that are central to successful sport management. Combining both qualitative and quantitative studies, it explores key themes, such as managing resources and organisational change, marketing and promotion, law and regulation, sport-for-development and research protocols. Global Sport Management Studies: Contemporary issues and inquiries is essential reading for all students and scholars of sport management, sport business and sport marketing, as well as for any professional working in the sport and leisure industries.

Baseball has often been seen as America’s Pastime, etched into the cultural landscape of the United States for over 100 years. However, recent shifts both in cultural landscape and the sport industry puts this moniker into question. Whether Americans consider baseball the national pastime is currently up for debate. The crux of that debate for individuals may be influenced by their emotional attachment to the sport or an emotional attachment to competing sports.

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Dr. Kelly Price analyzes the evidence on how becoming a mother can impact an LPGA player's productivity, performance, and earnings.

Although the use of monetary incentives as motivational tools has been studied by previous researchers, the mechanism of the relationship between monetary incentives and behavior/performance remains poorly understood. The purpose of this quasi-experimental investigation was to explore the relationship between 3 levels of monetary incentives ($0, $3, and $10) and the athletic performance of adolescent male soccer players. The moderating effect of perceived physical self-efficacy or intrinsic motivation on the relationship between athletic performance and monetary incentives was also investigated. The framework for the study was comprised of expectancy theory, the theory of planned behavior, and self-determination theory. Study participants included a convenience sample of 16 adolescent male soccer players between the ages of 11 and 13 who played on a youth soccer league in the Midwestern United States. The independent variable was level of monetary incentive, and the dependent variable was athletic performance (time on the 50-yard dash). Intrinsic motivation was assessed using the Sport Motivation Scale. Perceived physical self-efficacy was assessed via participants' scores on the Physical Self-Efficacy Scale for Children. Analysis, which included a repeated measures linear mixed-effects model and post-hoc pairwise comparisons, revealed that players' athletic performance increased as monetary incentives increased. Intrinsic motivation and perceived physical self-efficacy had no statistically significant interaction effect on the relationship between athletic performance and monetary incentives. Findings shed light on the potential usefulness of monetary incentives among male adolescents, and may be used by coaches to foster a mindset of achievement and goal-orientation.

The world of sports has traditionally been known for promoting masculine behaviors, including a resistance to homosexuality. Research supports that gay men in sports have historically encountered prejudice and discrimination. Although the social climate has experienced change regarding homophobic discrimination and prejudice, research shows that challenges still exist for gay men who participate in sports; furthermore, to date, research could not be located that addresses the coping skills of gay men in amateur sports. This research addressed the lack of qualitative studies on the experiences of gay men who participate in amateur sports and on their use of coping skills. The purpose of the study was to describe the lived experiences of 8 gay men in amateur sports and to identify the coping skills, whether adaptive or maladaptive, used in sports environments. This study examined current literature on the consequences of prejudice and discrimination against gay men in sports environments. The conceptual framework for this study was based on the minority stress theory. The methodology was a phenomenological inquiry to gain an understanding of the lived experiences of this population. The 3 themes that emerged from the data were situation modification coping, emotion-focused coping, and minority stress. Understanding the experiences of gay men in amateur sports contributes to positive social change by identifying adaptive coping strategies, resulting in positive outcomes such as decreased stress and anxiety. Moreover, the lived experiences provided by this study's participants can provide direction for additional research to improve the experiences of gay men in sports.

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