Temple University Press, 2020 Cloth: 978-1-4399-1886-9 | Paper: 978-1-4399-1887-6 | eISBN: 978-1-4399-1888-3 Library of Congress Classification GV1202.F35K57 2020 Dewey Decimal Classification 794.9
ABOUT THIS BOOK | AUTHOR BIOGRAPHY | REVIEWS | TOC | REQUEST ACCESSIBLE FILE
ABOUT THIS BOOK
Fantasy sports have the opportunity to provide a sporting community in which gendered physical presence plays no role—a space where men and women can compete and interact on a level playing field. Whose Game? shows, however, that while many turn to this space to socialize with friends or participate in a uniquely active and competitive fandom, men who play also depend on fantasy sports to perform a boyhood vision of masculinity otherwise inaccessible to them. Authors Rebecca Kissane and Sarah Winslow draw on a rich array of survey, interview, and observational data to examine how gender, race, and class frame the experiences of everyday fantasy sports players.
This pioneering book examines gendered structures and processes, such as jock statsculinity—a nerdish form of masculine one-upmanship—and how women are often rendered as outsiders. Ultimately, Whose Game? demonstrates that fantasy sports are more than just an inconsequential leisure activity. This online world bleeds into participants’ social lives in gendered ways—forging and strengthening relationships but also taking participants’ time and attention to generate negative emotions, stress, discord, and unproductivity.
AUTHOR BIOGRAPHY
Rebecca Joyce Kissane is an Associate Professor of Sociology at Lafayette College. Sarah Winslow is Senior Associate Director of the Honors College, Director of the National Scholars Program, and Associate Professor of Sociology at Clemson University, and co-editor of Gender in the 21st Century: The Stalled Revolution and the Road to Equality.
REVIEWS
“Whose Game? is well written and compelling, and the research important and timely. The authors’ sociological examinations of fantasy sports make a convincing argument that this is a unique realm of fandom. In its gender analysis, Whose Game? is a strong, valuable contribution to the literature. The breadth and depth of the data make for a rich analysis that allows us to examine and understand patterns of meaning and experience. This book will have significant appeal to those in the fantasy sport world, including participants and organizers, as well as general sports fans.”—Rachel Allison, Assistant Professor of Sociology at Mississippi State University and author of Kicking Center: Gender and the Selling of Women’s Professional Soccer
“In this fascinating new study, Kissane and Winslow show us how often aging, non-athletic men can engage in fantasy sports leagues as to both secure a claim on legitimate masculinity and, importantly, to forge much needed emotional bonds with other men. Through careful research, Whose Game? documents the possibilities and perils involved in playing fantasy sports and issues an important call for thinking seriously about the way leisure and fun can reinforce existing gendered, raced, and classed inequalities.”—C.J. Pascoe, Associate Professor in the Department of Sociology at the University of Oregon, and author of Dude, You’re a Fag: Masculinity and Sexuality in High School
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Contents
Acknowledgments
1. Introduction: Fantasy Sports, Real Sports, and Gender
2. It’s All Just a Game, It’s Just a Different Game: Fantasy Sports as Personalized, Competitive, and Contested Fandom
3. Letting Men Be Men: Jock Statsculinity and Fantasy Sports
4. Playing in a Man’s World: Perceptions and Experiences of Women in Fantasy Sports
5. The Social Aspects of Fantasy Are Huge: Gendered Social Capital in Fantasy Sports
6. Going Overboard? Time, Attention, and Emotional Absorption in Fantasy Sports
7. Conclusion: Whose Game? Gender and Power in Fantasy Sports
Appendix: Additional Information on the Data and Method
Notes
References
Index
REQUEST ACCESSIBLE FILE
If you are a student who cannot use this book in printed form, BiblioVault may be able to supply you
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Please have the accessibility coordinator at your school fill out this form.
Temple University Press, 2020 Cloth: 978-1-4399-1886-9 Paper: 978-1-4399-1887-6 eISBN: 978-1-4399-1888-3
Fantasy sports have the opportunity to provide a sporting community in which gendered physical presence plays no role—a space where men and women can compete and interact on a level playing field. Whose Game? shows, however, that while many turn to this space to socialize with friends or participate in a uniquely active and competitive fandom, men who play also depend on fantasy sports to perform a boyhood vision of masculinity otherwise inaccessible to them. Authors Rebecca Kissane and Sarah Winslow draw on a rich array of survey, interview, and observational data to examine how gender, race, and class frame the experiences of everyday fantasy sports players.
This pioneering book examines gendered structures and processes, such as jock statsculinity—a nerdish form of masculine one-upmanship—and how women are often rendered as outsiders. Ultimately, Whose Game? demonstrates that fantasy sports are more than just an inconsequential leisure activity. This online world bleeds into participants’ social lives in gendered ways—forging and strengthening relationships but also taking participants’ time and attention to generate negative emotions, stress, discord, and unproductivity.
AUTHOR BIOGRAPHY
Rebecca Joyce Kissane is an Associate Professor of Sociology at Lafayette College. Sarah Winslow is Senior Associate Director of the Honors College, Director of the National Scholars Program, and Associate Professor of Sociology at Clemson University, and co-editor of Gender in the 21st Century: The Stalled Revolution and the Road to Equality.
REVIEWS
“Whose Game? is well written and compelling, and the research important and timely. The authors’ sociological examinations of fantasy sports make a convincing argument that this is a unique realm of fandom. In its gender analysis, Whose Game? is a strong, valuable contribution to the literature. The breadth and depth of the data make for a rich analysis that allows us to examine and understand patterns of meaning and experience. This book will have significant appeal to those in the fantasy sport world, including participants and organizers, as well as general sports fans.”—Rachel Allison, Assistant Professor of Sociology at Mississippi State University and author of Kicking Center: Gender and the Selling of Women’s Professional Soccer
“In this fascinating new study, Kissane and Winslow show us how often aging, non-athletic men can engage in fantasy sports leagues as to both secure a claim on legitimate masculinity and, importantly, to forge much needed emotional bonds with other men. Through careful research, Whose Game? documents the possibilities and perils involved in playing fantasy sports and issues an important call for thinking seriously about the way leisure and fun can reinforce existing gendered, raced, and classed inequalities.”—C.J. Pascoe, Associate Professor in the Department of Sociology at the University of Oregon, and author of Dude, You’re a Fag: Masculinity and Sexuality in High School
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Contents
Acknowledgments
1. Introduction: Fantasy Sports, Real Sports, and Gender
2. It’s All Just a Game, It’s Just a Different Game: Fantasy Sports as Personalized, Competitive, and Contested Fandom
3. Letting Men Be Men: Jock Statsculinity and Fantasy Sports
4. Playing in a Man’s World: Perceptions and Experiences of Women in Fantasy Sports
5. The Social Aspects of Fantasy Are Huge: Gendered Social Capital in Fantasy Sports
6. Going Overboard? Time, Attention, and Emotional Absorption in Fantasy Sports
7. Conclusion: Whose Game? Gender and Power in Fantasy Sports
Appendix: Additional Information on the Data and Method
Notes
References
Index
REQUEST ACCESSIBLE FILE
If you are a student who cannot use this book in printed form, BiblioVault may be able to supply you
with an electronic file for alternative access.
Please have the accessibility coordinator at your school fill out this form.
It can take 2-3 weeks for requests to be filled.
ABOUT THIS BOOK | AUTHOR BIOGRAPHY | REVIEWS | TOC | REQUEST ACCESSIBLE FILE