Individuality or Cultural Reproduction?

Abstract

The Norwegian Government initiated the Sports City Program (SCP) in 1992 in an attempt to encourage inactive segments of the urban population to become more active. The program was implemented by the Norwegian Olympic Committee and Confederation of Sports and is designed to provide sporting activities for those who are not involved in conventional sports. Through a survey in one of the cities where the SCP is most developed, this study examines the degree to which adolescents (age 16-19) participate in SCP activities. Drawing on the work of Bourdieu, I argue first, that a considerable overlap between participants in conventional sports and SCP activities indicates that the new sport activities, to a considerable extent, provide further opportunities for those who already participate in the sporting field. Second, however, the Sports City Program also seems to attract a different type of adolescent, in terms of social class, compared to those who participate in conventional sports. For these two rather different groups, their habitus for participation in sport is influenced by their family members’ and peers’ relation to sport, though in different ways.