Chris Knoester - Profile on Academia.edu (original) (raw)
Papers by Chris Knoester
Journal of Social Policy, 2025
Paternity leave may promote greater gender equality in domestic labour. Though numerous studies s... more Paternity leave may promote greater gender equality in domestic labour. Though numerous studies show that paternity leave promotes greater fathers' involvement in childcare, less is known about whether paternity leave-taking may facilitate fathers' involvement in other forms of domestic labour such as housework. Using repeated crosssectional data on different-gender partnered US parents from the Study on Parents' Divisions of Labor During COVID-19 (SPDLC), this study examines the extent to which paternity leave-taking and length of paternity leave are associated with US fathers' shares of, and time spent on, housework. Findings suggest that paternity leave-taking is positively associated with fathers' shares of, and time spent on, housework tasks. Longer paternity leaves are also associated with fathers performing greater shares of housework. Overall, this study indicates that the benefits of paternity leave likely extend to fathers' greater participation in housework, providing additional support for the belief that increased use of paternity leave may help to promote gender equality in domestic labour.
Leisure/Loisir, 2025
Using data from the National Sports and Society Survey (N = 3,993) and multiple regression analys... more Using data from the National Sports and Society Survey (N = 3,993) and multiple regression analyses, this study examined parents' involvement in their children's youth sports participation activities. We considered historical trends in parents' attendance at their children's sporting events, time spent otherwise supporting their children's youth sports endeavours, and the amount of money that families allocate to their children's sports activities. We found generational, socioeconomic status, family and community sport culture, and youth sport commitment associations with parents' involvement patterns. Parents' involvement generally increased across generations, became more differentiated by family socioeconomic status, and was largely connected to sport cultures and children's sports commitments, of course. Patterns were largely similar for parents' frequencies of attendance at their children's sporting events, parents' frequencies of support for their children's sports participation, and family expenditures on their children's sports participation.
Sociology of Sport Journal, 2025
Beloved as the most popular sport in the United States, football is a prominent part of American ... more Beloved as the most popular sport in the United States, football is a prominent part of American culture and social interactions and is associated with both personal and social benefits. However, youth tackle football is increasingly recognized as problematic because of the health risks inherent to the sport. We draw upon large-scale national data (N = 3,669) to assess how religiosity predicts attitudes towards kids playing tackle football and the factors that shape these beliefs. Results suggest that greater religious attendance is associated with greater support for youth tackle football. This association is stronger among those of a Protestant denomination and those with less than a college education. Our research helps to raise awareness of how U.S. adults view the costs and benefits of tackle football through a religious lens.
Journal for the Study of Sports and Athletes in Education, 2025
Through exploratory sequential mixed-methods design, we explore how SES advantages youth in schoo... more Through exploratory sequential mixed-methods design, we explore how SES advantages youth in school-sponsored sports participation and obtaining the associated institutionalized cultural capital. Life history interviews (N = 47) with college athletes delineate an SES-linked habitus that values sports involvement, expectations, and talent acquisition within and outside of school systems all of which optimized opportunities for institutionalized cultural capital. To test the prevalence of these patterns for obtaining institutionalized culture capital (via high-school sports participation) we applied quantitative methods to a national cohort of high-school students from the Educational Longitudinal Study (N = 8914). As expected, school-level SES, number of school-sponsored sports, and family SES predicted the likelihood of playing high-school sports, playing multiple sports, persisting in sports, and standing out. Together, findings suggest that higher SES directs and enables sports investments, superior sports-related experiences, and the conversion of SES into institutionalized cultural capital via school sports participation.
Sociology of Sport Journal, 2025
This study uses National Sports and Society Survey (N = 3993) data and regression analyses to inv... more This study uses National Sports and Society Survey (N = 3993) data and regression analyses to investigate the racial/ethnic diversity of sport participation experiences, perceptions of the impact of one's athletic experiences, and beliefs about the effectiveness of sports in bringing different racial/ethnic groups together. We find that people overwhelmingly believe that sports bring different racial/ethnic groups together. Also, most individuals believe their athletic experiences improved their understandings of people of other races and backgrounds. While racial/ethnic diversity in sport seems to matter, subjective perceptions of the effects of one's athletic experiences on understanding people of other races and backgrounds are more closely connected to one's general beliefs about sports bringing different racial/ethnic groups together.
International Journal of the Sociology of Leisure, 2025
Using U.S. survey data (N = 3849), this study examined recognized sports-related mistreatment, in... more Using U.S. survey data (N = 3849), this study examined recognized sports-related mistreatment, investigated risk factors for it, and offered descriptive evidence of types of mistreatment and reasons for mistreatment. Logistic regression analyses emphasized social structural characteristics, childhood contexts that included youth sports experiences, and social and sport contexts in adulthood as predictors of mistreatment. Findings highlight that sports-related mistreatment is common. Evidence suggests greater risks for mistreatment for males and individuals who identify as a sexual minority, have health problems or disabilities, and have dealt with weightrelated stigma and pressures. It also seems to be more common among those who are less popular and less athletic while growing up. Although sports-related mistreatment frequently occurs in various settings and contexts, elite sport contexts and more competitive settings may be more prone for mistreatment. Overall, these results suggest that the structures, cultures, and interactions surrounding sports need to become more focused on enhancing positive development, safety, inclusivity, and participant well-being.
Sociology of Sport Journal
This study uses National Sports and Society Survey (N = 3,993) data to further investigate U.S. p... more This study uses National Sports and Society Survey (N = 3,993) data to further investigate U.S. public opinions about transgender athletes’ rights, rights for athletes with varied sex characteristics, and sex testing. We focus on the additional implications of wanting to support, promote, and watch female athletes; traditional views of women’s idealized physical appearances; and homophobia for adults’ opinions about these issues. Findings revealed that more strongly believing that female athletes are undeserving, suggesting that women should more fully conform to traditionally idealized physical appearances, and expressing more homophobic views were negatively associated with support for transgender athletes’ rights and rights for athletes with varied sex characteristics—including a restriction of their rights due to sex testing.
Journal of Sport and Social Issues, 2024
Beliefs that sport participation inherently leads to personal development and social capital bene... more Beliefs that sport participation inherently leads to personal development and social capital benefits are essential components of the Great Sport Myth (GSM). The purpose of this study was to examine the extent to which U.S. adults embrace these components of the GSM. Also, we sought to better understand the extent to which primary groups, social stratification indicators, and sport experiences pattern beliefs in the personal development and social capital benefits of sports. Data were collected through a large national U.S. survey, the National Sports and Society Survey, and analyzed with multiple regression analyses. Findings suggest that most Americans espouse beliefs in the personal development and social capital benefits of sports. Furthermore, primary groups, stratification indicators, and positive sport experiences consistently appear to shape beliefs about these aspects of the GSM.
Leisure/Loisir, 2024
In this study, with an exploratory sequential mixed-methods design, we considered the components ... more In this study, with an exploratory sequential mixed-methods design, we considered the components and implications of a habitus that (re)produces racial/ethnic, social class, and gender differences in US interscholastic sport participation. We drew from independently collected qualitative (N = 19 men and 47 total college athletes) and quantitative (N = 4,097 high school boys) data and noted and investigated dynamic links between individual choices; family, community, and school contexts; and power structures that inform interscholastic athletics. Findings positioned sports as offering valuable institutionalized cultural capital but being rife with reproductive struggles. Schools serve as fields that co-construct unequal athletic opportunity structures by nurturing and rewarding a cultivated athletic habitus associated with masculinity, whiteness, and affluent dispositions. These processes situate athletic advantages and successes as purely meritorious but restrict who is most likely to receive the individual and social benefits of high school sports participation.
Sociology of Sport Journal, 2024
This study considers the long-term mental health implications of organized youth sport participat... more This study considers the long-term mental health implications of organized youth sport participation, informed by an accumulation model of health, the Sport Commitment Model, and a life course perspective. Using data from the National Sports and Society Survey (N=3,931) and multiple regression analyses, results indicate that adults who continually played organized youth sport had fewer depressive and anxiety symptoms compared to those who played and dropped out and those who never played. Dropouts had worse mental health than those who never played. Furthermore, among dropouts, reported interpersonal reasons for dropping out of organized sport were consistently associated with subsequent mental health but some structural factors also mattered. These findings point to a need to improve the interpersonal and structural environments of organized youth sport.
Leisure/Loisir, 2024
Using data from the National Sports and Society Survey (N = 3,993), this study described and anal... more Using data from the National Sports and Society Survey
(N = 3,993), this study described and analyzed U.S. adults’
reports of their youth sports experiences. We considered
patterns in ever having played a sport regularly while growing
up, ever having played an organized sport, and then
relative likelihoods of having never played an organized
sport, played and dropped out of organized sports, or played
an organized sport continually while growing up. We used
binary and multinomial logistic regressions to assess the
relevance of generational, gender, racial/ethnic, socioeconomic
status, and family and community sport culture contexts
for youth sports participation experiences. Overall, the
findings highlight general increases in ever playing organized
sports and ever playing organized sports and dropping
out across generations. Increasing levels of female sports
participation, emerging disparities by socioeconomic statuses,
and the continual salience of family and community
cultures of sport for participation are also striking.
Sociological Focus, 2024
High school athletics are understudied sites for social and educational stratification. Participa... more High school athletics are understudied sites for social and educational stratification. Participation can offer mental and physical health benefits, improved student retention and graduation rates, the encouragement of pro-social behaviors, resume building, and enhanced social statuses. Despite legal prohibitions against race and gender discrimination in schools, opportunities to play and persist in interscholastic athletics may reflect and amplify existing social and educational stratification processes. Using an exploratory sequential mixed-methods research design, this study centers on girls’ high school sports and considers how gender, race/ethnicity, and social class operate at the individual, interactional, cultural, and institutional levels and encourage proclivities, commitments, and support for participation. We combine qualitative (N = 28 women and 47 total college athletes) and quantitative (N = 4,271 high school students) studies to inquire about how, and to what extent, racial/ethnic and social-class dynamics affect girls playing any and specific high school sports and whether they play persistently. Findings suggest that schools co-construct unequal athletic opportunity structures by nurturing and rewarding a cultivated athletic habitus associated with masculinity, whiteness, and affluent dispositions. These processes disguise athletic advantages and successes as well-earned merit and restrict who is most likely to receive the individual and social benefits of high school sports participation.
Journal of Emerging Sport Studies, 2023
Despite high and rising consumption of women's sport in the United States (U.S.), limited researc... more Despite high and rising consumption of women's sport in the United States (U.S.), limited research has addressed the social factors that lead individuals to become consumers of girls' and women's sport. This study uses 2018-19 National Sports and Society Survey (NSASS) data to examine the frequencies and predictors of U.S. adults' consumption of girls' and women's sport. We integrate social structure and life course theories to consider social structural locations, parental and own sports involvement during childhood, adult gender ideologies, and adult sport commitments as predictors of adults' consumption of girls' and women's sport. The results indicate moderate consumption of female sport, with just over half of adults appearing to spend some time watching/following female sport in the last year. Also, we estimate that U.S. adults average watching/following female sport for about one hour per week, but they report that their watching/following of female sport is typically only a small fraction of their overall sport consumption. Regression findings show consistent evidence of sexuality, number of female family members, parents' sports fandom or athleticism, childhood sports involvement, adult gender ideologies, and adult sport commitments shaping the consumption of female sport. In addition, there is some initial evidence that gender seems to encourage men to watch/follow more female sports, but women appear more prone to watch female sport as opposed to male sport. However, gender and sexuality interact with one another in predicting female sport consumption, such that gay/lesbian identities particularly heighten consumption of female sport among women. Consequently, there is evidence that lesbians are disproportionately among the most avid consumers of girls' and women's sport.
Sociology of Sport Journal, 2023
Using data from the National Sports and Society Survey (N = 3,993), this study considers U.S. adu... more Using data from the National Sports and Society Survey (N = 3,993), this study considers U.S. adults' opinions about transgender athletes' rights, rights for athletes with varied sex characteristics, sex testing, and gender segregation in sports. Social structural location, social group, and ideological characteristics are examined as predictors of these opinions. Results indicated that most U.S. adults now seem to support transgender athletes' rights and rights for athletes with varied sex characteristics and oppose sex testing and gender segregation in youth sports. Men, heterosexuals, older generations, those without a college education, Republicans, Christians, and rural residents, as well as those who exhibit more traditionalism and traditionally gendered beliefs in their ideologies, are more opposed to athletes' rights and inclusivity on these issues.
PLoS One, 2023
Inequality research has found that a college education can ameliorate intergenerational dispariti... more Inequality research has found that a college education can ameliorate intergenerational disparities in economic outcomes. Much attention has focused on how family resources impact academic achievement, though research continues to identify how mechanisms related to social class and structural contexts drive college attendance patterns. Using the Education Longitudinal Study and multilevel modeling techniques, this study uniquely highlights how extracurricular activities relate to family socioeconomic status and school contexts to influence college attendance. Altogether, sport and non-sport extracurricular participation, college expectations, and academic achievement scores, situated within unique school contexts that are driven by residential social class segregation, contribute to the cumulative advantages of children from higher SES families. The results from this study show that these cumulative advantages are positively associated with college attendance and an increased likelihood of attending a more selective school.
New Political Science: A Journal of Politics & Culture, 2023
Using October, 2016 data from a nationally representative sample of U.S. adults (N¼1,461), this s... more Using October, 2016 data from a nationally representative
sample of U.S. adults (N¼1,461), this study considers the
extent to which social structure and culture worked together
to activate affinities for Donald Trump. For our analyses, we
used multiple regressions and first focused on the extent to
which social structural locations (e.g., gender, race/ethnicity,
age, education, rurality) were associated with a willingness to
trust Trump and report intentions to vote for him. Then, we
considered partisanship affiliations. Finally, we looked at the
extent to which hegemonically masculine, racial/ethnic and
nativist, and authorities on truth values helped to further
establish affinities for Trump. Findings indeed revealed that
cultural value contestations were central to establishing affinities
for Trump. Such beliefs even remained linked to intentions
to vote for Trump after accounting for adults’ trust
in him.
Relationship dissolution is common among socioeconomically disadvantaged parents. This study util... more Relationship dissolution is common among socioeconomically disadvantaged parents. This study utilizes longitudinal data from the Fragile Families and Child Wellbeing Study (FFCWS) to assess whether fathers' time off work after the birth of a child reduces the likelihood of parents dissolving their relationship. We also consider whether the association between fathers' time off work and relationship dissolution is mediated by fathers' support of mothers and moderated by union type. Results indicate that the risk of relationship dissolution is lower when fathers take time off work after the birth of a child. Results also suggest that longer periods of time off work (i.e., two or more weeks) are associated with a lower risk of relationship dissolution among married couples, although overall evidence for variations by union type are mixed. Additionally, there is evidence that the association between fathers' time off work and relationship dissolution is at least partially explained by higher levels of relationship support among fathers who took time off work after the birth of a child. Overall, findings suggest that providing fathers with opportunities to take time off for the birth of a child may help to promote relationship stability among socioeconomically disadvantaged couples in the U.S.
In the present study, we examine the associations between the amount of time that U.S. employed f... more In the present study, we examine the associations between the amount of time that U.S. employed fathers took off from work after the birth of a child (i.e., paternity leave-taking) and trajectories of how frequently fathers engage with their children and take responsibility for them. To do so, we analyze longitudinal data on 2,109 fathers from the Fragile Families and Child Wellbeing Study, a data set that contains information from disproportionately socioeconomically disadvantaged families from large urban areas. The results indicate that, one year after birth, paternity leavetaking and lengths of leave are positively associated with fathers' engagement and responsibility. In addition, paternity leave-taking is positively associated with trajectories of fathers' responsibility over the first 5 years after birth. Lengths of paternity leave are positively associated with trajectories of fathers' engagement. Finally, there is evidence that paternity leave-taking and lengths of leave-taking are especially likely to boost fathers' engagement and responsibility among nonresident fathers. Overall, the findings from the present study suggest that an expansion of paternity leave-taking may encourage higher subsequent levels of father involvement-especially among nonresident fathers. Keywords parental leave; paternity leave; fatherhood; father involvement; father identity theory Although there has been a great deal of research on work-family balance, one prominent policy that promotes work-family balance has been understudied: paternity leave. Paternity leave encourages fathers to practice parenting skills and engage with their children while also fulfilling their expectations as breadwinners. In the process, paternity leave offers support to fathers who seek to fulfill both new and traditional fathering ideals (Galinsky,
![Research paper thumbnail of If I [Take] Leave, Will You Stay? Paternity Leave and Relationship Stability](https://attachments.academia-assets.com/90902396/thumbnails/1.jpg)
](Recent European studies suggest that fathers' leave-taking may contribute to parental relationshi... more Recent European studies suggest that fathers' leave-taking may contribute to parental relationship stability. Paternity leave-taking may signal a commitment by fathers toward a greater investment in family life, which may reduce the burden on mothers and strengthen parental relationships. This study uses longitudinal data from the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study-Birth Cohort (ECLS-B) to analyze the association between paternity leave-taking and relationship stability in the United States. Results indicate that paternity leave-taking, and taking relatively short leaves (i.e., two weeks or less) in particular, is associated with greater relationship stability. These findings increase our understanding of the potential benefits of paternity leave, and can inform policy decisions that aim to increase family stability.
Paternity leave-taking is believed to benefit children by encouraging father-child bonding after ... more Paternity leave-taking is believed to benefit children by encouraging father-child bonding after a birth and enabling commitments to fathers' engagement. Yet, no known U.S. studies have directly focused on the associations between paternity leave-taking and children's reports of father-child relationships. Understanding the potential consequences of paternity leave-taking in the United States is particularly important given the lack of a national paid parental leave policy. The present study uses five waves of data on 1,319 families, largely socioeconomically disadvantaged, from the Fragile Families and Child Wellbeing Study to analyze the associations between paternity leave-taking and 9-year-old children's reports of their father-child relationships. We also assess the extent to which these associations are mediated by fathers' engagement, co-parenting quality, parental relationship satisfaction, and fathers' identities. Results indicate that leave-taking, and particularly 2 weeks or more of leave, is positively associated with children's perceptions of fathers' involvement, father-child closeness, and father-child communication. The associations are explained, at least in part, by fathers' engagement, parental relationship satisfaction, and father identities. Overall, results highlight the linked lives of fathers and their children, and they suggest that increased attention on improving opportunities for parental leave in the United States may help to strengthen families by nurturing higher quality father-child relationships.
Journal of Social Policy, 2025
Paternity leave may promote greater gender equality in domestic labour. Though numerous studies s... more Paternity leave may promote greater gender equality in domestic labour. Though numerous studies show that paternity leave promotes greater fathers' involvement in childcare, less is known about whether paternity leave-taking may facilitate fathers' involvement in other forms of domestic labour such as housework. Using repeated crosssectional data on different-gender partnered US parents from the Study on Parents' Divisions of Labor During COVID-19 (SPDLC), this study examines the extent to which paternity leave-taking and length of paternity leave are associated with US fathers' shares of, and time spent on, housework. Findings suggest that paternity leave-taking is positively associated with fathers' shares of, and time spent on, housework tasks. Longer paternity leaves are also associated with fathers performing greater shares of housework. Overall, this study indicates that the benefits of paternity leave likely extend to fathers' greater participation in housework, providing additional support for the belief that increased use of paternity leave may help to promote gender equality in domestic labour.
Leisure/Loisir, 2025
Using data from the National Sports and Society Survey (N = 3,993) and multiple regression analys... more Using data from the National Sports and Society Survey (N = 3,993) and multiple regression analyses, this study examined parents' involvement in their children's youth sports participation activities. We considered historical trends in parents' attendance at their children's sporting events, time spent otherwise supporting their children's youth sports endeavours, and the amount of money that families allocate to their children's sports activities. We found generational, socioeconomic status, family and community sport culture, and youth sport commitment associations with parents' involvement patterns. Parents' involvement generally increased across generations, became more differentiated by family socioeconomic status, and was largely connected to sport cultures and children's sports commitments, of course. Patterns were largely similar for parents' frequencies of attendance at their children's sporting events, parents' frequencies of support for their children's sports participation, and family expenditures on their children's sports participation.
Sociology of Sport Journal, 2025
Beloved as the most popular sport in the United States, football is a prominent part of American ... more Beloved as the most popular sport in the United States, football is a prominent part of American culture and social interactions and is associated with both personal and social benefits. However, youth tackle football is increasingly recognized as problematic because of the health risks inherent to the sport. We draw upon large-scale national data (N = 3,669) to assess how religiosity predicts attitudes towards kids playing tackle football and the factors that shape these beliefs. Results suggest that greater religious attendance is associated with greater support for youth tackle football. This association is stronger among those of a Protestant denomination and those with less than a college education. Our research helps to raise awareness of how U.S. adults view the costs and benefits of tackle football through a religious lens.
Journal for the Study of Sports and Athletes in Education, 2025
Through exploratory sequential mixed-methods design, we explore how SES advantages youth in schoo... more Through exploratory sequential mixed-methods design, we explore how SES advantages youth in school-sponsored sports participation and obtaining the associated institutionalized cultural capital. Life history interviews (N = 47) with college athletes delineate an SES-linked habitus that values sports involvement, expectations, and talent acquisition within and outside of school systems all of which optimized opportunities for institutionalized cultural capital. To test the prevalence of these patterns for obtaining institutionalized culture capital (via high-school sports participation) we applied quantitative methods to a national cohort of high-school students from the Educational Longitudinal Study (N = 8914). As expected, school-level SES, number of school-sponsored sports, and family SES predicted the likelihood of playing high-school sports, playing multiple sports, persisting in sports, and standing out. Together, findings suggest that higher SES directs and enables sports investments, superior sports-related experiences, and the conversion of SES into institutionalized cultural capital via school sports participation.
Sociology of Sport Journal, 2025
This study uses National Sports and Society Survey (N = 3993) data and regression analyses to inv... more This study uses National Sports and Society Survey (N = 3993) data and regression analyses to investigate the racial/ethnic diversity of sport participation experiences, perceptions of the impact of one's athletic experiences, and beliefs about the effectiveness of sports in bringing different racial/ethnic groups together. We find that people overwhelmingly believe that sports bring different racial/ethnic groups together. Also, most individuals believe their athletic experiences improved their understandings of people of other races and backgrounds. While racial/ethnic diversity in sport seems to matter, subjective perceptions of the effects of one's athletic experiences on understanding people of other races and backgrounds are more closely connected to one's general beliefs about sports bringing different racial/ethnic groups together.
International Journal of the Sociology of Leisure, 2025
Using U.S. survey data (N = 3849), this study examined recognized sports-related mistreatment, in... more Using U.S. survey data (N = 3849), this study examined recognized sports-related mistreatment, investigated risk factors for it, and offered descriptive evidence of types of mistreatment and reasons for mistreatment. Logistic regression analyses emphasized social structural characteristics, childhood contexts that included youth sports experiences, and social and sport contexts in adulthood as predictors of mistreatment. Findings highlight that sports-related mistreatment is common. Evidence suggests greater risks for mistreatment for males and individuals who identify as a sexual minority, have health problems or disabilities, and have dealt with weightrelated stigma and pressures. It also seems to be more common among those who are less popular and less athletic while growing up. Although sports-related mistreatment frequently occurs in various settings and contexts, elite sport contexts and more competitive settings may be more prone for mistreatment. Overall, these results suggest that the structures, cultures, and interactions surrounding sports need to become more focused on enhancing positive development, safety, inclusivity, and participant well-being.
Sociology of Sport Journal
This study uses National Sports and Society Survey (N = 3,993) data to further investigate U.S. p... more This study uses National Sports and Society Survey (N = 3,993) data to further investigate U.S. public opinions about transgender athletes’ rights, rights for athletes with varied sex characteristics, and sex testing. We focus on the additional implications of wanting to support, promote, and watch female athletes; traditional views of women’s idealized physical appearances; and homophobia for adults’ opinions about these issues. Findings revealed that more strongly believing that female athletes are undeserving, suggesting that women should more fully conform to traditionally idealized physical appearances, and expressing more homophobic views were negatively associated with support for transgender athletes’ rights and rights for athletes with varied sex characteristics—including a restriction of their rights due to sex testing.
Journal of Sport and Social Issues, 2024
Beliefs that sport participation inherently leads to personal development and social capital bene... more Beliefs that sport participation inherently leads to personal development and social capital benefits are essential components of the Great Sport Myth (GSM). The purpose of this study was to examine the extent to which U.S. adults embrace these components of the GSM. Also, we sought to better understand the extent to which primary groups, social stratification indicators, and sport experiences pattern beliefs in the personal development and social capital benefits of sports. Data were collected through a large national U.S. survey, the National Sports and Society Survey, and analyzed with multiple regression analyses. Findings suggest that most Americans espouse beliefs in the personal development and social capital benefits of sports. Furthermore, primary groups, stratification indicators, and positive sport experiences consistently appear to shape beliefs about these aspects of the GSM.
Leisure/Loisir, 2024
In this study, with an exploratory sequential mixed-methods design, we considered the components ... more In this study, with an exploratory sequential mixed-methods design, we considered the components and implications of a habitus that (re)produces racial/ethnic, social class, and gender differences in US interscholastic sport participation. We drew from independently collected qualitative (N = 19 men and 47 total college athletes) and quantitative (N = 4,097 high school boys) data and noted and investigated dynamic links between individual choices; family, community, and school contexts; and power structures that inform interscholastic athletics. Findings positioned sports as offering valuable institutionalized cultural capital but being rife with reproductive struggles. Schools serve as fields that co-construct unequal athletic opportunity structures by nurturing and rewarding a cultivated athletic habitus associated with masculinity, whiteness, and affluent dispositions. These processes situate athletic advantages and successes as purely meritorious but restrict who is most likely to receive the individual and social benefits of high school sports participation.
Sociology of Sport Journal, 2024
This study considers the long-term mental health implications of organized youth sport participat... more This study considers the long-term mental health implications of organized youth sport participation, informed by an accumulation model of health, the Sport Commitment Model, and a life course perspective. Using data from the National Sports and Society Survey (N=3,931) and multiple regression analyses, results indicate that adults who continually played organized youth sport had fewer depressive and anxiety symptoms compared to those who played and dropped out and those who never played. Dropouts had worse mental health than those who never played. Furthermore, among dropouts, reported interpersonal reasons for dropping out of organized sport were consistently associated with subsequent mental health but some structural factors also mattered. These findings point to a need to improve the interpersonal and structural environments of organized youth sport.
Leisure/Loisir, 2024
Using data from the National Sports and Society Survey (N = 3,993), this study described and anal... more Using data from the National Sports and Society Survey
(N = 3,993), this study described and analyzed U.S. adults’
reports of their youth sports experiences. We considered
patterns in ever having played a sport regularly while growing
up, ever having played an organized sport, and then
relative likelihoods of having never played an organized
sport, played and dropped out of organized sports, or played
an organized sport continually while growing up. We used
binary and multinomial logistic regressions to assess the
relevance of generational, gender, racial/ethnic, socioeconomic
status, and family and community sport culture contexts
for youth sports participation experiences. Overall, the
findings highlight general increases in ever playing organized
sports and ever playing organized sports and dropping
out across generations. Increasing levels of female sports
participation, emerging disparities by socioeconomic statuses,
and the continual salience of family and community
cultures of sport for participation are also striking.
Sociological Focus, 2024
High school athletics are understudied sites for social and educational stratification. Participa... more High school athletics are understudied sites for social and educational stratification. Participation can offer mental and physical health benefits, improved student retention and graduation rates, the encouragement of pro-social behaviors, resume building, and enhanced social statuses. Despite legal prohibitions against race and gender discrimination in schools, opportunities to play and persist in interscholastic athletics may reflect and amplify existing social and educational stratification processes. Using an exploratory sequential mixed-methods research design, this study centers on girls’ high school sports and considers how gender, race/ethnicity, and social class operate at the individual, interactional, cultural, and institutional levels and encourage proclivities, commitments, and support for participation. We combine qualitative (N = 28 women and 47 total college athletes) and quantitative (N = 4,271 high school students) studies to inquire about how, and to what extent, racial/ethnic and social-class dynamics affect girls playing any and specific high school sports and whether they play persistently. Findings suggest that schools co-construct unequal athletic opportunity structures by nurturing and rewarding a cultivated athletic habitus associated with masculinity, whiteness, and affluent dispositions. These processes disguise athletic advantages and successes as well-earned merit and restrict who is most likely to receive the individual and social benefits of high school sports participation.
Journal of Emerging Sport Studies, 2023
Despite high and rising consumption of women's sport in the United States (U.S.), limited researc... more Despite high and rising consumption of women's sport in the United States (U.S.), limited research has addressed the social factors that lead individuals to become consumers of girls' and women's sport. This study uses 2018-19 National Sports and Society Survey (NSASS) data to examine the frequencies and predictors of U.S. adults' consumption of girls' and women's sport. We integrate social structure and life course theories to consider social structural locations, parental and own sports involvement during childhood, adult gender ideologies, and adult sport commitments as predictors of adults' consumption of girls' and women's sport. The results indicate moderate consumption of female sport, with just over half of adults appearing to spend some time watching/following female sport in the last year. Also, we estimate that U.S. adults average watching/following female sport for about one hour per week, but they report that their watching/following of female sport is typically only a small fraction of their overall sport consumption. Regression findings show consistent evidence of sexuality, number of female family members, parents' sports fandom or athleticism, childhood sports involvement, adult gender ideologies, and adult sport commitments shaping the consumption of female sport. In addition, there is some initial evidence that gender seems to encourage men to watch/follow more female sports, but women appear more prone to watch female sport as opposed to male sport. However, gender and sexuality interact with one another in predicting female sport consumption, such that gay/lesbian identities particularly heighten consumption of female sport among women. Consequently, there is evidence that lesbians are disproportionately among the most avid consumers of girls' and women's sport.
Sociology of Sport Journal, 2023
Using data from the National Sports and Society Survey (N = 3,993), this study considers U.S. adu... more Using data from the National Sports and Society Survey (N = 3,993), this study considers U.S. adults' opinions about transgender athletes' rights, rights for athletes with varied sex characteristics, sex testing, and gender segregation in sports. Social structural location, social group, and ideological characteristics are examined as predictors of these opinions. Results indicated that most U.S. adults now seem to support transgender athletes' rights and rights for athletes with varied sex characteristics and oppose sex testing and gender segregation in youth sports. Men, heterosexuals, older generations, those without a college education, Republicans, Christians, and rural residents, as well as those who exhibit more traditionalism and traditionally gendered beliefs in their ideologies, are more opposed to athletes' rights and inclusivity on these issues.
PLoS One, 2023
Inequality research has found that a college education can ameliorate intergenerational dispariti... more Inequality research has found that a college education can ameliorate intergenerational disparities in economic outcomes. Much attention has focused on how family resources impact academic achievement, though research continues to identify how mechanisms related to social class and structural contexts drive college attendance patterns. Using the Education Longitudinal Study and multilevel modeling techniques, this study uniquely highlights how extracurricular activities relate to family socioeconomic status and school contexts to influence college attendance. Altogether, sport and non-sport extracurricular participation, college expectations, and academic achievement scores, situated within unique school contexts that are driven by residential social class segregation, contribute to the cumulative advantages of children from higher SES families. The results from this study show that these cumulative advantages are positively associated with college attendance and an increased likelihood of attending a more selective school.
New Political Science: A Journal of Politics & Culture, 2023
Using October, 2016 data from a nationally representative sample of U.S. adults (N¼1,461), this s... more Using October, 2016 data from a nationally representative
sample of U.S. adults (N¼1,461), this study considers the
extent to which social structure and culture worked together
to activate affinities for Donald Trump. For our analyses, we
used multiple regressions and first focused on the extent to
which social structural locations (e.g., gender, race/ethnicity,
age, education, rurality) were associated with a willingness to
trust Trump and report intentions to vote for him. Then, we
considered partisanship affiliations. Finally, we looked at the
extent to which hegemonically masculine, racial/ethnic and
nativist, and authorities on truth values helped to further
establish affinities for Trump. Findings indeed revealed that
cultural value contestations were central to establishing affinities
for Trump. Such beliefs even remained linked to intentions
to vote for Trump after accounting for adults’ trust
in him.
Relationship dissolution is common among socioeconomically disadvantaged parents. This study util... more Relationship dissolution is common among socioeconomically disadvantaged parents. This study utilizes longitudinal data from the Fragile Families and Child Wellbeing Study (FFCWS) to assess whether fathers' time off work after the birth of a child reduces the likelihood of parents dissolving their relationship. We also consider whether the association between fathers' time off work and relationship dissolution is mediated by fathers' support of mothers and moderated by union type. Results indicate that the risk of relationship dissolution is lower when fathers take time off work after the birth of a child. Results also suggest that longer periods of time off work (i.e., two or more weeks) are associated with a lower risk of relationship dissolution among married couples, although overall evidence for variations by union type are mixed. Additionally, there is evidence that the association between fathers' time off work and relationship dissolution is at least partially explained by higher levels of relationship support among fathers who took time off work after the birth of a child. Overall, findings suggest that providing fathers with opportunities to take time off for the birth of a child may help to promote relationship stability among socioeconomically disadvantaged couples in the U.S.
In the present study, we examine the associations between the amount of time that U.S. employed f... more In the present study, we examine the associations between the amount of time that U.S. employed fathers took off from work after the birth of a child (i.e., paternity leave-taking) and trajectories of how frequently fathers engage with their children and take responsibility for them. To do so, we analyze longitudinal data on 2,109 fathers from the Fragile Families and Child Wellbeing Study, a data set that contains information from disproportionately socioeconomically disadvantaged families from large urban areas. The results indicate that, one year after birth, paternity leavetaking and lengths of leave are positively associated with fathers' engagement and responsibility. In addition, paternity leave-taking is positively associated with trajectories of fathers' responsibility over the first 5 years after birth. Lengths of paternity leave are positively associated with trajectories of fathers' engagement. Finally, there is evidence that paternity leave-taking and lengths of leave-taking are especially likely to boost fathers' engagement and responsibility among nonresident fathers. Overall, the findings from the present study suggest that an expansion of paternity leave-taking may encourage higher subsequent levels of father involvement-especially among nonresident fathers. Keywords parental leave; paternity leave; fatherhood; father involvement; father identity theory Although there has been a great deal of research on work-family balance, one prominent policy that promotes work-family balance has been understudied: paternity leave. Paternity leave encourages fathers to practice parenting skills and engage with their children while also fulfilling their expectations as breadwinners. In the process, paternity leave offers support to fathers who seek to fulfill both new and traditional fathering ideals (Galinsky,
Recent European studies suggest that fathers' leave-taking may contribute to parental relationshi... more Recent European studies suggest that fathers' leave-taking may contribute to parental relationship stability. Paternity leave-taking may signal a commitment by fathers toward a greater investment in family life, which may reduce the burden on mothers and strengthen parental relationships. This study uses longitudinal data from the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study-Birth Cohort (ECLS-B) to analyze the association between paternity leave-taking and relationship stability in the United States. Results indicate that paternity leave-taking, and taking relatively short leaves (i.e., two weeks or less) in particular, is associated with greater relationship stability. These findings increase our understanding of the potential benefits of paternity leave, and can inform policy decisions that aim to increase family stability.
Paternity leave-taking is believed to benefit children by encouraging father-child bonding after ... more Paternity leave-taking is believed to benefit children by encouraging father-child bonding after a birth and enabling commitments to fathers' engagement. Yet, no known U.S. studies have directly focused on the associations between paternity leave-taking and children's reports of father-child relationships. Understanding the potential consequences of paternity leave-taking in the United States is particularly important given the lack of a national paid parental leave policy. The present study uses five waves of data on 1,319 families, largely socioeconomically disadvantaged, from the Fragile Families and Child Wellbeing Study to analyze the associations between paternity leave-taking and 9-year-old children's reports of their father-child relationships. We also assess the extent to which these associations are mediated by fathers' engagement, co-parenting quality, parental relationship satisfaction, and fathers' identities. Results indicate that leave-taking, and particularly 2 weeks or more of leave, is positively associated with children's perceptions of fathers' involvement, father-child closeness, and father-child communication. The associations are explained, at least in part, by fathers' engagement, parental relationship satisfaction, and father identities. Overall, results highlight the linked lives of fathers and their children, and they suggest that increased attention on improving opportunities for parental leave in the United States may help to strengthen families by nurturing higher quality father-child relationships.