Eilidh H R Macrae | University of the West of Scotland (UWS) (original) (raw)

Talks by Eilidh H R Macrae

Paper delivered at the Sport, Politics and Social Policy conference at Durham University. Please ... more Paper delivered at the Sport, Politics and Social Policy conference at Durham University.
Please contact me directly if you would be interested in viewing the research findings as they have yet to be published.

Paper delivered at the Women's History Scotland Annual Conference at Abertay University, Dundee.

Event date - March 2014, British Society of Sports History: Sport and Leisure History seminar se... more Event date - March 2014,
British Society of Sports History: Sport and Leisure History seminar series
Location - Senate House, Institute of Historical Research, London.

AHRC postdoctoral cultural engagement event, The Mitchell Library, Glasgow.

In 1972 the national ‘Sport for All’ campaign was established in Britain with aims to raise Brita... more In 1972 the national ‘Sport for All’ campaign was established in Britain with aims to raise Britain’s standing within the international sporting world, improve community sports facilities, and bring about wider sports participation across all demographics. In particular, the Sport for All campaign aimed to improve participation rates of certain ‘excluded groups’ such as people over 50, people with disabilities and, notably, mothers with children. This campaign was instigated after a decade of key events in the British sporting world stemming from the Wolfenden Report of 1960, which had made recommendations for improvements to sport in Britain. From 1960 onwards government interest and financial investment in sport developed, culminating in the production of various multi-sports centres in the late 1960s which it was hoped would cater for the sporting needs of all sections of society, and specifically families and mothers with children. With these developments in mind, this paper will examine the experiences of a group of self-proclaimed ‘sporty’ Scottish women who embarked upon marriage and motherhood between the 1940s and the 1970s, and the various sources of encouragement or obstacles to their exercise participation which they encountered, in terms of access to facilities, support, and childcare. The paper will investigate the way these women negotiated their new identities as mothers with their previously very prominent ‘sporty’ selves. We will look at the ways in which this important life-cycle stage impacted upon the physical and emotional wellbeing of these women, and the ways in which they were able to interact with the sporting world as mothers.

Throughout the life-cycle women’s experiences and patterns of physical recreation can change dram... more Throughout the life-cycle women’s experiences and patterns of physical recreation can change dramatically in response to changing financial circumstances, family situations, motherhood, marriage, or regional relocations on account of such changes. By examining a series of oral history interviews conducted with women born in central Scotland between 1920 and 1950 this paper looks into the diverse opportunities for and experiences of sport and exercise which these women encountered throughout various stages of their lives. Specifically, the paper focuses on issues of ‘knowledge and understandings of the body’ and the way in which women experienced pregnancy and motherhood from a physical perspective. It investigates how their own relationships with their bodies and physical activity impacted upon their experiences of pregnancy and birth. The paper argues that many women of this era were misinformed and had misunderstandings about the capabilities of their female bodies and their physical ability to cope with pregnancy, birth and motherhood. The paper examines the growth of the natural birth movement in Britain and the ways in which ideas of ‘physical preparedness’ for birth were brought to the fore. In particular, it shows how certain Scottish women who viewed themselves as ‘sporty’ women in their youth negotiated the physical challenges of pregnancy, birth and motherhood. It argues that many of these women felt more prepared and more comfortable with the capability of their bodies throughout the pregnancy itself and the birthing process as a result of the presence which sport played in their lives on the lead up to the birth. By combining the oral history testimony with contemporary medical sources related to pregnancy and new birthing techniques this paper shows that whilst ‘old wives’ tales’ prevailed in relation to the compatibility of pregnancy and physical activity, there were certain spheres where women were being encouraged to embrace their pregnant bodies and maintain an awareness of the positive impact physical movement and exercise could have on their bodies throughout all stages of the life-cycle.

The ingrained belief that there were certain ‘suitable’ activities for schoolgirls thrived well ... more The ingrained belief that there were certain ‘suitable’ activities for schoolgirls thrived well on into the twentieth century and structured the types of physical activities that girls were exposed to in school. The first decade and a half of life for the Scottish girl undoubtedly had a profound effect upon her physicality, with powerfully gendered discourses structuring her early experiences of sport, exercise and her understanding of her own body. Utilising testimony gathered from a collection of oral history interviews and contemporary physical education sources, this paper will explore the schooling of the young female body in Scotland between 1940 and 1960. The paper will argue that the school environment within which most girls would first have been exposed to exercise would hardly have been conducive to the formation of a healthy relationship between girls and their bodies.

Throughout the 1930s the cultivation of health, beauty and fitness became a popular pastime for t... more Throughout the 1930s the cultivation of health, beauty and fitness became a popular pastime for thousands of British women. Physical recreation had been growing in popularity for decades with the suitably feminine ‘keep-fit class’ reigning supreme by the mid-1930s as the most popular, or at least the most socially acceptable, form of recreational fitness for women. This paper will explore the concept of appropriate spaces within which it was acceptable for women to perform their fitness regimes, and equally the spaces where the presence of a sporting woman would have been quite inappropriate.

The Scottish Fitness Campaign of 1937 will be used as a case-study to argue that official and medical discourses regarding women’s bodies, and the idea that the primary role for a woman in society would ultimately always be motherhood, structured the flow of funding and the type of propaganda put across to the public throughout this campaign.
Within Scotland, the adult sporting sphere remained primarily a male space, and whilst this decade witnessed the growth of the keep-fit class, this was predominantly an activity performed within the appropriate confines of an all-female indoor space, away from prying eyes. Indeed, the propaganda of the Scottish Fitness Campaign failed to promote competitive sport for women which could be performed outdoors. Thus despite those who devised the Fitness Campaign having the chance to greatly expand the scope of opportunity for sporting women through the national distribution of fitness propaganda, the prevailing restrictive ideas of appropriate female spaces in sport, and the appropriate place of women within the workings of the wider social body, ensured that this campaign was fundamentally flawed.

Books by Eilidh H R Macrae

Contributor to this volume: Chapter 4 - Exercise and education: facilities for the young female b... more Contributor to this volume: Chapter 4 - Exercise and education: facilities for the young female body in Scotland, 1930-1960

Papers by Eilidh H R Macrae

Journal of Sport Management, 2017

Voluntary sports clubs (VSCs) provide the primary opportunities for organized community sport in ... more Voluntary sports clubs (VSCs) provide the primary opportunities for organized community sport in the UK and thus hold the responsibility for delivering on mega-event sports participation legacies. This study presents findings from open-ended questionnaires and interviews conducted in two phases (Phase 1—Spring, 2013; Phase 2—Summer, 2015) with representatives from a sample (n = 39) of VSCs to understand their ability to deliver on the participation legacy goals of London 2012 and the 2014 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow. Thematic analysis of the data outlined three themes where support for VSCs should be placed when planning future mega-events: building VSC capacity, retaining members in the long-term, and promoting general visibility of the VSC throughout the event. Bid teams who hope to use mega-events as catalysts for sports participation increases should direct funding and guidance toward VSCs to ensure they have the tools, knowledge, and capacity to deliver on national sports par...

This thesis looks into the complex relationships which women have had with their bodies throughou... more This thesis looks into the complex relationships which women have had with their bodies throughout the twentieth century. It uses oral history evidence, medical sources, and official government material to examine women’s experiences of and access to physical recreation and sport throughout the life-cycle. It argues that despite the official view that throughout the twentieth century women’s sporting bodies were essentially fragile bodies, unsuited to competitive and manly sports, there were a number of alternative discourses available to women during these years. Women who had strong sporting identities, and confidence in their own physical abilities, were able to test the capabilities of their bodies and maintain their exercise participation throughout adolescence, menstruation, pregnancy and during motherhood, despite the advice of state officials, and many doctors, which advised them against participation. This thesis makes a powerful contribution to what at present is a largely...

British Journal of Sports Medicine

ObjectivesTo explore athletes’ past and current experiences and perceptions of the menstrual cycl... more ObjectivesTo explore athletes’ past and current experiences and perceptions of the menstrual cycle in relation to its impact on sporting performance.Methods15 international female rugby players participated in individual semi-structured interviews (age: 24.5±6.2 years). All interviews were recorded and transcribed verbatim, resulting in 37 376 words of text for descriptive and thematic analysis. Inter-rater reliability checks resulted in a concordance of agreement of 83%.ResultsAlmost all athletes (93%) reported menstrual cycle-related symptoms. Thirty-three per cent perceived heavy menstrual bleeding and 67% considered these symptoms impaired their performances. Two-thirds of athletes self-medicated to alleviate symptoms. Thematic analysis generated 262 meaning units, 38 themes, 10 categories and 4 general dimensions. The four general dimensions were: (1) symptoms: physiological and psychological menstrual cycle-related symptoms such as dysmenorrhoea, flooding, reduced energy level...

International Journal of Sport Policy and Politics

ABSTRACT In June 2017 the Chief Medical Officers of the United Kingdom released guidelines for ex... more ABSTRACT In June 2017 the Chief Medical Officers of the United Kingdom released guidelines for exercise during pregnancy to be used by those in the healthcare and sport sectors when providing advice to pregnant women. These recommend pregnant women should take part in at least 150 minutes of moderate exercise per week. This qualitative study employed a social-ecological framework to investigate the experiences of new mothers based in the UK and the practicalities of engaging in regular exercise during pregnancy and the postpartum period. An online qualitative questionnaire was completed by 200 UK-based women who had recently given birth. Ten of these participants then took part in a semi-structured interview. Qualitative data from the questionnaires and interviews were thematically analysed and 3 themes were generated as recommendations to the sector. The first theme was the importance of providing ‘trusted advice’ from reputable sources. The second theme was the need for provision of ‘safe, affordable sport and exercise options’. The final theme was the need for more ‘considered postpartum support’ for exercise, through further childcare options and a range of supportive environments for women to exercise within postpartum. The findings suggest that women’s sport participation tends to decrease during and after pregnancy. Women are officially recommended to maintain participation throughout these life-stages, but the current UK sport and leisure environment is not ideally suited to support this. Collectively the UK healthcare and sport sectors should work to provide trusted advice and considered sport and exercise options for pregnant and postpartum women.

Palgrave Studies in Sport and Politics, 2016

Macrae provides an overview of twentieth-century medical views on the suitability of exercise dur... more Macrae provides an overview of twentieth-century medical views on the suitability of exercise during pregnancy and menstruation. The chapter uses oral history testimony to look at female experiences of managing periods whilst maintaining an active lifestyle in the postwar years. Macrae then looks into social discourses surrounding pregnancy and sport and the development of exercise as part of ante-natal care from the 1930s. Social taboos and physiological ignorance meant that women were often discouraged from staying active during pregnancy, but the oral history testimony provides alternative views. The chapter argues that keep-fit groups, such as the Women’s League of Health and Beauty and the Margaret Morris Movement, encouraged exercise during pregnancy and Macrae provides case studies to evidence this.

Palgrave Studies in Sport and Politics, 2016

Macrae argues that the life-cycle stages of marriage and motherhood had a major impact on women’s... more Macrae argues that the life-cycle stages of marriage and motherhood had a major impact on women’s access to exercise and sport. She provides oral history testimony to show the effect of marriage on female exercise participation in the postwar years and argues that social class and regional locality could play a major part in structuring participation. Macrae discusses motherhood and how childcare, financial responsibilities, and the marriage model that a couple ascribed to could all shape access to exercise. The chapter concludes with a review of 1960s facility development after the creation of the British Sports Councils and their promise to develop ‘sport for all’.

Paper delivered at the Women's History Scotland Annual Conference at Abertay University, Dundee.

AHRC postdoctoral cultural engagement event, The Mitchell Library, Glasgow.

Journal of Sport Management, 2017

British Journal of Sports Medicine

International Journal of Sport Policy and Politics

Palgrave Studies in Sport and Politics, 2016

History of Education, 2012

This article uses testimony gathered from oral history interviews and contemporary physical educa... more This article uses testimony gathered from oral history interviews and contemporary physical education sources to explore the schooling of the young female body in Scotland between 1930 and 1960. It looks at the ways in which girls were educated about their own bodies and their physical capabilities at school, taking into account official understandings of the adolescent female body and how these may have affected girls’ experiences of exercise. The article examines the ways through which girls negotiated the particularities of their adolescent female bodies throughout their exercise experiences, and specifically how they learned about and coped with menstruation and body changes. It argues that the school environment within which most Scottish girls would first have been exposed to exercise would hardly have been conducive to the formation of a healthy relationship between girls and their bodies.

Women's History Review, 2015

This article investigates the ways in which exercise and movement became an increasingly importan... more This article investigates the ways in which exercise and movement became an increasingly important aspect of the antenatal experience in mid-twentieth-century Britain. This theme is explored through the experiences of women who attended fitness classes in the mid twentieth century, and the impact which these all-female spaces had upon their physicality and embodiment during pregnancy. It uses oral history testimony to argue that these exercise classes had a hand in the gradual spread of the idea that gentle exercise during pregnancy was safe for mother and baby, and this played a part in encouraging pregnant women to reject the discourses of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries which suggested that the middle-class pregnancy should be primarily sedentary. These all-female fitness classes played a role in developing ideas about the pregnant female body; educating women about their physiology; and encouraging women to safely maintain sporting identities throughout every stage of their lives.