Socio-Cultural Influences on the Development of Rational Recreation

Socio-Cultural Influences on the Development of Rational Recreation

1. Industrial Revolution

   • Initial effects
     • Rural-urban migration
     • Lack of leisure time
     • Lack of income
     • Poor health
     • Loss of rights
     • Lack of public provision
   • Second half
     • Improved health and hygiene
     • Increase in wages
     • Increased leisure time
     • New middle class
     • Influence of ex-public schoolboys
     • Values of athleticism
     • Industrial patronage
     • Improved transport and communications
     • Cheaper to travel

2. Urbanisation

   • Lack of space
   • Large working-class populations
   • Loss of traditional sports
   • Change in working conditions

3. Transport revolution

   • Movement of teams/spectators
   • Improved access to different parts of the country
   • Cheaper train travel
   • Improved access to the countryside

4. Communications

   • Society became more literate
   • Printed media improved knowledge and awareness of sport
   • Increased knowledge of results
   • Emergence of sporting heroes/role models

5. Influence of the church

   • Encouraged social control
   • Church halls provided venues for sport
   • Sport viewed as way of promoting Christian values
   • YMCA promoted healthy body/healthy mind link
   • Clergy viewed sport as a good way of improving church attendance
   • Organised teams, set up clubs, organised fixtures

6. Three tier society

   • Codification
     • Strict rules
   • Competitions
     • Development of leagues
   • Public provision
     • Dev. of public facilities
   • Increased leisure time
   • Move to professionalism

7. British Empire

   • Sport seen as good way of installing moral values and binding people across the empire
   • Teachers
     • Dev. teams and taught sporting values
   • Industrialists/factory owners
     • Set up teams
     • Gave workers time off to play
   • Clergy
     • Dev. church teams
     • Became missionaries
   • Officers in British army
     • Used sport with armed services
   • Diplomats
     • Travelled the world and took sport with them
   • NGBs
     • Codified sports
     • Established leagues & competitions

8. Public provision

   • Dev. public baths
     • Segregated for different classes
   • Improved health and hygiene
   • Plunge baths developed for swimming/recreation
   • Improved work productivity due to healthier population

9. Development of NGBs

   • Sport increasing in popularity
   • More teams & clubs
   • More national and international fixtures
   • Leagues/competitions required
   • Codification required
   • Maintenance of 'amateur ideal'