U-M study: Men, women experience sports differently

Updated 11:00 AM August 13, 2007

U-M study: Men, women experience sports differently

By Jared Wadley
News Service

A new study shows that under the right circumstances, college women enjoy watching live sports just as much as men—contrary to popular belief.

"In fact, research showed little difference in the number of hours a week that male and female students spent at live sporting events," says Andrei Markovits, the Karl W. Deutsch Collegiate Professor of Comparative Politics and German Studies.

Markovits' research, "Sports Culture Among Undergraduates: A Study of Student-Athletes and Students at the University of Michigan," indicates, however, there is a deep disparity in the way men and women experience sports. The findings featured responses from 845 U-M students, which included 398 men and 447 women comprising 434 student athletes and 411 non-athletes. The athletes represent all U-M varsity sports teams except for football.

Televised sports are another matter, the researchers say. Male students watch about eight hours of sports per week on TV while female students watch a little more than three.

Watching more television may provide men with an advantage in answering trivia questions, the study shows. Male students consistently outperformed their female colleagues in general knowledge of sports and professional players. Men were able to list a higher number of current and historical sports figures from the Boston Celtics, the New York Yankees and the Detroit Red Wings.

"It's these professional sports teams that become integral to the daily lives of male students whereas they do not for female students whose interest in sports remains largely confined to the college world, their alma mater in particular," he says.

Still, campus sports ranked high with both genders, which may account for the research showing that the U-M-adorned items are essential clothes for men and women. And while men and women have sports-laden attire in their wardrobes, what differs in their respective closets is the type of logos on the shirt or jogging pants. Male students were much more likely than female students to own clothing boasting professional sports teams, the research indicates.

Markovits hypothesizes that logo clothing for women is a way of visually identifying themselves as fans. "This is all the more important because women participate less than men in other areas of sports culture and so may be considered 'outsiders' within this culture," he says.

Other studies, he notes, have shown that clothing is a crucial marker for out-groups to get accepted by in-groups.

"Clothing constitutes a very important outward marker of identifying with a group, an event—a culture—and it clearly signifies a sense of belonging," he says.

U-M study: Men, women experience sports differently

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