Sports spectacle, an educational context? Analysis of the attitudes of adolescent spectators

Sport, in its dimension as a form of mass entertainment, has a big socialising potential for young people. Through observation and interaction with other spectators (who they imitate and take as reference), boys and girls learn how to behave as supporters. Considering this situation, the paper describes the results of a research study that analyses the perceived behaviours of spectators and the way they are interpreted by young people, as well as the attitudes that they adopt. The study was undertaken using a questionnaire administered to pupils at four secondary schools. After they were asked to participate in an intervention aimed at critical education regarding the sporting phenomenon. Taking the results of the research into consideration, the Valors en Joc study group has designed several educational proposals that are described briefly. © 2009 Fundación Infancia y Aprendizaje.