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"Women Could Be Every Bit As Good As Guys"

Reproductive and Resistant Agency in Two "Action" Sports

University of Lethbridge, Alberta, Canada, jason.laurendeau{at}uleth.ca

Nancy Sharara

University of Calgary, Alberta, Canada

This article examines two action sports—skydiving and snowboarding—as cases of women on men's turf and explores the construction of gender in the ways women negotiate space in these male-dominated arenas. It investigates some of the ways in which women's participation in these activities is constrained and the strategies women employ to carve out spaces for themselves in these sporting contexts. Women in both sports tend to engage in strategies rooted in middle-class and liberal notions of resistance. Most of these exemplify what researchers have called "reproductive agency." Some strategies, however, seem to exemplify "resistant agency." The article explores the potential of these strategies to bring about meaningful social change.

Key Words: agency • gender • risk sports • women

Journal of Sport & Social Issues, Vol. 32, No. 1, 24-47 (2008)
DOI: 10.1177/0193723507307819


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