Session: The Lived Experience of College Athletes
A preliminary examination of stereotype threat in student-athletes: College student perspectives of student-athletes in the classroom

Student-athletes face unique challenges when it comes to being successful in the classroom (Simons, Bosworth, Fujita, & Jensen, 2007). Many student-athletes have indicated a desire to succeed academically (Parsons, 2013; Simons et al., 2007), but several factors may thwart their attempts. Aside from the significant time requirement of intercollegiate athletics involvement (Ayers, Pazmino-Cevallos, and Dobose, 2012), student-athletes also may face a stigma in the classroom because of their athletic identity. Further, student-athletes have historically perceived being treated differently in the classroom by their peers and faculty based on their identity as an athlete (Fuller, 2011; Keller, 2002; Sailes, 1996; Stone et al., 1999). Based on a conceptual framework of stereotype threat, the way non-student-athletes and faculty members treat student-athletes has a large impact on how successful the student-athletes are academically. Therefore it is important to understand what their views are.
The overall purpose of this study is to examine perceptions of the behavior, ability, and treatment of student-athletes in the classroom through the eyes of both student-athletes and non-student-athletes, including their perception of how faculty members treat student-athletes.  Results will be discussed, along with a discussion on the trends and beliefs as they relate to the literature and prior results.

Session: Sociology of Sports Coaching #1
Coaching Parents: Comparing Father’s and Mother’s Behaviors
According to Social Role Theory the beliefs people hold about gender roles impact how they behave in their social roles (Eagly & Wood, 2012). Rogers et al. (2009) suggested that mothers tended to exhibit more supportive behaviors, while fathers were more pressuring. In regards to sports, traditionally in the United States men have taught their children sports, while women have had a supporting role (Wuerth et al., 2004). 

Even with all those that student-athletes come into contact with, coaches and parents tend to have the most influence on student-athletes (Schroeder, 2000). Parents are becoming increasingly involved in the lives of their college-aged students, including student-athletes (Cullaty, 2011). This change has many implications for the coach-parent relationship, which few researchers have examined. We interviewed eleven coaches about their relationship with parents, specifically how mothers compared to fathers in their sport interactions. 

We discovered that for the most part parents fell into traditional gender roles in regards to how they approached their child’s athletics and how they interacted with coaches.

As coaches work with parents, it is important for them to understand how mothers and fathers may differ in their behaviors so the coach can best determine how to interact with them.