S. (2018) 'Adolescent constructions of gendered identities : the role of sport and (physical)education.', Sport, education and society., 23 (7). pp. 681-693. potentially negative influence on participation for both males and females. This paper explores male and female experiences of sport and PE to grasp how the field of physical culture represents a space for the development and enactment of gendered behaviours and norms within an active identity. Fifty-one individual or paired semi-structured interviews were conducted with 33 young men and 37 young women in Year 11 (aged 15-16) at three demographically varied schools in North East England. Using Bourdieu's concepts of habitus, field, capital and doxa, this paper demonstrates that these young people identify feeling trapped in gendered norms and beliefs which recreate rigid notions of acceptable behaviours for young men and women. Interviewees often described gender in biological terms through a belief that masculinity is associated with maleness and femininity with femaleness. Through encouraging reflexivity as part of the interview process, young people were able to identify the (usually) non-conscious elements of their gendered habitus, which represent the taken-for-granted assumptions about masculinity and femininity which direct practice. Perceived gender pressures lead to self-and peersurveillance within PE environments, whereby capital is allocated to gender-and sportappropriate bodies. These findings suggest that PE and school structures regulate adolescent bodies, affecting participation in sport and physical activity in heavily gendered ways. Therefore, limited opportunities are available for young people to transgress the restrictive social norms which normalise the role of sport and PE for a successful male identity whilst simultaneously undermining the presence of an athletic female.

Gendered differences in participation in active lifestyles (encompassing sport, physical activity, and physical education) are well established, with young men typically participating in more activities than young women. This paper uses a theoretical approach inspired by Bourdieu’s notions of habitus, field and capital to explore the ‘how’ and ‘why’ of these differences. Drawing on mixed-methods data obtained from questionnaires ( n = 332) and semi-structured interviews with 33 young men and 37 young women aged 15–16, we present two gendered trends which explain gendered differences in active lifestyle participation. Firstly, in this research, young men participated in more activities than young women, viewing their participation as integral to their identity, their sense of self. Young women, in contrast, viewed sport as an ‘optional’ extra, something they could do, if they wished. Secondly, in relation to the differences in the type of activities participated in, young men were more likely to participate in traditional team sports, whereas young women chose to engage in gym/fitness activities to promote appearance and feminine attractiveness. We argue that the gendered norms which dictate ‘appropriate’ gendered active identities are damaging to both young men and women who may wish to deviate from these norms. Social capital is allocated to gendered bodies in accordance with these norms, influencing how young people are viewed in their social hierarchies. A gender-neutral narrative which destabilises gendered sporting norms whilst simultaneously celebrating diversity is needed to promote a safe and inclusive environment where all young men and women can engage in sufficient physical activity.

This article examines young people’s negotiation of their identities in relation to gender. We explore this through two important sites for young people—physical relationships in the school environment and mainstream social media sites (e.g., Instagram and Facebook)—with the suggestion that social media is an important site for young people that permits discursive and identity exploration. Specifically, we use a Bourdieusian framework to examine the flow of capital between fields as well as the identities that arise. We draw on the experiences of young people aged 15 or 16 from 70 semistructured interviews (33 young men, 37 young women; M age = 15.7) at three socioeconomically contrasting schools. We argue that for capital to be accrued, young people’s identities are largely required to be consistent between the physical and digital worlds. Moreover, these identities are heavily tied to polarized gender stereotypes of heightened masculinities and femininities. Thus, a young person’s popularity (reinforced in both the fields of social media and schooling) is partly maintained by the negotiation of their gendered body and a gendered identity.

The period from 2013 to 2019 was one of relative continuity in policies for physical education (PE), school sport and physical activity (PESSPA) in England. Starting from the advent of the government’s flagship PE and Sport Premium (PES Premium) initiative in 2013, the end of the period was reached 20 with renewed uncertainty in 2020 about the future of PESSPA policy. It is therefore an appropriate point for this article to ‘take stock’ of PESSPA policies and their consequences since 2013. The political science literature on policy design underpins the approach to considering the mix of both policy goals and those instruments used by governments to achieve them. To do so, a comprehensive set of policy documents, published reports, academic literature and empirical research on schools’ use of the PES Premium was interrogated. Policy goals articulated by government since 2013 reinforced, rather than resolved, long-standing debates about the purpose of PESSPA. Health-related objectives rose in prominence, but sat uneasily alongside continued commitments to competitive sport. Only a narrow range of the policy instruments available to governments were used in pursuit of their policy goals. PES Premium funding was solely distributed to primary schools, with limited use of regulation and information systems to shape PESSPA provision. These aspects of policy design contributed to increasing reliance on external coaches in primary schools and indicators of a decline in secondary school provision and participation, resonant of prioritisation of short-term approaches over longer-term strategic development. Possibilities for improving future PESSPA policies are considered as a result.

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