Are Doors Being Opened for the “Ladies’’ of College Sports? A Covariance Analysis

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to examine sports symbols of colleges and universities for evidence of sexism and to identify factors that differentiated schools with and without sexist nicknames for their athletic teams. Data on team names and eight measures of women's athleticism were collected from 112 colleges and universities for the 2000-2001 academic year. MANCOVA results revealed that women's athleticism was stronger at schools with nonsexist nicknames for seven of the eight measures, although only one statistically significant difference was observed. Schools with nonsexist nicknames had a significantly higher percentage of assistant coaches who were women. Discussion focuses on why there may be more athletic opportunities and athletic resources for women at schools with nonsexist nicknames.

The Relationship Between Sexist Naming Practices and Athletic Opportunities at Colleges and Universities in the Southern United States

“…The second most common form of sexist naming found by Eitzen and Baca Zinn (1989) and the most common form found by Ward (2004) was the use of the feminine qualifier lady in the name for women's teams. The term lady was used in several ways.…”

“…The independent variables used in the logistic and OLS regression analyses consist of institutional and athletics department characteristics that were previously found to be important determinants of gender equity in collegiate athletics (Anderson et al 2006;Ward 2004). In the logistic regression analysis of sexist naming practices, the independent variables consist of the following: size of the institution, religious affiliation, private status, the designation as a historically black college or university (HBCU), tuition and fees charged, athletic league and division membership, presence of a men's football program, gender of the head coach of the women's basketball team, and the climate for women in the athletics department (measured as the percentage of female coaches employed by the athletics department).…”

“…Research by Eitzen and Baca Zinn (1989) on the naming practices of collegiate sports teams during the 1980s found that 38.1 percent of the schools across the United States used some form of sexist naming. In a more recent study, Ward (2004) found that, among Division IA schools, athletic opportunities available to women students are relatively greater at schools that use nonsexist names, rather than sexist names, for their women's teams. Both Eitzen and Baca Zinn (1989) and Ward (2004) found that schools in the South were more likely to use sexist names than were schools elsewhere in the United States.…”

“…In a more recent study, Ward (2004) found that, among Division IA schools, athletic opportunities available to women students are relatively greater at schools that use nonsexist names, rather than sexist names, for their women's teams. Both Eitzen and Baca Zinn (1989) and Ward (2004) found that schools in the South were more likely to use sexist names than were schools elsewhere in the United States. Finally, research on gender stratification in collegiate athletics has demonstrated that schools in the southern United States offer relatively fewer athletic opportunities for women students than do schools in nonsouthern states (Anderson et al 2006).…”

Who's Calling the Shots? Women Coaches in Division I Women's Sports*

“…4 Although the evidence is mixed (Weinberg, Reveles, and Jackson, 1984; Frankl and Babbitt, 1998), some have suggested that women athletes themselves prefer to be coached by men and that this preference in turn influences athletic administrators. It follows that southern conservatism on a variety of gender‐related issues could contribute to a dearth of women coaches (Ward, 2004:704). Whereas more traditional gender‐role orientations are also more likely to dominate in religious institutions, public institutions might be subject to pronounced internal and external pressures toward openness to gender equality, for both legal and political reasons.…”