Surveillance technologies as Instruments of discipline in the elite sports coaching context: A cautionary post-structural commentary

Abstract

The use of surveillance technologies as tools to encourage performance enhancement has become an accepted component of elite coaching. Those from the communities of sports physiology, psychology and biomechanics who promote the application of surveillance technologies have reported multiple benefits for the athlete. Conversely, several socio-cultural studies have suggested that surveillance technologies can lead to an oppressive mechanism of control over the athlete, significantly altering the role and responsibilities of the contemporary coach. In this critical commentary we use a post-structural position and adopt Foucault's disciplinary analysis to contribute to the ongoing debate surrounding the use of surveillance technology in sport. Specifically, we achieve this by labelling surveillance technologies in sport as what Foucault (1977) might call, instruments of discipline, and by explaining the impact they have upon the working coach and the skilled athlete. We present some suggestions surrounding how to most appropriately utilise surveillance technologies in a sports coaching context and conclude by warning against a binary consideration of the use of technology as either good or bad.

Wearable GPS Devices in a British Elite Soccer Academy Setting: A Foucauldian Disciplinary Analysis Of Player Development And Experience

“…These technologies' capability to expose potentially vulnerable groups to arrangements typified by unnecessary disciplinary power should always be kept in mind. Therefore, it is suggested here that those wanting to monitor others by deploying wearable GPS devices should always proceed with caution and an open mind to the potential array of unintended consequences that may occur (Jones & Toner, 2016).…”

“…Because of these recognised strengths, as with previous research , the current study adopted a Foucauldian stance to re-examine the application of wearable GPS harnesses within the working soccer setting. In doing so, this investigation was able to question whether the use of wearable GPS devices leads to an automatic improvement in a player's performance and health, as is widely advertised (Jones & Toner, 2016). To achieve this aim, the disciplinary analysis of Michel Foucault (1995) was used to investigate how professional players experience having to wear GPS technology during their training and matches.…”

“…Since this publication, several cautionary socio-cultural analysis/ commentaries also have emerged that examine the increasingly normalised use of wearable GPS harnesses (as a component of performance analysis) in elite sport settings. These articles alert the reader that the physical, mental, and emotional health of athletes can be placed in jeopardy as a result of the misappropriation of surveillance technologies (Jones & Toner, 2016;Taylor, Potrac, Nelson, Jones, & Groom, 2015), including wearable GPS tracking . These papers adopt a post-structural position to suggest that within sport, wearable and portable surveillance technologies operate as 'techniques and instruments of discipline.'…”

“…These papers adopt a post-structural position to suggest that within sport, wearable and portable surveillance technologies operate as 'techniques and instruments of discipline.' In addition, that sports settings are often choreographed to render working athletes as 'docile sports-workers' who unquestioningly comply with the norms from within their workplace (Jones & Toner, 2016). This means of inquiry remains in its infancy however, and the implications of the constant monitoring and control of the movements of elite performers in sports settings still require further attention.…”

“…Correspondingly, Foucault also has been used to suggest that coaching practices must reject sport's disciplinary logic (Denison, Mills, & Konoval, 2015) and to demand that coaching practices be re-imagined so as to avoid potentially damaging outcomes to individuals in elite sports settings (Denison & Jones, 2018). Jones and Toner (2016) identified that amongst sporting circles, an overwhelmingly positive attitude toward surveillancebased performance analysis technologies presides. In addition, these authors also noted that a one-sided perspective exists that favours the adoption of surveillance technologies as disciplinary tools.…”