A Critical Overview on the Characteristics of Early Korean Sociology of Sport

Abstract

As an academic discipline, the sociology of sport was introduced to South Korea during the 1970s and 20 years later the Korean Society for the Sociology of Sport was established in 1990. The Society has played a pivotal role in producing and promoting sociological discussions and discourses on Korean sports. At the same time however, there were concerns within the Society during the early developmental process. In this aspect, this study attempted to provide a critical introspection on the characteristics of early Korean sociology of sport. For data collection, we interviewed seven Korean sport sociologists who have been active in the field. We analyzed the interviews using Hatch’s (2002) typological analysis method. The results revealed the following characteristics: (a) A long-term domination of structural functionalism, (b) reliance on quantitative research method, (c) unclear academic identity, and (d) lack of public engagement of sport sociologists.