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Abstract

The aims of this qualitative research were to explore the construction of femininity in netball and to consider how university netball players negotiate, conform to, and reject aspects of traditional and emphasised femininity. This was achieved by looking at the visual and implicit expectations and perceptions of femininity within netball culture. My seven participants, females aged 18-22 years old, all compete in university-level netball on either the development team or in the IntraMural league at my university. Two focus groups were conducted followed by a latent thematic analysis. In general, participants had commonly experienced certain expectations and perceptions of traditional and emphasised femininity in netball, but were also aware of their own autonomy and the importance of team unity. One key topic of discussion in the focus groups was the netball dress: participants highlighted the inadequacy of dress sizes and the ways in which the dress idealises traditional and emphasised femininity. Participants also rejected the “outsider” perspective of the sport as a “bitchy” and hyper-feminine environment. In this dissertation, I argue that expectations of femininity in netball perpetuate a culture of emphasised femininity and that these expectations are more representative of an outsider’s perspective than players’ lived experiences.

Course: Sociology - BSc (Hons) - C0315

Date Deposited: 2024-11-07

URI/permalink: https://library.port.ac.uk/dissert/dis14483.html