Ethics in Sport

Catalog description

Contemporary sport practices and organizations are fraught with ethical issues that impact participants, fans, organizers, and very often societies at-large. This course will introduce students to various ethical dilemmas currently being hashed within organized sport settings. Students will critically analyze diverse philosophic arguments and possible solutions related to these debates. Additionally, students will construct an essay of their own, aiming to remedy a contemporary ethical dilemma that interests them. Topics include: promoting competition, instances of cheating, intentional rule violations, running up the score on opponents, using performance enhancing technologies, polices toward sex and gender equity, Native American mascots and team names, the professionalization of big-time college sports, the commercialization of sport, youth sport policies, and permitting violence and health risks in sport.