ABSTRACT
Some liberal feminists argued that since participation in organized competitive sports has served as a major source of socialization for males’ successful participation in the public world, girls and young women should have equal access to sports. As socioeconomic and familial changes continued to erode the traditional bases of male identity and privilege, sports became an increasingly important cultural expression of traditional male values — organized sports became a “primary masculinity-validating experience.” Both on a personal–existential level for athletes and on a symbolic–ideological level for spectators and fans, sports have become one of the “last bastions” of traditional male ideas of success, of male power and superiority over — and separation from — the perceived “feminization” of society. Adolescence is probably the period of greatest insecurity in the life course, the time when the young male becomes most vulnerable to peer expectations, pressures, and judgments.
