ABSTRACT
At the outset of this book, it was suggested that those working in the field of sport, culture and society need to engage with a number of key questions and activities. These are:
n What empirical evidence can we draw upon to substantiate aspects of sport, culture and society? (What is happening in sport?)
n What theories, ideas and concepts can we draw upon to explain and analyse this substantive evidence? (How can we make sense of what is happening in sport?)
n What capacity does sport have to transform or intervene to produce social change? (What can be done to produce change?)
n What is the contemporary role of the student, intellectual, researcher, sports enthusiast, university in the public arena? (What are you going to do about it?)
One of the objectives of the book has been to encourage students, researchers, members of the public, people to reflect upon sport, drawing upon concepts, ideas and themes but also a body of substantive research from different sports, societies and communities. It is the interplay between theory, explanation, evidence and intervention that is one of the hallmarks of the approach adopted. The student of sport, culture and society will continually be faced with three interrelated challenges. Although the production of knowledge and policy rarely comes in such a neat package or process, these can be summarised as: what evidence do you have, how are you going to make sense of it and what actions, interventions and recom - mendations are you going to make as a result these first two exercises?
