Defined terms

Agency: In Messner’s book “It’s all for the Kids” he seeks to prove that people are active participants in creating gender. He states that, “in the language of social theory, people exercise agency in the creation of everyday social life. Agency can be either reproductive: “When our actions are consistent with traditions and conventions of existing gender differences and hierarchies” or resistant: “when our actions contradict t or challenge existing gender differences or hierarchies.” Reproductive agency does just that—it reproduces and helps to perpetuate the existing norms in society, whereas resistant agency helps to change or challenge existing gender norms and relations. Messner asserts that reproductive and resistant agencies are often simultaneously evident in sports. For example (from the book): “when a heavily muscled woman bodybuilder gets breast implants in order to appear strong and conventionally hetero-sexy.” The body builder is a resistant agent in that she is heavily muscled, which is resistant to the feminine body norm and a reproductive agent in that she got breast implants to appear more feminine, reproducing the relation between feminine and large breasts.

Drill Sergeant Coach: male coaches who are involved in junior level youth sports around typically around the ages of 11-12 years old. This type of coach is more evident in this age group because this is the time when the sport tends to get more serious: the coaches and parents expect to win. This coach is very hyperkinetic and bossy, he makes no effort to restrain his thoughts and often displays his directions to his players on his team through hand signals from the side line in the coaches box. This coach doesn’t hold back when his team is doing bad, and has no problem expressing disappointment in his players, he is loud and commanding and will do whatever it takes to win, including making a strong attempt to control the game with the goal of winning. Often times “less intense” coaches have opted out by this age bracket, leaving the more “serious” coaches who often have a commanding leadership style. In the book, Messner uses Coach Gordon’s level of intensity in the playoffs as an example of a Drill Sergeant Coach. Coach Gordon rides one of the most talented players on the team the hardest in an effort to get the player to reach his full potential, which would be beneficial to the team and help the team to win. As Coach Gordon grows agitated with the players, it manifests into visible physical agitation and also into louder and more commanding vocal instructions to his players. When the coach’sa starting catcher isn’t doing well, he pulls him out of the game, publically scolds him and sits him down in the dugout. The Drill Sergeant coach will do whatever it takes to win.