Violence in sport: The causes and implications of violence in sport.

The idea

Violence in sport ranges from player-on-player aggression to crowd disorder. Causes include frustration when a decision is disputed, provocation by opponents or spectators, over-arousal from high stakes, learned aggression from role models, and deindividuation in a crowd where individuals feel anonymous. Implications affect the performer, who may be sent off, banned or injured; the sport, which loses sponsors and reputation; and society, where disorder can spread beyond the venue. A concrete method is to classify each example by cause, then trace its short-term and long-term effects on performer, sport and society.

What earns the marks

• Causes include frustration at decisions, provocation, over-arousal, learned aggression and crowd deindividuation.
• Implications for the performer include dismissal, suspension, fines, injury and reputational damage.
• Implications for the sport include lost sponsorship, damaged image and stricter crowd-control measures.
• Implications for society include disorder spreading beyond the venue and negative role-model effects on young spectators.

Common mistakes and how to put them right

• Treating all violence as identical.

  Put it right by distinguishing player aggression from crowd disorder, since causes and implications differ.

• Assuming violence always raises arousal usefully.

  Put it right by noting over-arousal usually impairs performance and control.

• Ignoring the wider sport and society.

  Put it right by tracing implications beyond the individual performer.

Exam tips

• Link each cause to a named implication rather than listing them separately.
• Use a specific sporting example to anchor the cause and its consequence.
• Check whether the question asks for causes, implications or both before writing.