Expanding understandings of the body, food and exercise relationship in distance runners: A narrative approach

Living, resisting, and playing the part of athlete: Narrative tensions in elite sport

“…This study reinforces research in sport and exercise psychology (e.g., Smith & Sparkes, 2002;Sparkes & Smith, 2003;McGannon & Spence, 2010;Phoenix & Smith, 2011;Busanich et al, 2012) which has shown that development, identity, and behaviour are not simply a product of psychological processes located 'within' individuals, but powerfully shaped by sociocultural factors. It extends existing research in professional golf (e.g., Douglas & Carless, 2006aCarless & Douglas, 2009) by making these processes visible in the context of several other elite and professional sports.…”

“…Evident within Alex's story are (at least) two alternative narrative types. As other studies suggest (e.g., Phoenix & Smith, 2011;Busanich et al, 2012), these alternatives are important because they provide a point of resistance to the dominant narrative. The first of these is the previously described relational narrative, in which relationships with others are storied as equally important as -or more important thantraining or performance outcomes.…”

“…These include, for example, spinal cord injury (e.g., Smith & Sparkes, 2002;Sparkes & Smith, 2003), mental health (e.g., Carless & Douglas, 2008;Carless & Sparkes, 2008), eating practices (e.g., Papathomas & Lavallee, 2006;Busanich, McGannon & Schinke, 2012), flow (Sparkes & Partington, 2003), aging (e.g., Phoenix & Smith, 2011), and professional sport (e.g., Douglas & Carless, 2006a. Building on this growing tradition, we use a narrative approach in this study to explore the stories shared by elite and professional sportspeople; the cultural narratives these stories draw upon; and their implications for identity development and life experiences.…”

“…As a result, it can come to exhibit a disproportionate influence on individuals' lives, to the point that it may "'colonize' an individual's sense of self, constricting identity options to those that are problem saturated" (Neimeyer, Herrero & Botella, 2006, p. 132). A potential solution is the availability of alternative types of story that provide narrative resources to support a 'restorying' of self and identity through resisting a dominant narrative (see McLeod, 1997;Sparkes & Smith, 2003;Carless & Douglas, 2008Frank, 2010;Freeman, 2010;Phoenix & Smith, 2011;Busanich et al, 2012).…”

“…In this example, Suzanne experiences expressions of the performance narrative by others as shaping her own actions, as well as those of teammates ("the coach kind of suggested she shouldn't go home so she didn't"). When Suzanne says, "you do just have to keep one eye on reality because when you are surrounded by people who want the same goal you can be blinded by it," she reveals how, as recent research has also shown (e.g., Busanich et al, 2012), sport culture operates through relationships between people via the circulation and reproduction of a dominant storyline. Suzanne's account suggests that immersion and participation in a culture where performance stories were told and retold over time "blinded" her to alternative stories.…”