Children’s competitive microcultures: an examination of the social organization of rules and roles in gender inclusive and performance-based outdoor play

ABSTRACT

Children’s microcultures consist of small peer communities that they develop with distinct rules and roles operating outside of traditional daily activities. Presently, there is little understanding for how children may develop microcultures during competitive play, where they attempt to outperform their peers. In this study, we address the question, ‘How may competitive outdoor play shape children’s development of microcultures?’ We conducted unstructured interviews with 9- to 13-year-old children (7 girls, 6 boys) and engaged in naturalistic observations of their play in Vancouver, Canada, throughout a two-week period. Findings from our thematic analysis suggest children develop gender-inclusive microcultures during their competitive play and children are evaluated by one another on their physical and cognitive competencies. Importantly, these findings suggest microcultures can afford children with opportunities to participate in thrilling play that may otherwise be restricted by adults. Further, they suggest competition may serve as a catalyst for disrupting gender segregated play.

KEYWORDS:

• Microcultures
• games
• childhood
• gender
• competition

Acknowledgments

This work was supported through partnerships with the Society for Children & Youth of BC and Thriving Kids Care Society. In particular, we would like to thank Ildiko Kovacs from the Society for Children & Youth of BC, and Vincent Chan from Thriving Kids Care Society for their continued support and invitation to work with them.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by funding from the Social Science and Humanities Research Council of Canada under award number [#756-2021-0278].

Notes on contributors

Michelle E. E. Bauer

Dr. Michelle E. E. Bauer is a BCCHRI-funded post-doctoral fellow in the Department of Pediatrics in the Faculty of Medicine at the University of British Columbia. Her research interests are in the area of play, injury, and safety, and she commonly works with families in underserved communities to represent their voices and promote population-based health interventions to reduce disproportionate burdens of injury.

Ian Pike

Dr. Ian Pike is Director of the BC Injury Research and Prevention Unit, the Co-Director for the Community Against Preventable Injuries, and a professor in the Faculty of Medicine, Department of Pediatrics, at the University of British Columbia. His research concentrates on the intersections of injury prevention and surveillance, family health, and evidence-based prevention strategies.