Gender performativity during interviews with adolescent boys

Abstract

The increased use, if not dominance, of interviewing techniques in qualitative research on sport and physical culture demands more focused and critical analyses of the situational factors that may influence the generation of interview data. One of the factors, of course, is the interviewer’s gender as it relates to the gender(s) of the research participants. Previous research investigating the social dynamics of interviewing suggests that gender dynamics mediate the quality, content and detail of responses provided from adult participants. In particular, a noticed gap in the sport and exercise literature is the potential influence of the interviewer’s gender with respect to conducting interviews with children and youth. Drawing from interviews and field work exploring the enjoyment and experience(s) of Health and Physical Education class conducted with elementary school students in Ontario (Canada), this paper explores the relational and performative aspects of gender in the interview space, mediating how boys with multiple body capitals and masculinities shape their narratives in different ways during an interview with a male researcher.

Keywords:

• gender performativity
• interviews
• masculinity
• body capital
• youth

Acknowledgements

We would like to thank all study participants for their valuable insight about the enjoyment and experience of HPE in an Ontario school.

Barbara Gibson holds the Bloorview Children’s Hospital Foundation Chair in Childhood Disability Studies.