Abstracts Vol. 4 (No.2 / 2007)

Eivind Åsrum Skille
The Norwegian sporting field reconsidered –
the application of Bourdieu’s field theory on a pluralistic and blurred world

This article takes as a point of departure the history and present situation of the Norwegian sector of sport and physical activity (SPA), and sketches three ideal types of sport/activity: conventional (organized and competitive) sport, self-organized activities and commercial activities. After presenting Bourdieu’s theory of fields, the author tries to identify – or derive from the SPA sector – the sporting field, based on the criteria that the essence of the sporting capital is based on a) powerful organizations, and b) subjective preferences for competitiveness. However, it is also shown that the modern world of sport comprises subfields of sport, which facilitates activity for those with another habitus than that required for the conventional sporting field.

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