Community Sport and Social Inclusion

This book examines sport as an inclusive and developmental environment, exploring the conditions by which community sport initiatives can promote personal development, health and social cohesion, particularly for at-risk youth. At the empirical core of the book is a multiple disciplinary study of community sport programmes in Flanders, Belgium, involving researchers from social sport sciences, social work, pedagogy and health care sciences. Drawing on this cutting-edge, realist research, the book considers the implications for sport development policy and practice around the world. The book considers community sport as a vehicle for promoting social inclusion, and the ways it allows people of all backgrounds and abilities to participate and access social and health benefits, whilst touching on key issues including monitoring and evaluation; exercise and health; youth welfare, and volunteering. This book is a fascinating reading for any student, researcher or practitioner working in sport for development, sport management, sport coaching, social work, education, sociology or urban studies.

Marc Theeboom is a professor at the Faculty of Physical Education and Physiotherapy and at the Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences of the Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Belgium. Hebe Schaillée is an assistant professor and postdoctoral researcher in the Department of Movement and Sport Sciences at the Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Belgium. Rudi Roose is s professor of Social Work at the Department of Social Work and Social Pedagogy at Ghent University, Belgium. Sara Willems is a professor Equity in Health Care and head of the Department of Public Health and Primary Care in the Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences at Ghent University, Belgium. Lieve Bradt is a professor of Social Pedagogy at the Department of Social Work and Social Pedagogy at Ghent University, Belgium. Emelien Lauwerier is a professor of Health Psychology and postdoctoral researcher at the Department of Experimental-Clinical and Health Psychology in the Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences and the Department of Public Health and Primary Care in the Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences at Ghent University, Belgium.

Part 1. Introduction and general findings. 1. Introduction. 2. Community sport and social inclusion: necessary and sufficient conditions. Part 2. Thematic insights into community sport and social inclusion. 3. Reflective practices in a volunteer community sport coach training programme. 4. Health promotion in the context of community sport: illustration of a theory-informed approach to programme development and evaluation. 5. Facilitating conditions for establishing social cohesion through structural approaches in community sport. Part 3. Broader perspectives on community sport and social inclusion. 6. The evolution of evaluation: From the black box to programme theory. 7. Realist inquiry and action research. 8. Problematizing the concept of social inclusion through sport: Opportunities and challenges through the lens of aspirations and capabilities. Part 4. General reflections. 9. General reflections.