Gender, Sport, and the Construction of Community: A Case Study from Women’s Ice Hockey

Abstract

This paper examines the construction of community on a women’s ice hockey team. The analysis is based on fieldwork and interviews with an elite-level team. Within an organizational context in which men play central roles in the management of team affairs and the circle of team supporters, the dressing room provides a space where players come together as hockey players and as women. The analysis suggests that the construction of community on a woman’s hockey team is grounded in members’ shared identity as hockey players and their commitment to the sport. This common focus and interest unite women from diverse backgrounds and social locations.