Examining Interdependence in Canada’s Sport System: Community Basketball

(Completed 2009)

Laura Cousens, Joanne MacLean, Martha Barnes - Brock University, SRG 2006

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2009 -Knowledge Transfer Paper

Project Summary
The purpose of this research was is to explore and assess the existence of partnerships or network collaborations within the delivery network of basketball providers in one geographic region of Canada: Niagara. Investigators used network analysis to investigate the degree of integration (incidents of network collaboration) and interdependence (partnership effectiveness) between providers of sport (e.g., basketball clubs, Boys and Girls Clubs, Parks and Recreation Departments) in one geographic region. The specific objectives of the research were: to identify the providers of the sport of basketball in one geographic region of Canada; to identify the location (central, periphery) of each actor in the network of providers, as well as the level of connectedness (density) of the network; to identify the conditions that have facilitated or hindered collaboration and integration in the networks; and to explore the environmental context (normative, regulative, cognitive) of the networks.

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SCRI 2009 Presentation Slides

2008

The importance of local sport organizations in the long term development of athletes in Canada cannot be understated. Local sport clubs constitute the fundamental mechanism for sport delivery by providing introductory physical activity experiences for children, through to training and competitive environments for this nation’s elite athletes. The governance of local sport clubs, the ideas and beliefs that underpin decision-making, and the norms of behaviour that affect the culture in these organizations are shaped and constrained by their institutional environments. Thus the buyers, suppliers, and regulatory agencies that constitute the institutional environment (DiMaggio & Powell, 1983) of local clubs are also the social and transactional networks that shape their ideas and beliefs, and, consequently, their strategic choices.

Yet, little is known about the networks of local sport providers, or the impact of this network upon the governance, ideas, and norms of local clubs. Therefore, the purpose of this research was to uncover the regulative, cognitive, and normative institutional frameworks of local providers of basketball programs in the Niagara region. This collection of Niagara-based basketball providers represented fruitful ground for this investigation given that some organizations have evolved over the last 25 years and have produced athletes that reached the highest level of competition in Canada. Notwithstanding the calibre of athletes emerging from this area, the governance structures, beliefs, and norms of these organizations differ markedly. While some basketball clubs are governed by board of directors, others are operated by individual decision makers in what would be described by Kikulis, Slack, and Hinings (1992) as kitchen table organizations. The guiding beliefs of some providers are centered on competition while others focus on fun and skill development. Similarly, the normative understandings prevalent in some clubs reduce opportunities for change in the management of these organizations.

This research builds upon previous work that explored the nature of the linkages between local sport providers in Niagara. Insights about the density of network ties, level of trust among organizations, and the types of linkages between them that were gleaned in our earlier work were used to enhance our understanding of the institutional context in which these clubs reside. The interview questions about the regulative, cognitive and normative aspects of each organization were posed together with general questions about the domain, criteria of effectiveness, and principles of organizing of the local clubs. The interviews were transcribed verbatim, and the data were entered into the qualitative software program.

The results of this research suggest the existence of what appeared to be two institutional logics of action governing the local organizations; one espousing skill development and the other advocating for increased competition. Efforts to understand the institutional sources for the diverging logics are discussed. Carriers of the emergent logic included club administrators, coaches, parents, and the media. It appears that a lack of governance structures at the national, provincial, and local levels contributed to the emergence of the competitive logic of action in this sport. Outcomes of the emergent logic included increased costs for participation in the sport of basketball, and the introduction of new policies at all three levels of governance in response to the emergent logic.

References

DiMaggio, P., & Powell, W. W. (1983). The iron cage revisited: Industrial isomorphism and collective rationality in organizational fields. American Sociological Review, 48, 147-160.
Kikulis, L., Slack, T., & Hinings, C.R. (1992). Institutionally specific design archetypes: A framework for understanding change in national sport organizations. International Review for the Sociology of Sport, 27, 344-369

 

2007

Introduction
In order to enhance the levels of sport participation by Canadians it is vital that those
organizations, agencies, and individuals involved in delivering sport work collaboratively and
effectively to maximize existing resources. To ensure the efficient use of scarce resources, a coordinated collaboration among National and Provincial sport organizations, schools, YMCAs,
sport clubs, leagues, or Boys and Girl’s clubs, is seen as an effective way to improve the
outcomes of athletes. However, it is unclear as to the level and quality of integration that is
already in place and the current and future impact of existing and potential linkages. Thus,
research was needed evaluate the critical linkages that will increase the “performance,
effectiveness, and efficiency of the Canadian sport system” (Canadian Sport Policy, p. 3).
Therefore, the purpose of this research was to examine the quality and quantity of existing interorganizational linkages in order to determine the nature of collaboration of an existing network of local sport organizations.

Conceptual Framework
A network approach was selected for this research given the extensive literature surrounding
cooperative behaviour of organizations within networked environments. Given the apparent lack of cohesion in networks encompassing sport organizations, this measure of network density holds particular relevance for this research. The types of ties that link actors, or nodes, in a network are also of particular importance given that strong ties are associated with enhanced trust and influence between actors.

Methods
In the first phase of this research a survey was used to gather quantitative data concerning the
structure of the network of basketball providers in the Regional Municipality of Niagara. The
survey tool also gathered information pertaining to the location of these organizations in their
network, the resources shared between organizations, the level of trust between partners, as
well as the organizations or individuals deemed crucial to network formation and sustainability.
The survey was distributed to over 30 providers of basketball and their network partners in the
Niagara region.

Results
The results of this research provided insight into the level of cohesive and collaborative
interaction among the network of basketball providers under study as only a limited number of
horizontal ties between same-sport providers were found to reside in the same locale. Overall,
the level of trust among network partners was low, with several respondents suggesting that
autonomy and control over decision-making were the primary reasons for low levels of
integration across organizations.

SCRI 2007 Presentation Slides

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