The Importance Of Hazing In Sports

Adam was changing after football practice, when he was ambushed and taped to a chair. Four seniors made the decision to push him into the crowded gym. Adam thought nothing of the situation. He figured they would push him in and untape him, but that was not the case. The seniors thrust the door open and flung the chair into the room. The wheels hit the metal threshold and Adam went airborne six feet. When he hit the ground he screamed and felt blood on his chin. His jaw had been fractured (qtd. in Egan and Dempsey). Adam’s story is one of many, and to some families, Adam got off lucky. It is easy for hazing to become out of hand, and in some cases has left families childless. The tradition has been passed down through generations and has affected …show more content…
To put it simply, because hazing in sports creates animosity among players and can be potentially life threatening, coaches need to pay closer attention to their players and ensure that no hazing is taking …show more content…
It does not actually “...bring people together...” but instead “...only breeds animosity and separates people” (Jacobs). The humiliation is more likely to cause resentment between players that can last for the duration of their time together. The control that the older teammates display over the newcomer can be carried over post-hazing. It puts the newcomer in a position where they may forever feel inferior to their teammates rather than equal. Studies have found that teams who participated in team building activities felt more connected socially than when they participated in, or observed hazing activity. The study also showed that hazing activity created less cohesion among "sport-related tasks." This study disproves the popular belief that hazing creates team unity (Raalte). Humiliation and degradation are an unnecessary and ineffective part of building a strong team. The abuse of power that is exerted on new players does not create “team cohesion”, but actually achieves the opposite. This study shows that there is no longer a justification as to why hazing is