Document Type

Article

Publication Title

Journal of Issues in Intercollegiate Athletics

ISSN

2333-1577

Volume

3

First Page

98

Last Page

118

Publication Date

1-1-2010

Abstract

Beyer and Hannah (2000) have suggested that a major barrier to the reform of intercollegiate athletics is its cultural significance in higher education. Even leaders within the National Collegiate Athletic Association have acknowledged the need for culture change in intercollegiate athletics (Brand, 2001; Dempsey, 2000). Yet major culture change has not occurred and few studies have examined culture within intercollegiate athletic departments (Ridpath, 2008). This gap may be due, in part, to the lack of a framework with which to analyze athletic departments as organizational cultures. Schein’s (2004) model of organizational culture is the most frequently cited perspective in the literature, but it applies primarily to corporate cultures (Hatch, 2000). Several frameworks have been developed to assess college and university cultures, but intercollegiate athletics occupies a unique space between sport and education (Beyer & Hannah, 2000). Therefore, the purpose of this paper is to offer a model for assessing the cultures of intercollegiate athletic departments. The four elements of the model— institutional culture, external environment, internal environment, and leadership/power—are presented and followed by an explanation of their interaction. The paper concludes with a case study demonstrating the use of the model to define one athletic department’s culture.

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