Constructing Female Athleticism: A Study of Girls’ Recreational Softball

As more female athletes enter the sporting arena, girls and women are finding ways to manage the cultural contradiction of female athleticism. Past research has focused on the apologetic defense as a strategy that allows female athletes to combine athleticism and traditional femininity. Using observations and interviews with a group of preadolescent and adolescent girls participating in a recreational softball league, this study highlights how age affects the social construction of gender. Although the classic apologetic defense is characterized by exaggerated femininity motivated by a fear of perceived masculinization through sports, this study reveals that the girls' overemphasis on traditionally feminine traits is motivated instead by a desire to prove maturity, which is demonstrated through gendered behavior. The younger, preadolescent girls most closely resemble traditional tomboys who embrace masculine activities and demeanors. As the girls enter adolescence, approximately 12 and 13 years of age, their displays of traditionally feminine behavior peak, whereas the older girls' displays of traditional femininity are less vigorous.