In Search of Macro,- Meso-, and Micro Sociological Antecedents of Conflict in Voluntary Sports Federations and Clubs with the Flemish Situation as Case Study

Abstract

In this paper, emphasis is placed on the sources of conflict in voluntary sports organizations. From a study of the literature and from interviews with professionals and volunteers in sport, several macro-, meso- and micro-sociological antecedents of conflict in voluntary sport organizations were found. By means of depth interviews with 15 volunteers working in sports federations and 10 in sports clubs, a picture of the perceptions of volunteers has been taken. On the macro-sociological level, the devotion of many volunteers is pressured by more demanding clients and the government’s regulations on the one hand and by the commercialization, the materialization and the individualization of our society on the other hand. On the meso-sociological level a lack of communication and loyalty on behalf of the experts, a variation in rewarding the efforts, the increasing uncertainty, strengthen the variation in power amongst the different stakeholders. On the micro-sociological level, the complexity of tasks to fulfill in an effective sports organization does not fit with the profile of a volunteer. In line with the study of Amis, Slack & Berrett (1995) it could be stated that voluntary structured sport organizations exhibit more characteristics that lead to conflict than other organizations.