Athletes' moral judgment needs some real work

[shrekjr]

But according to Stoll's extensive research, sports -- especially lacrosse, football and ice hockey -- can actually encourage athletes to make bad choices.

This is an article about athletes being taught that it is okay to cheat in life as long as you don't get caught.

http://www.orlandosentinel.com/sports/columnists/orl-hill0806aug08,0,7710451.column?coll=orl-sports-col

[LaxTchr]

As a high school coach, I do agree with this article to a point. I have fought hard to see that my players do not "cheat" either in school or in sport. Unfortunately, many of them have been exposed to the opposite teaching from other coaches they have had. I think the cited football example of a lineman being shown how to block illegally without being caught is a prime example. I personally remember my high school coach teaching me how to "hold" a defensive player and that it was Ok as long as I didn't get caught. The old phrase, "It's not cheating if you don't get caught" is one I'm sure many of us have heard as athletes growing up.

Additionally, I feel that this crisis is not limited to sport. Many students, especially with growing technology, are finding more and more ways to cheat. It's almost as if the ends justifies the means. College is more competitive than ever to gain admission. I think the resonsibility falls on the coaches and teachers to fight against this growing trend. Not an easy task, but definitely essential!

[StrykerFSU]

I have a hard time buying this argument. Teaching a kid to thumb the ball or use an illegal pocket is going to mean they are more predisposposed to be violent criminals? This reminds me of the argument that violence on tv makes kids violent. And let's define cheating...is holding a jersey the same as having a crib sheet during an exam? If I poke a defensemen with a butt end is that the same as rape? I don't encourage players to do things like that but I also don't think they will resort to a life of crime if they grab their opponent's stick during a face off.

[SLUDoubleDeuce]

"Our society values hard work, dedication, intensity and sacrifice," Stoll said. "The problem is we don't develop moral character, so instead we develop hard-working, dedicated rapists."

I don't know how to even process that statement...it makes my head hurt. That has to be up there on the list of most idiotic statements I've ever heard.

But according to Stoll's extensive research, sports -- especially lacrosse, football and ice hockey -- can actually encourage athletes to make bad choices.

Would have been nice for the writer to actually explain why Stoll's research alludes to this. Even a one sentence explanation would have helped. Can't believe her editor didn't catch that. But I agree with Stryker that it's a pretty big assumption, even though there is "research" to prove it, that holding a defenseman or having a deeper pocket will lead to a lifetime of drug use and rape.

[shrekjr]

I have a hard time buying this argument. Teaching a kid to thumb the ball or use an illegal pocket is going to mean they are more predisposposed to be violent criminals? This reminds me of the argument that violence on tv makes kids violent. And let's define cheating...is holding a jersey the same as having a crib sheet during an exam? If I poke a defensemen with a butt end is that the same as rape? I don't encourage players to do things like that but I also don't think they will resort to a life of crime if they grab their opponent's stick during a face off.

I think you're taking this to the extreme. I believe the article was more focused on players cheating their way through high school and college, both on and off the field...not resorting to a life of crime.

[LaxTchr]

Here's an interesting response from a colleague of mine. I think he puts it into perspective:


I find that its interesting that they include lacrosse, yet never cite any examples...

They make blanket statements about elite athletes, yet they didn't examine the regular athlete, the kid not going to the next level or going to a D3 or club type arrangement.
Floyd Landis- elite biker who was watching 15+ years of work slip away because he was out of gas 3 stages from the end, so he took some roids for a quick recovery
Barry Bonds- sent the early part of his career being overshadowed by Bobby Bonilla and his dad. Jacked up and became MVP. With a chance to go after Ruth/Aaron he continued the roids till his body broke down (which it has)
Rhet Bomar- blue collar kid form TX, I'm sure has never had that kind of money before and figured "who'd know besides I make this place $10 million a year, where's my cut?"

These are extreme situations, how about the you and me of the world who used lessons from sports to graduate HS, graduate college, find employment, pay their taxes, and feel strongly enough to give their time and energy to kids trying to pass along that which they have learned to the next generation???

Its too much for one to ask to be perfect in all aspects of there lives. Policemen that spend their night protecting and serving, finish the night off in a bar and drive home drunk. Happens all the time, its life.
LT- was probably a druggie in HS and college and then got to the pros and had money for coke. Athletics mirrors society, if the kid is raised wrong at home, no amount of athletic success is going to fix that.

[shrekjr]

Good response.

[Danny Hogan]

"Our society values hard work, dedication, intensity and sacrifice," Stoll said. "The problem is we don't develop moral character, so instead we develop hard-working, dedicated rapists."

barf..

"cheating" is a very grey area. A lineman's hold on a jersey is not in the same category of someone altering a scoreboard @ a basketball game. Where does exxagerating a charge in b ball fall? is it cheating? is it a cagey veteran move?

[StrykerFSU]

I was certainly taking it to the extreme but so was the article. I also don't think that it was just hyperbole when the author used the words "lacrosse" and "rapist" so close together in the article. There were no figures used as evidence of the researchers' hypothesis, only a handful of anecdotal examples as pointed out by SLUDoubleDeuce.

I think this article's purpose was to portray all athletes as socially irresponsible because they are universally given special treatment by society. The author found a "researcher" who supported this idea because being able to cite someone with Dr. in front of their name gives instant credibility. The author then uses high profile examples to push their view even though the examples represent only the tiniest fraction of athletes. The author also neglects to examine any other possible reasons for these athletes' bad behavior besides the fact that they are athletes. The article states a study of 70,000 athletes but fails to use any of them as examples...I doubt that Landis or LT were test subjects.

It seems to me that this author, for whatever reason, has an axe to grind with athletes or recognized an easy column that would spark some "outrage" among readers who already believe that all of us athletes are nothing but spoiled brutes.

[mbuff]

Since the author makes these assumptions without providing a basis in fact, I'll go out on a limb and assume that his older brother was a lineman who made the author eat poo out of the cat box when they were young.