Origins of the Connection of Physical Education and Athletics at the American University: an Organizational Interpretation

Abstract

This paper analyzes the origins of the relationship between athletics, the American university and developing departments of physical education in the period 1890-1930. The "open systems" formal organizational perspective is utilized. This approach theorizes continual organizational negotiations with the task environment. Greater resources must be imported than employed in the production of output. This will guarantee the derived organizational goal of survival.

The theme of the paper is as follows: with expansion of American universities, resources were required in the way of money, visibility, students and legitimacy. While the period saw rapid growth of the university, it was also a period of uncertainty as to the smooth flow of necessary resources. Intercollegiate athletics provided a means of obtain ing resources from significant elements of the task environment — i.e., alumni, state legislatures, students.

The inclusion of athletics within the university is discussed as an extension of its "domain claims" — the statement by an organization of its proper responsibilities. In order to achieve "domain consensus" and legitimacy (from faculty in particular), the university leadership was forced to rationalize these extended claims. One means of ac complishing this rationalization was through connection of athletics with a department of the university already with some educational legitimation-physical education.