Etiquette and the Cultural Diffusion of Golf: Globalization and Emotional Control in Social Relations

Abstract

This article examines the cultural diffusion of golf and its etiquette code. In so doing it sheds light on the role of emotions and psychological life in broader debates about global-local interrelationships. Data collected from 38 interviews in England and Norway indicate that while the general ethos of golf etiquette has been broadly accepted in Norway, its reception (the perceived importance, mode of learning, and extent of conformity) has been contoured by ideologies which characterize Norwegian sport more generally; namely voluntarism, inclusiveness and collectivism. The study therefore shows both how emotional control is central to the regulation of social relations and the way in which local adaptation of this global cultural product is more characteristic of a process of glocalization than grobalization. The article argues that to fully understand global-local interrelations, research needs to be as cognizant of psychosocial effects as it is of media representations and corporate interventions. ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR