Assemblage Thinking as Attunement to Race, Gender, and Sexuality in Youth Sport Research

Abstract

Youth sport is often prefaced as an accessible social practice facilitating development and wellbeing, yet social controls and inequalities abound along racial, gender, and sexual divisions. In efforts of transformative theoretical manoeuvring, the purpose of the paper is to deploy assemblage thinking as attunement to race, gender, and sexuality in youth sport research. A rationale for assemblage thinking is provided, followed by explanations of what assemblage thinking can do. Assemblage thinking is then deployed, situating race, gender, and sexuality as provisional performative doings. Key considerations are offered as to how youth sport researchers can engage in performative participation, acting as becoming-resources who consider the ever-evolving dynamics of academia and capitalism. Assemblage thinking is positioned as a provincial lens that can instigate more sustainable transformative research.