Influence 111rand Around
Interuniversity Athletic
Sue Inglis
McMuster University
This paper addresses the degree of influence exerted on athletic programs
from internal and external sources. Using survey data, internal influence
was assessed by the athletic administrators indicating their perceptions of
their influence in decision-making activities. Factor analysis yielded three
factors (administrative, strategic, and marketing decision types) that were
used in repeated-measures ANOVA procedures with administrative level
as the independent measure and decision types as the dependent measures.
Significant results are discussed in relation to the theoretical concepts of
decision types, gender, and hierarchical position. External influence was
assessed by the athletic administrators and university presidents indicating
their perceptions of the degree of influence exerted by external groups on the
athletic program. Repeated-measures ANOVA procedures with subsequent
Scheff6 post hoc analyses where appropriate were used. The results are
discussed in relation to the hierarchical position of the respondents and levels
of influence exerted by the external groups.
Interuniversity athletic programs have been and continue to be a subject of
interest, study, and debate (Hanford, 1979; Hardy & Berryman, 1982; Lucas &
Smith, 1978; Mathews, 1974; Savage, Bentley, McGovern, & Smiley, 1929;
Smith, 1983; Taylor, 1986). The focus of some of these writings, particularly
those addressing men's athletics as they developed through the 20th century in
the United States (Hanford, 1979; Hardy & Berryman, 1982; Lucas & Smith,
1978; Savage et al., 1929; Smith, 1983), have been related to athletic problems.
Lucas and Smith (1978) summarize some of the problems in their description of
the diminishing amateur status and growing degree of professionalism common
to athletes.
Key areas Lucas and Smith addressed included the recruitment and payment of athletes as well as the hiring of coaches, the increased financial involvement and often misappropriation of or lack of financial reporting, disorderly
conduct of athletes and team personnel on and off the playing fields, the emphasis
Sue Inglis is with the Department of Physical Education, McMaster University,
1280 Main Street, West, Hamilton, Ontario, L8S 4K1.
Interuniversity Athletics
19
of athletics over academics as evidenced by the undue proportion of time devoted
to training, the onset of gambling associated with athletics, and the publicity
given to athletic programs.
Contributors to the Canadian literature on athletic programs (Mathews,
1974; Taylor, 1986) offer descriptions of problems less severe but nonetheless
of concern to university personnel. One of the most persistent problems has been
the question of who is controlling the athletic programs. Hardy and Berryman
(1982) and Smith (1983) provide a historical account of the control of men's
athletics in the United States. They show shifts in control among various constituent groups including students, alumni, faculty, and university administrators.
Present-day athletic programs in Canada and the U.S. have varying degrees
of involvement by the various constituent groups as part of their governance
structures. Athletic programs' governance structures include the university athletic department, the athletic boards, and committees within the university as
well as the regional and national athletic associations. In addition there are sponsors, media, and informal alumni groups that have the ability to influence athletic
programs. The purpose of this study was to investigate the degree of influence
exerted by (a) various administrators within the athletic program and (b) external
groups associated with interuniversity athletic programs.
Influence Patterns
Internal Influence Patterns
The contributions of Mintzberg (1983) and Pfeffer and Salancik (1978) are helpful in examining the question of influence and control in athletics. Mintzberg
uses the terms influence and power interchangeably and considers them to be
"the capacity to effect (or affect) organizational outcomes" (p. 4). He notes that
recognizing and understanding that power exists in and around an organization
allows for the identification of influencers, that is, those who have the power or
ability to control an organization's decisions and actions, who are both internal
and external to the organization. Control that an individual or group has over an
organization comes from the possession, access, and use of resources. These
resources can include knowledge or money, as well as the regulation of those
resources, through rules (Pfeffer & Salancik, 1978).
Internal to the universities, the key actors identified for this study were
athletic administrators (athletic directors, coordinators of men's programs, and
coordinators of women's programs) and university presidents. The coordinators'
positions also included those individuals who assumed similar hierarchical positions but had the title of chair of the respective men's or women's program.
The influence of the athletic directors would be expected to be relatively
high because of their position in the hierarchy. However, the relative influence
of the coordinators is open to debate. Coordinators of men's and women's programs were identified because the issue of representation and equity in athletics
has been an ongoing concern (Carpenter & Acosta, 1985; Inglis, 1988; Macintosh, 1987; Report of the Special Committee, 1985). In the present study, inequities that may exist would be reflected in part in the relative influences exerted by
these coordinators. While the university presidents are not involved in day-to-day
management of the programs, they are in the most strategic position to ensure
that effective reporting structures, governing bodies, and policy are in place.
20
Also there has been a renewed call for the presidents
about the athletic program and to be able to speak from an
to represent the institution on major issues about athletics (
1982; Massengale & Merriman, 1985; Nyquist, 1985; Report of the Special
Committee, 1985; Taylor, 1986). This role for the presidents places them in a
critical position in the governance of the athletic programs.
External Influence Patterns
The notion of external influence on organizational patterns has been well developed in the literature (Hall, 1982; Katz & Kahn, 1966; Pfeffer & Salancik, 1978;
among others). As interuniversity athletic programs become more involved with
groups outside the university, the potential for outside groups to influence the
athletic program increases. To understand the governance patterns of athletic
programs, it is helpful to be able to identify the groups that are part of the athletic
programs' task environment and to assess the degree of influence they exert on
the programs.
High degrees of influence by external groups may be of concern to university personnel if there is a link between problems and criticisms associated with
athletics and the influence by the external groups. This concern appears to be
valid and is reflected in publications such as the weekly reports on athletics in
l?ze Chronicle of Higher Education (e.g., see "Crisis in Intercollegiate Athletics," 1990).
Recently, it appears that Canadian athletic programs have experienced
greater influence from external sources. These influences relate to funding and
governing associations. While many athletic programs still rely on operating
funds from on-campus sources, there has been a noted decline in these available
resources to meet the demands of the growing athletic programs, thus resulting
in additional resources being sought from off-campus sources (Campbell &
Slack, 1982; Haggerty & Paton, 1984; Jansen, 1986; Report of the Special Committee, 1985). When agencies external to the organization provide resources in
cash or product, the acquisition of these resources can, as Pfeffer and Salancik
(1978) point out, be problematic and uncertain. Complications may arise with
quality, quantity, or dependable service, and in general will the resources provided be what the university wants? Further, when an external group has the
control over resources, they have influence on that organization, and the resource
dependency that may result places strong control in the hands of the external
group (Pfeffer & Salahcik, 1978).
In addition to declining amounts of resources available, the recent growth
of men's and women's athletic programs in Canada and the U.S. has resulted in
a demand for greater operating funds. This growth is seen in the increases in
coaching and athlete preparation and recruitment, the move toward intensive
practices, and expanded league and exhibition schedules. Program growth has
also included greater commercialization of the athletic programs with television
rights, marketing and promotion activities, and sophisticated licensing programs.
The growth in these latter program areas has increased the interaction of the
athletic program with external groups, resulting in greater revenues generated
from these outside sources. When this resource dependency is created, it places
the constituent groups in a greater position to influence the athletic program
because of the resources they provide.
Interuniversity Athletics
21
Hall (1982) examined the complexity of interactionsthat organizations can
have with other organizations and termed this the organizational set. Applied to
athletics, this concept brings to light the interorganizational relationships in the
environment that may influence the governance of athletics. League structures
and alumni groups are good examples of governing bodies affecting athletics.
For example, eligibility rules agreed upon by a majority vote of league members
then control the activities pursued by all the member universities.
Hall was able to demonstrate the complexity of interaction from his research on social-control systems for problem youth. The frequency of interaction
did not necessarily mean highly formalized or cooperative relations. This is
evident in athletic conferences whereby agreement by member institutions facilitates competitive league and exhibition experiences, facilitates established rules
and operations, but does not eliminate the intensity of debate and differences of
opinion. Hall cites Stem's (1979) analyses of the NCAA as a good example of
interorganizational linkages. Stern (1979) wrote of the increased dependence
among the NCAA schools that was created by the enforcement decisions of the
1950s. These enforcement decisions formalized the authority of the NCAA over
the previously loose confederation of member institutions.
In summary, this paper examines the degree of influence exerted on the
athletic programs from sources internal and external to the programs. Influence
related to the governance of athletics from within the programs was assessed by
examining the degree of influence the athletic administrators perceived themselves to have in a variety of decision-making activities. The decision-making
activities represent a profile related to athletic programs that furthers our understanding of the operation of the programs.
Assessing external influence on the athletic programs included the identification of external groups as well as the perceptions held by the university presidents and athletic administrators as to the degree of influence exerted by these
agencies on the athletic programs. While the influence of external agencies on
organizations is fundamental to the open systems perspective, such influence
related to interuniversity athletic programs has not been examined. It was of
interest to verify whether the presidents and athletic administrators perceived the
groups in the same way. What an individual or group focuses on in the environment is a result of their perceptions. Different individuals with different experiences will give meaning to different aspects of the environment (Pfeffer &
Salancik, 1978). It is conceivable that different administrators, particularly at
different levels in the hierarchy, may have varying perceptions because of their
differing experiences with external groups.
Subjects
Method
This study examined the governance of interuniversityathletics in the province of
Ontario. Ontario hosts two of the six athletic conferences that form the Canadian
Interuniversity Athletic Union (CIAU). The data in this paper were obtained in
the spring of 1988via questionnairessent to athletic administrators and university
presidents. In addition, individuals listed in The Directory of Ontario University
Athletics 1987-88 as business managers, sport information directors, and promotions personnel responded to a section of the questionnaire in order to increase
the sample size required for a factor analysis.
External agencies that were identified as having the potential to influence
athletics included the Council of Ontario Universities (COU), the Ontario University Athletic Association (OUAA), and the Ontario Women's Interuniversity
Athletic Association (OWIAA) supporting men's and women's athletics, respectively, the Canadian Interuniversity Athletic Union (CIAU), and alumni and
corporate sponsors.
To assess the degree of internal influence, the athletic administrators were
surveyed. They were classified into one of three categories. In institutions having
one top athletic position, that individual was referred to as the athletic director.
There were 14 such positions in the Ontario universities. Other athletic administrative positions in these 14 programs included coordinators, chairs of men's and
women's sports, and assistants. In the three universities that did not have an
athletic director, the administrators were included in the coordinator's category
under the appropriate men's or women's program. This categorization is consistent with the OWIAA, OUAA, and CIAU league activities that generally require
the identification of individuals responsible for the men's and the women's
program.
Sixteen of the 17 university presidents responded, for a response rate of
94%;all were male. For the athletic administrators, all of the 14 athletic directors
responded; again, all were male. Twenty-four of the 26 coordinators responded,
for a 92 % return rate; there were 13 females in this category. And all 4 assistants
responded. These were exceptionally high response rates, and as such engender
greater confidence in the results of the study.
Questionnaires
The athletic administrators and university presidents indicated their perceptions
of the degree of influence exerted by the external agencies on the athletic programs. An open question allowed the respondents to identify additional external
agencies. A nine-point Likert response format was used with a view to enhancing
the reliability of the scale (Nunnally, 1978).
The degree of influence athletic administrators have in decision-making
activities concerning athletics was of interest in this study. Knowing the degrees
of influence perceived by the athletic administrators and differences that may
exist between groups of administrators will add to the description of athletic
governance patterns and may add to the discussion of some issues related to
athletics. To address this question, the athletic administrators indicated the degree of influence they felt they had over 22 items related to critical decisionmaking activities in athletics. Examples of the items include developing policy,
hiring staff, developing budget, approving budget, and generating revenues from
off-campus sources.
The items were derived from contributions in the literature, particularly
Sparks' (1983) dissertation, and supplemented by the investigator and the panel
of judges who reviewed the items for clarity and conceptual appropriateness. A
nine-point response format was used ranging from little influence to much influence. The questionnaires were field tested by a selected group of university
and college athletic and recreation administrators for clarity of wording, utility,
presentation, and time required to complete.
Interuniversity Athletics
23
Internal Influence Patterns
The treatment of the data included the following: Responses to the series of
questions on perceived influence in decision-making activities were submitted to
factor analysis (principal components analysis with varimax rotation and Kaiser
normalization). For this analysis the athletic administrators' responses and those
provided by the additional athletic personnel surveyed were used. The threefactor solution was deemed conceptually meaningful and appropriate, given the
content of the items under each factor, the pattern of their factor loadings, and
the high internal consistency estimates. The mean of the selected high loading
items in each factor represented the score for that factor.
Factor scores were computed and utilized in a repeated-measures ANOVA
with administrative level as the grouping level and the three factor scores (i.e.,
the decision types) as the dependent measures. When main effects or the interaction effects were significant, Scheff6 post hoc analyses were performed to identify the significant differences in the ranking of the decision types by the athletic
directors, men's coordinators, and women's coordinators. Since Scheffk procedures are very stringent (Ferguson, 1976), resulting in fewer significant results,
an alpha level o f . 10 was used for all post hoc analyses.
External Influence Patterns
Responses to the perceived influence of external agencies were analyzed with
repeated-measures ANOVA with the administrative level as the independent variable and the influence scores of the six external agencies as the repeated measures. Subsequent Scheffk post hoc analyses were carried out when main effects
or interaction effects were significant. The post hoc analyses indicated the significant differences in the degree of influence exerted by the external agencies as
perceived by the university presidents and the athletic administrators.
Results
Internal Influence in Decision-MakingActivities
The responses by the athletic administrators to the 22 questions relating to influence in decision-making activities were submitted to factor analysis (varimax
rotation with Kaiser normalization). Based on Cattell's scree criterion, three
factors were extracted which explained 78.5 % of the variance. The selected items
and their factor loadings are presented in Table 1. These items had a minimum
loading of .58 or higher on one factor and at least .10 lower loadings on the other
factors.
The 13 items in Factor 1 refer to decision-making activities that focused
on what Mintzberg (1979) described as administrative decisions and included
developing policy, selecting sports, establishing practice and competitive schedules, directing the institution's vote, taking action in areas of improper conduct
or eligibility and recruitment violations, developing the budget, and ensuring
equitable budget and facility allocation between female and male programs. Accordingly, this factor was labeled administrative decisions.
The six items in the second factor referred to staffing decisions (establish-
24
Table 1
Three-Factor Solution of Influence in Decision-Making Activities
Factors
Items
1
2
3
.47
.76
.08
.48
.72
.02
.57
.14
.33
.39
.69
.90
.72
.58
.ll
.12
.14
.39
.10
.33
.76
- .08
- .07
.86
14.26
64.80
1.84
8.40
1.18
5.40
Developing policy for governance of
interuniversityathletics
Ensuring academic status and progression of student athletes
Selecting sports to be supported
Establishing athletic competition
schedules
Establishing maximum number of athletic
practices
Directing institution'svotes on major
athletic issues in the OUAA or OWlAA
Directing institution's votes on major
athletic issues in the ClAU
Taking action on violations of recruitment
or eligibility
Taking action when athletes do not conduct themselves properly
Deciding on ratio of budgets for male and
female programs
Deciding on relative allocation of facilities
for male and female programs
Developingthe athletic budget
Deciding on number of sports to be
supported
Establishing new full-time coaching or
administrative positions in interuniversity athletics
Hiring full-time athletic coaches or
athletic administrators
Developing philosophy of interuniversity
athletic program
Establishing student athletic fees
Approving the athletic budget
Deciding on capital expenditures
Establishing policy on sponsorship
Generating revenues from off-campus
sources
Eigenvalues
Percent variance explained
25
Interuniversity Athletics
ing positions and recruiting full-time personnel to the positions), developing
philosophy for the athletic program, and financial decisions (establishing student
fees, approving the athletic budget, and deciding on capital expenditures). These
items reflect the strategic decisions described by Mintzberg (1979) thus the second factor was labeled strategic decisions. The third factor included two items
related to establishing policy on sponsorship and generating revenues from offcampus sources. Since these items refer to marketing of the athletic program,
this factor was labeled marketing decisions.
The subscale administrative decisions had an internal consistency (Cronbach's alpha) of .97. The subscale strategic decisions had an internal consistency
(Cronbach's alpha) of .92. Because the subscaleidentified as marketing decisions
contained only two items, it was not possible to compute Cronbach's alpha; the
correlation between these two items was .46 (pC.001). The intercorrelations
among the three subscales were administrative - strategic = .83 @<.001);
administrative - marketing = .14 @>.05); and strategic - marketing = .27
QK.05). Although the correlation between administrative and strategic decisions
was high, the two were kept as separate dimensions because the shared variance
amounted to 69 % ,leaving 31% unique or unexplained variance.
Rating of Internal Influence in Decision-MakingActivities
Table 2 presents the means and standard deviations for the administrators'
perceptions of their influence in decision-making types. The results of the
repeated-measures ANOVA for influence in decision-making types by athletic
Table 2
Administrators' Perceptionof Their Influence in Decision-Making Types
Athletic administrators
Influence in decision-makingtypes
Athletic
director
(n= 12)
Men's
coordinator
(n=11)
Administrative decisions
Strategic decisions
Marketing decisions
Scheffe critical
value(s) @<.lo)
Superscript nos. = within-group ranking of decision-makingactivities.
Standard deviations in parentheses.
Scheff6 critical value
I .@
<
0).
Women's
coordinator
(n=11)
in marketing (M=4.77) decisions. The Scheffk post hoc criti
between-group differences was calculated to be 1.09.
Examining the means from Table 2, it is evident that
decisions the athletic directors rated their influence ( M = 6 .
(M =5.1 8). The men and women coordinators did not differ significantly in the
ratings of influence in strategic decisions or marketing decisions.
Influence of External Agencies
Table 3 presents the means and standard deviations for the influence exerted by
external agencies as perceived by the university presidents and athletic adminisTable 3
Rating of Influence of External Agencies by Administrative Level
Administrative level
University presidents
(n= 15)
External agencies
COU influence
OUAA influence
OWlAA influence
ClAU influence
Alumni influence
Corporate sponsor
ScheffC!critical
value(s) @<.lo)
Superscript nos. = within-group ranking of external agencies.
Standard deviations in parentheses.
Athletic administrators
(n = 37)
Interuniversity Athletics
27
trators. The results of the repeated-measures ANOVA (influence of external
agencies by administrative level) are presented in Table 4. The effect of influence
of external agencies, F(5,250)=88.33, p<.001, was significant. Scheffi post
hoc analyses (alpha = .lo) indicated that the university presidents rated OWIAA
and OUAA influence as the greatest, followed by the grouping of COU and
CIAU influence, then alumni influence, with corporate sponsor influence as the
lowest.
The ratings of the degree of influence that external agencies exert by the
athletic administrators included four critical value groupings. The OUAA, the
OWIAA, and the CIAU were in the grouping reflecting the greatest amount of
influence, followed by the COU, then alumni and corporate sponsor influence.
Additional external agencies identified by the respondents (frequency of response
noted in parentheses) included Sport Canada (2) and provincial sport governing
bodies (I), with medium influence (as indicated by a 4-6 response on the 9-point
scale). Beyond these agencies, one respondent indicated military ethos as having
medium influence and one respondent indicated the local media having low influence (as indicated by a 1-3 response on the 9-point scale).
Table 4
Summary of Repeated-Measures ANOVA Influence of External Agencies
by Administrative Level
Effect
Between subjects
Administrative level
Error
Within subjects
Influence of external agencies
Administrative level
x influence of
external agencies
Error
MS
F
DF
SS
1
50
6.40
223.22
4.46
5
832.59
166.52
88.33'
5
250
16.13
471.27
3.23
1.89
1.71
6.40
1.43
Discussion
Internal Influence
Internal influence was assessed in this study by the degree of influence the athletic
administrators felt they had in a number of decision activities. Identification
of the decision-making activities in and of themselves reflect a broad scope of
responsibilities in which athletic administrators are involved. These areas of
responsibility form a profile that can be used to describe the decision-making
activities involved in athletic programs. Such profiles can be useful in assessing
the required competencies and related education levels as well as training and
experience preparation for the various administrative positions. This information
of the coordinators.
The marketing decision type (considered to be a decision type based on
function) includes decisions that involve a working relationship with individuals
and groups in the task environment, that is, those parts of the community that
are relevant to the athletic program in order for it to accomplish its goals. One can
speculate that as athletic programs continue to generate revenue from off-campus
sources, the marketing activities will increase, and so will the "openness" of
the program and the university to the community and corporate sectors.
While it must be remembered that a simple classification such as the decision types within an organization does not fully capture the complexity of the
situation, the classification does offer a suitable beginning for describing and
exploring some of the relationships involved in the organizational activities.
Writers such as Mintzberg (1979) and Hickson et al. (1986) support the study of
how the decision processes flow through the organization. Future study could
involve the identification of strategic decisions and examination of the process
of how decisions are made, involving such areas as who is recognizing a decision
to be made, who is diagnosing the situation, and who is responsible for the other
various phases or activities of the decision-making process.
When the influence in the various decision-making activitiesby the athletic
administrators was examined, it was evident that the athletic directors perceived
a moderate to high (M~6.42-7.38 on the $point scale) degree of influence.
The reported lower levels of influence by the coordinators' positions would be
expected, due to the position in the hierarchy. A significantly greater influence
was reported by the women's coordinators compared to the men's coordinators
in the administrative decisions.
Interuniversity Athletics
29
In the introduction it was noted that inequities, if any, may be evident in
the varying degrees of influence reported by the administrators. A definite gender
inequity exists in that there are no women assuming the athletic director's position. The athletic director's position, as supported by the results, involves the
highest level of influence in the ;strategicdecision type (significantly higher than
the men's and women's coordinators). Equitable representation of women to men
in this top position should provide the opportunity for women to be more involved
in these strategic decisions. It must be remembered as well that the men's and
women's coordinators did not differ significantlyin their reported levels of influence in strategic or marketing decisions, suggesting that if the athletic director
was selected from the coordinator's ranks, the influence in strategic or marketing
decision types would not be a barrier for the women's coordinators.
The results indicate a clear ranking of the decision types by the women's
coordinators. They perceive their influence in administrative decision types to
be significantly higher than in the strategic and marketing decisions. Also, the
women's coordinators perceived their influence in the administrative decision
types to be significantly greater than did the men's coordinators.
A first reaction may be to think these results support the stereotype that the
coordinators of the women's programs follow a tradition of being focused within
the program which involves more day-today tasks, with the men's coordinators
focusing on less routine activities. It appears from the results, however, that the
women's coordinators do consider themselves to have at least a moderate degree
of influence in various decision types in the governance of athletic programs, as
indicated by the scores of 4.77 or higher on the 9-point scale.
The patterns of influence perceived by the women's coordinators are consistent with theoretical expectationsthat the second level administrators (the coordinators) would be involved in the administrative decisions whereas strategic
decisions would involve the top level administrators (Daft & Steers, 1986; Mintzberg, 1979). The pattern of influence perceived by the men's coordinators fits
this theoretical perspective as well. The athletic directors' perceptions of their
influence in administrative decisions was higher than the other decision types.
Why the men's coordinators would be significantly less involved in administrative decisions compared to the women's coordinators needs some explanation. It may be that the coordinators of the men's programs delegate their
responsibilities and thus feelings of less influence result. Further study would be
necessary to probe the differences in the perceptions held by the two groups
regarding their influence in administrative decision types.
The slight increase in influence in marketing decision types reported by
the men's coordinators compared to the women's coordinators may be explained
by the progress made in the men's sports of football, basketball, and ice hockey
in procuring sport-specific sponsorship. Marketing is an externally focused activity that may be part of the coordinators' responsibilities (the results indicate
perceptions of moderate influence), but these marketing activities would need
coordination and would be appropriately handled by the athletic director. The
results support this perspective.
The noteworthy findings and others that should be addressed by athletic
administrators and senior administrators include (a) the lack of women in the
athletic director's position, thus signifying a diminished involvement in strategic
External Influence
External influence was assessed in this study by the degree of influence the
athletic administrators and university presidents felt that external agencies exerted on the athletic programs. The results indicated that the athletic administrations and university presidents view the external influence in similar ways; this
is somewhat surprising as the two groups of respondents work at different levels
in the organizational structure and have varying levels of involvement with
athletics.
Both groups of respondents rated the influence of the OUAA and OWIAA
leagues to be the highest (7 on the 9-point scale) of the external groups. This
high degree of influence can be explained by what Stern (1979) referred to as
the dependencies that are created. The leagues play a critical role in coordinating
many functions among the 17 member institutions. Both leagues offer a large
number of sports (22 for women and 22 for men in 1988-89) including structures
and rules for league and playoff competition. This frequent contact that is necessary for league business including team advancement to national championships
further strengthensthe influential role of the leagues.
The higher rating given by the athletic administrators compared to the
university presidents regarding CIAU influence can in part be explained by the
different levels in the organizational structure. The athletic administrators would
have more frequent contacts with the CIAU than the university presidents, thus
contributing to the different ratings. Overall, the lesser influence by the CIAU
compared to the OUAA and the OWIAA would be expected, given the infrequent
contact between institutions and the CIAU, due to (a) the CIAU coordinating a
limited number of national championships (8 for women and 10 for men in
1988-89) compared to the OUAA and OWIAA offerings, and (b) few teams1
individuals advancing to the national level of competition. These reasons contribute to the moderate level of influence reported by the respondents.
The influence of the Council of Ontario Universities (COU) was considered
to be moderate by the respondents. Given the recent developments within the
COU, including the recently formed Ontario Commission on Interuniversity Athletics (OCIA) which includes presidential involvement and activities such as
eligibility audits and attention to gender equality, the ratings seem consistent.
The results of this study reflect moderate to high influence by the four
external groups (OUM, OWIM, CIAU, COU). These external agencies do
have structural and programming connections and shared purposes with the governance of athletics. Alumni influence was rated low (3 on the 9-point scale) by
both groups. This low influence can be explained by the lack of strong alumni
affiliations and programming on Ontario campuses (particularly when compared
to some of the alumni activities that occur in the U.S.) and in part by the lack of
high caliber competition and entertainment that helps alumni involvement.
Alumni development in athletics may not be a high priority for Ontario universities.
-
Interuniversity Athletics
31
Corporate sponsor influence was also rated low (2 on the 9-point scale)
by the respondents. This low influence could be due to corporate sponsors not
contributing significant amounts of money, or it could be that the corporate
sponsors are contributing significantly but not exerting influence. Given the writings of Frey (1985), Grant (1979), and Pfeffer and Salancik (1978) which suggest
that the contribution of resources results in relinquished control by the organization and dependencies of the organization on the external group, it seems likely
that the contributions by the corporate sponsors are low and exert little influence
on the athletic programs.
These results suggest little control by alumni and corporate sponsors. If
athletic programs continue to grow in terms of the quality of athletic performance
and in marketing activities, one can anticipate that the potential influence from
outside agencies will increase. The influence of external groups such as governing bodies should be assessed periodically, including the identification and assessment from other agencies not involved in this study.
Summary and Conclusions
Interuniversity athletic programs, like other organizations, are influenced by
internal and external forces. Internal to the athletic program, the three decision
types that were derived were useful in examining differences among the athletic
administrators. The significant differencesreported regarding the women's coordinators (for example, the women's coordinators perceived themselves as having
greater influence in administrative decisions compared to the coordinators of the
men's programs) were discussed relative to gender and hierarchical positions.
The results and discussion in areas related to the profile of responsibilities of
athletic administrators, the absence of women in the top athletic director's position, and the different ways in which the men's and women's coordinators perceive their influence should be of importance to senior university administrators.
The results of this study indicated moderate to high influence by four external groups. These groups, although external, were seen as having programming
and structural links to the athletic programs. While at present the influence by
the alumni and corporate sponsors was deemed low, there are conditions under
which their influence could change that would affect the governance of the athletic programs. The more we understand the influence in and around the athletic
programs, the better the athletic administrators and other university personnel
will be prepared to guide the programs in the desired directions.
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Acknowledgments
The author would like to acknowledge the Arts Research Board, McMaster University, for providing funds for the research on which this paper was based. The author is
also grateful to Dr. P. Chelladurai for his comments on this paper.