Katie Sveinson
Associate Professor, Associate Department Chair, & Charles J. Dockendorff Endowed Faculty Fellow
My research explores how gender shapes sport fan experiences and influences the marketing of sport consumer products. Using qualitative research designs, I have examined how women perceive sport fan apparel, how motherhood intersects with sport fandom, and the successes and failures of marketing to women and girls as sport fans. This body of work has revealed that many sport organizations overlook the role of gender in fan experiences and struggle to engage effectively with women and girls. I apply a range of theories, including discourse theory, third-wave feminist theory, maternal geographies, and semiotic theory. In particular, my interest in critical discourse analysis (CDA) places a focus on deconstructing gendered signs, symbols, and language in sport marketing practices.
Education
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Honors / Awards
Selected Publications
Sveinson, K., & Wagner, U. (2024). Reviewing and problematizing methods and analytical strategies of discourse analysis in sport, exercise, and physical education studies. International Review for the Sociology, 59(2), 298-317. https://doi.org/10.1177/10126902231200369
Sveinson, K., & Toffoletti, K. (2023). What makes sport spectating family friendly? A phenomenological study of mothers’ sport fan game-day experiences. Journal of Sport Management, 37(2), 102-115. https://doi.org/10.1123/jsm.2021-0355
Sveinson, K., & Allison, R. (2022). “Something seriously wrong with US Soccer”: A critical discourse analysis of consumers’ Twitter responses to U.S. Soccer’s girls’ apparel promotion. Journal of Sport Management, 36(5), 446-458. https://doi.org/10.1123/jsm.2021-0127
Sveinson, K., Hoeber, L. & Toffoletti, K. (2019). “If people are wearing pink stuff they’re probably not real fans”: Exploring women’s perceptions of sport fan clothing. Sport Management Review, 22(5), 736-747. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.smr.2018.12.003