Theoretical and methodological substantiation of the problem of harm to sports referees through the prism of the sociological tradition

Abstract

The article explores the potential application of theoretical and applied research by P. Bourdieu, N. Elias, E. Dunning, R. Dahrendorf, J. Turner, R. Collins, and I. Goffman as a theoretical and methodological basis for examining the problem of harm to sports referees. The rationale for using these scholars' conceptual developments is based on their research experience in the sociology of sport, specifically their understanding of the characteristics of the sporting field and the interactions between participants within it. Furthermore, the authors' theoretical work incorporates the necessary scientific postulates that enable understanding the aggressive environment of competitive activity. The theoretical and methodological foundation for studying harm to sports referees in the context of contemporary Russian sport is primarily informed by R. Collins's theory of violence. This theory, being oriented towards situational determinants, the conflict potential of sports activities, the differentiation of competitive processes and actors of violent interaction, the specificity of the sport, as well as the localization of damage and the specificity of the trajectories of violent impact, provides the necessary research tool for the analysis of the social phenomenon under study. The harm caused to sports referees within and outside their professional field of activity is a consequence of complex processes caused by the nature of conflict clashes between all subjects of competition.