Routledge Handbook of Qualitative Research in Sport and Exercise

The last two decades have witnessed a proliferation of qualitative research in sport and exercise. The Routledge Handbook of Qualitative Research in Sport and Exercise is the first book to offer an in-depth survey of established and emerging qualitative methods, from conceptual first principles to practice and process.

Written and edited by a team of world-leading researchers, and some of the best emerging talents, the book introduces a range of research traditions within which qualitative researchers work. It explores the different methods used to collect and analyse data, offering rationales for why each method might be chosen and guidance on how to employ each technique successfully. It also introduces important contemporary debates and goes further than any other book in exploring new methods, concepts, and future directions, such as sensory research, digital research, visual methods and how qualitative research can generate impact.

Cutting-edge, timely and comprehensive, the Routledge Handbook of Qualitative Research in Sport and Exercise is an essential reference for any student or scholar using qualitative methods in sport and exercise-related research.

Brett Smith, PhD, is Professor of Physical Activity and Health in the School of Sport, Exercise and Rehabilitation Sciences at the University of Birmingham, UK. His research focuses on disability, sport and physical activity. He is also interested in qualitative inquiry and its possibilities for social change. Brett is Associate Editor of Psychology of Sport and Exercise and serves actively on seven editorial boards, including the Sociology of Sport Journal and Sport, Exercise and Performance Psychology. He is co-author of Qualitative Research in Sport, Exercise and Health: From Process to Product. He is also co-editor of the Routledge book series on Qualitative Research in Sport and Physical Activity. Brett is the founder and former Editor-in-Chief of the international journal Qualitative Research in Sport, Exercise and Health.

Andrew C. Sparkes, PhD and professor, is currently with the Institute for Sport, Physical Activity and Leisure, at Leeds Beckett University, UK. His research interests are inspired by a continuing fascination with the ways that people inhabit and experience their bodies differently over time, and in a variety of contexts. To explore such experiences he draws on life history, ethnography, auto-ethnography and narrative approaches. Andrew is co-author of Qualitative Research in Sport, Exercise and Health: From Process to Product, and co-editor of Advances in Biographical Methods: Creative Applications, both published by Routledge.