Physical Education and Figurational Sociology: An Appreciation of the Work of Eric Dunning

Ironically, given that the sociological study of sport has its roots in academic physical education, Dunning has very little to say explicitly about the subject. Nevertheless, his work is significant for physical education in at least two ways. Firstly, at a general level, it draws our attention to the need for a more properly sociological perspective on an area – physical education and sport in schools generally – which is shot through with ideology and pseudo-sociology. Secondly, Dunning's commentaries on sport have particular resonance for a subject which many still refer to as ‘sport in schools’. This essay explores these two themes by commenting upon the ways in which I have found the work of Eric Dunning, and Eliasian sociology in general, to be of direct relevance to the sociology of physical education.