Should College Athletes be Paid - Research Proposal Example

College Athletics: Should College Athletes be paid? Name Course Tutor Date Contents Introduction 3 Aims and Objectives of the Study 4 A Brief Overview of the Relevant Literature in this Field 4 Methodology 8 Participants 8 Materials 8 Ethical Issues 9 Proposed Contributions 9 Project timeline 10 Month One 10 Month Two 10 Month Three 10 References 11 Introduction Over time, college athletics have existed. With nearly every school, in the US, and internationally, participating in athletics, however, level, there are various questions which many research activities have not yet answered. These questions include whether college athletes are currently being paid for their participation in sporting activities. If they are paid, then there should be a clear analysis of whether it is right to pay these athletes. Various students willingly participate in athletes for their schools in order to keep them busy. Many schools have developed through sporting activities that are the handwork of the students. Right from elementary school, the students at no pay carry out various sport activities. College athletics are common in all countries in the world. This research brings forward the view that college athletes are not compensated because they belong to a specific college and that the college sponsors then in various other ways. Out of love of a school, some athletes may just choose to participate in order to fulfill their roles as students and members of the specific college. The current study investigates, through interviews and questionnaires, the view of various college athletes. and in particular, their views about whether or not they should be paid as athletes. The target populations for the research will be the college athletes as well as the college management. These would be very vital in giving accurate and relevant data. This is because they are the immediate participants in college athletes, which is the major area of concern as far as the research is concerned. The study will focus on college athletics in the United States through a descriptive study. Being a research that addresses key questions in college athletics, the main research question to be addressed is whether college athletes should be paid for their participation in college athletics. This matter is viewed in terms of the outcomes of their participation in various college sports in the name of their colleges. Other than the questioned mentioned above, the research will also seek to address the difference between the United States and the rest of the world with reference to college athletics. The way college athletics are organized will also be addressed in detail so that there can be a basis of thought in terms of the operation within the colleges and their participation. Aims and Objectives of the Study The current study aims at bringing forward the various perspectives that exist with regard to college athletics. However, the ultimate aims of the research include: 1. To find out if college athletes get paid after participating in the name of their respective colleges. 2. To outline the differences between college athletics in the United States and other countries in the world 3. To explore the various ways in which college athletics are organized. The study will be very useful to future research in terms of availing information that regards college athletics as well as the organizational issues that are involved. The issue of compensation is very sensitive and thus there will be a basis of though by the end of this research. A Brief Overview of the Relevant Literature in this Field Various colleges have been into different treaties that provide revenues that are directly channeled to them, in many cases, their exceptional performance in various matches that are played and are sponsored. This topic explores the main research question that probes into the extent to which college students are exploited and whether they should be paid for their participation in college athletics and other sporting activities. Ultimately, the proposed study investigates whether the college athlete should be as an employee who has been denied pay for a long period or just be as a normal student. This research explores/proposes the view that college athletes are never compensated well because they are associated with their own institutions. Out of love of a school, some athletes may just choose to participate in order to fulfill their roles as students and members of the specific college. The question being addressed is whether college athletes should be paid because of their participation in college athletics as compensation or reimbursement (Sack, 2008). In nearly all surveys in the area of college athletics, corruption has been highlighted (Kothari, 2005). According to Webster’s dictionary, ‘corruption’ refers to the deficiency of uprightness and the stimulation of wrong because of the exit from original or something that is correct (Sack & Allen, 2008). It can therefore be equated to bribery. College athletes that are referred to in this essay are students of various colleges that represent their colleges in various sports activities. In addition, the pay referred to is the actual amounts that the athletes are given as stipends to their efforts and sacrifice. According to the current survey into the existing research literature, very little inquiry has been conducted in this area of study. This is because of the narrowness of the area that is usually involved in research. However, the little research that has been carried out reveals that there are over a million student athletes all over the world (Fink & Strode, 2009). The research outcomes reveal that some college athletes in the United States get scholarships because of excellent performance in the various ways they participate to make the reputation of their colleges a better one (Fink, et al., 2009). However, the National Collegiate Athletic Association (2000) does not allow institutions to reward student athletes. This is because the student athlete participates voluntarily in sorts and thus there is no need to make it a commercial venture. In this regard, many colleges have taken advantage of student athletes and have used them to make the college’s reputation a better one? In this regard, the college athletes are used as instruments that make a good name for the college. Many colleges have been in various ventures of attracting students who are gifted in various sporting activities including athletics. According to Mitchell (1990), colleges have come up with various marketing strategies that are geared towards attracting students in academic grounds but at the same time, those who have skills in sports usually have added advantages regardless of their academic performance. Some of these advantages include consideration during enrollment among others. According to…..in many colleges in the United States, athletes only get daily allowances as a sign of motivation. This makes them feel like participating again due to the little appreciation (Mitchell, 1990). They do so because their aim of joining college was purely academic and the sporting activities are just co-curricular activities, just like any other. According to a research study conducted by Strode and Fink (2009), college athletics have been driven by motivation that seeks to give a driving force or impetus for the athletes to keep performing. According to the National Collegiate Athletics Association, the student athlete is not an employee. This statement was made in the Washington law review (2009). However, the Labor Relations Act states that an employee should meet the common law test as well as statutory test. According to Professor Robert A. McCormick, the relationship between a college student and the college is only academic if the student is not paid. If the student is paid, then there should be the application of taxation and other obligations of any employee (McCormick & McCormick, 2006). The NCAA has termed the athletes as student athletes who are learning how to engage in college athletics and not just mere athletes (Ewing, 1995). In this research, Professor Robert A. McCormick explored the various ways the NCAA has been handling college students and the message they pass with regard to college athletes. This research faced various challenges including the extent to which the information given by NCAA is correct. This research aimed at answering the question of whether college athletes are employees or mere athletes. The literature that exists does not specify whether these athletes are paid, and if they are paid, what the rates are. This therefore has been the main driving force of the current study. These studies have not been able to find out if the college athletes are forced into participation or they play at will. If it was at will, then they should not demand payment of any form (Astin, 1982). This has not been addressed in the literature reviewed. If these athletes are to be paid, then it will be termed as an employment where both parties must have equal bargaining power. The amount of revenue generated by these athletes is far so much and thus a little stipend would be necessary, but according to the law, they are not supposed to be treated as employed. Sponsors have been the key in financing college athletics. However, the athletes have not been beneficiaries of these funds. College athletes have been denied the opportunity to taste their efforts as this is the main point of concern in many surveys (Taha, 2011). Methodology The research can be said to be a mixed methods approach in which many methods of data collection will be employed. This means that various entities will be fully defined in order to provide a basis of the argument that was presented earlier. In this particular survey, interviews, and questionnaires will be used to collect data for the research. However, primary and secondary data will be used. Various publications and periodical information will be used to provide evidence on existing cadenzas within the study area. Participants The research will involve various subjects that will provide the basic information to be used. The participants will include heads of institutions, officials from the National Collegiate Athletic Association and several college athletes. Basically, the research will include thirty five (35) participants. Among them will be 10 heads of colleges, 5 officials from the National Collegiate Athletic Association and 20 college athletes. Materials The research, being descriptive in nature will employ various data collection materials and tools. These tools include questionnaires and interviews. The questionnaires will be designed in a manner that they will address the issues raised in the research and that the information provided will be useful in addressing the research questions. The questionnaires will be friendly and will mostly have close-ended questions. Interviews will be scheduled in various places. The college heads and principals will be interviewed at their convenience and therefore the research will be conducted in their offices. The interviews will also be based on the research questions and thus by the end of the research, information for analysis will be readily available. Upon completion of data collection, the data will be analyzed using Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS). Ethical Issues Social research consists of three main components: theory, data collection and the design for gathering data. Therefore, ethical implications have to be considered on actions required within these specific parameters (Copeland, 2009). Contact will be made to the various colleges and the National Collegiate Athletics Association to explain the reasons and nature of research to obtain authorization to proceed. Participation will be consensual and volunteers will be able to pick their preferred option, interview, or questionnaire. For the purposes of this survey, staff that work in the immediate colleges will be precluded to ensure there is no localized conflict of interest. This will allow the athletes to respond innocently and accurately. Permission is to be asked to obtain statistical findings on previous research from one of the officials of the National Collegiate Athletics Association. The research will be sensitive to data protection issues and no personal details of any kind will be included in the research. Proposed Contributions College athletes should be well compensated due to the various roles they play in ensuring the school maintains a good name and has a well reputed team of athletes. However, it is necessary to compensate the athletes with regard to the efforts they put towards maintaining the standards of the school in terms of athletics. Therefore, they should be compensated well by being paid. The outcome of this research will be a clear basis of thought when referring to college athletics and their operations. The research will clear all possible doubt with regard to the basis of participation of college athletes. The research will also contribute to existing hypotheses about college athletics. Project timeline The current research will be conducted over a three-month period in which a stepwise approach will be used. Month One Issue requests for permission to conduct interviews with members of staff from various establishments within the NCAA. Letters will be sent requesting permission to obtain archived data and statistics from NCAA. Month Two Obtain statistical data from the NCAA after all relevant; permissions have been granted, and commence documentary analysis of these figures. Conduct interviews with relevant persons and obtain content statements. Month Three Evaluate primary and secondary data and set out this info in the form of a chi-squared test. This means that the data will be ready for analysis. Various tools of data analysis will be used in order to present the most accurate findings. References Astin, A. (1982). Minorities in American Higher Education. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass. Creswel, J. (1998). Qualitative inquiry and research design: Choosing among five traditions. Thousand Oaks: SAGE. Dawson, C. (2002). Practical Research Methods. New Delhi: Publishers’ Distributors. Ewing, B. (1995). High School Athletics and the Wages of Black Males. Review of Black Political Economy, 24 , 65-78. Fink, J., & Strode, J. (2009). Using motivational theory to develop a donor profile scale for intercollegiate athletics.,. ]oumal for the Study of Sports and Athletes in Education , 335-354. Kothari, C. (2005). Research methodology: Methods & techniques. New Delhi: Age International (P) Ltd. . Kumar, R. (2005 ). Research Methodology-A Step-by-Step Guide for Beginners. Singapore: Pearson Education. McCormick, R. A., & McCormick, A. C. (2006). The Myth of the Student Athlete: The College Athlete as an Employee. Washington Law Review Association , 72-92. Peterman, D., & Matz, M. (2000). Athletics and student development in the community college. Community Coliege humal of Research and Practice , 767-769. Sack, & Allen. (2008). Counterfeit Amateurs: An Athletes Journey Through the Sixties to the Age of Academic Capitalism. University Park, PA: Penn State University Press. Sack, A. (2008, March 7). Should college athletes be paid? Go all amateur, or give them pro benefits. The Christian Science Monitor , pp. 1-2. Taha, A. E. (2011). Are College Athletes Economically Exploited? . Wake Forest Journal Of Law & Policy 2 , 101-116. Read More

The issue of compensation is very sensitive and thus there will be a basis of though by the end of this research. A Brief Overview of the Relevant Literature in this Field Various colleges have been into different treaties that provide revenues that are directly channeled to them, in many cases, their exceptional performance in various matches that are played and are sponsored. This topic explores the main research question that probes into the extent to which college students are exploited and whether they should be paid for their participation in college athletics and other sporting activities.

Ultimately, the proposed study investigates whether the college athlete should be as an employee who has been denied pay for a long period or just be as a normal student. This research explores/proposes the view that college athletes are never compensated well because they are associated with their own institutions. Out of love of a school, some athletes may just choose to participate in order to fulfill their roles as students and members of the specific college. The question being addressed is whether college athletes should be paid because of their participation in college athletics as compensation or reimbursement (Sack, 2008).

In nearly all surveys in the area of college athletics, corruption has been highlighted (Kothari, 2005). According to Webster’s dictionary, ‘corruption’ refers to the deficiency of uprightness and the stimulation of wrong because of the exit from original or something that is correct (Sack & Allen, 2008). It can therefore be equated to bribery. College athletes that are referred to in this essay are students of various colleges that represent their colleges in various sports activities.

In addition, the pay referred to is the actual amounts that the athletes are given as stipends to their efforts and sacrifice. According to the current survey into the existing research literature, very little inquiry has been conducted in this area of study. This is because of the narrowness of the area that is usually involved in research. However, the little research that has been carried out reveals that there are over a million student athletes all over the world (Fink & Strode, 2009).

The research outcomes reveal that some college athletes in the United States get scholarships because of excellent performance in the various ways they participate to make the reputation of their colleges a better one (Fink, et al., 2009). However, the National Collegiate Athletic Association (2000) does not allow institutions to reward student athletes. This is because the student athlete participates voluntarily in sorts and thus there is no need to make it a commercial venture. In this regard, many colleges have taken advantage of student athletes and have used them to make the college’s reputation a better one?

In this regard, the college athletes are used as instruments that make a good name for the college. Many colleges have been in various ventures of attracting students who are gifted in various sporting activities including athletics. According to Mitchell (1990), colleges have come up with various marketing strategies that are geared towards attracting students in academic grounds but at the same time, those who have skills in sports usually have added advantages regardless of their academic performance.

Some of these advantages include consideration during enrollment among others. According to…..in many colleges in the United States, athletes only get daily allowances as a sign of motivation. This makes them feel like participating again due to the little appreciation (Mitchell, 1990). They do so because their aim of joining college was purely academic and the sporting activities are just co-curricular activities, just like any other. According to a research study conducted by Strode and Fink (2009), college athletics have been driven by motivation that seeks to give a driving force or impetus for the athletes to keep performing.

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