Assessing the sociology of sport: On ethnicity and nationalism in Taiwanese baseball

On the 50th anniversary of the ISSA and IRSS, one of the most influential scholars from Taiwan, Dong Jhy Hwang, considers the development of sociology of sport in Taiwan, the unique challenges in this context, and future issues brought by globalization as illustrated in the dynamics between ethnic and national identities in Taiwanese baseball. The trajectory of the field in Taiwan is traced to Japanese and American influences and to the early work of Jin-Song Chiu, Chungji Wang, and others; more recent development was characterized by resistance to outside influences. Three major challenges to sociology of sport are considered, originating from: (1) the influence of the natural and biological sciences, (2) the tenuous relationship with mainstream sociology, and (3) the need to grow a unique Taiwanese sociology of sport that is better engaged with mainstream sociology. These challenges have been embraced by the establishment of the Taiwan Society of Sport Sociology and its English language journal East Asian Sport Thoughts. Future issues at the nexus of nationalism, ethnic identities and inclusion, and globalization are considered in the case of the development of Taiwanese baseball; the increased consideration given to indigenous narratives and subjective positions of aboriginal ethnic groups suggests that the sociology of sport in Taiwan is increasingly using critical perspectives cognizant of the forces of globalization and the complexities of identities.