New Article on Ritualistic Approaches to Gender Equity

A new article from our Australian Research Council-funded Discovery Project on gender inclusion in Australian sport has been published ahead of print. Led by Jude Blacklock, the article is online and free to access from Sport Management Review.

When Plans Become Performative: Gender Equity and Regulatory Ritualism as a Sport Governance Challenge

Authors: Jude Blacklock, Kathryn Henne, Tate Morgan, and Kate Starre

Abstract: Despite significant growth in women’s sport participation in Australia, commensurate gains have not been made in executive leadership or elite coaching roles. Even with targeted gender equity efforts, men continue to dominate these roles. The purpose of this study is to understand how gender equity plans and targets can become performative in ways that undermine the realization of the goals articulated in those plans. Drawing on a reflexive thematic analysis of qualitative data collected through semi-structured interviews conducted in 2024–2025 (N = 39), these findings illuminate empirical insights into performative regulatory behavior. They highlight forms of regulatory ritualism, a concept that governance scholars use to explain actions that have the appearance of compliance yet fail to deliver meaningfully on regulatory aims. Specifically, gender equity plans represent documentation ritualism while gender rules and targets for women in leadership exemplify rule ritualism. These ritualistic behaviors convey organizations’ stated objectives of gender equity without specific actions or mechanisms to evaluate and promote targeted outcomes, thus hindering efforts to achieve greater gender diversity. Guided by theoretical insights on gendered organizations and regulatory governance, our analysis highlights how ritualism not only fails to counteract entrenched gendered hierarchies but also facilitates forms of resistance to organizational change. After reflecting on the dynamics captured in the study, we outline how sport organizations can begin to identify and assess whether and how they are engaging in forms of regulatory ritualism. We conclude by discussing the value of insights from regulatory governance for studies of sport organizations and their management.