Epistemic authority and the pedagogical conditions of qualitative learning in youth sport contexts
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 22422005 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Jeremy Torrent (0000-0003-3545-5788, HES-SO University of Applied Sciences and Arts Western Switzerland, corresponding author) |
| Year | 2026 |
| Pages | 1-16 |
| Publication date | 2026-06-23 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Sport Education and Society (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 1357-3322 • E-ISSN: 1470-1243 |
| Publisher | Informa UK Limited (PUBLISHER • GB) |
| DOI | 10.1080/13573322.2026.2681808 |
| OpenAlex | W7165692929 |
| Language | EN |
| References cited | 66 |
Learning has become a central organising principle across contemporary sport and health and physical education (HPE) contexts, where pedagogical reforms emphasise learner agency and reflection. Yet qualitative research reveals a persistent paradox: although learning-centred pedagogies are promoted, the epistemic conditions enabling meaningful participation remain tightly regulated within hierarchical environments. This article argues that this paradox reflects how pedagogical authority is structurally organised rather than a failure of implementation. Drawing on sociocultural learning theory and the sociology of knowledge, and employing a purposive conceptual synthesis approach, we introduce epistemic authority – the socially negotiated legitimacy to interpret and contribute to knowledge – as an analytic lens for examining learning. We propose a framework comprising five dimensions of epistemic possibility and argue that qualitative learning fails not because learners remain silent, but because pedagogical ecologies rarely render speaking epistemically legitimate and safe.
Physical education · Power structure · Qualitative research · Semi-structured interview · Teaching method · Doping in Sports · Physical Education and Pedagogy · Qualitative Research Methods and Ethics
The Reflective Practitioner
Physical Education Futures
Qualitative Research Methods in Sport, Exercise and Health
Knowledge Building
Guiding Principles for Fostering Productive Disciplinary Engagement
Scaffolding in Teacher–Student Interaction
Developing rigor in qualitative research
Discipline and Punish
Enacting power, solidarity and masculinity in sport
Outline of a Theory of Practice
University sport retirement and athlete mental health
What works in coach learning, how, and for whom? A grounded process of soccer coaches’ professional learning
Feeling good, sensory engagements, and time out
Reflecting on reflexive thematic analysis
The Logic of Practice
‘(Dis)empowered by what we see … ’
Disqualified and Discarded
Zone of Proximal Development, Scaffolding and Teaching Practice
Visual tools as mediational means
Activity theory, complexity and sports coaching
Why ‘the best way of learning to coach the game is playing the game’
It’s an experiential thing’
Sports’ disciplinary legacy and the challenge of ‘coaching differently’
On the wisdom of not- knowing
Athletes as “Sites of Normative Intersectionality”
Young athletes and their coaches
Using thematic analysis in psychology
(Re)conceptualizing movement behavior in sport as a problem-solving activity
Interactionist Qualitative Research as a Semiotic Mediation Activity
Qualitative Quality
| Citation velocity | historical |
|---|---|
| Highly cited | No |