Exposing gendered microaggressions: the experiences of female physiotherapists working in men's professional sport.

OBJECTIVES

The women's professional sports industry is experiencing rapid growth, and participation rates are higher than ever. This is encouraging more women to explore work opportunities in the industry. However, the sport workforce has a long-established hegemonic masculinity and many accepted behaviors and actions in male sport teams can be viewed as misogynistic. Despite initiatives to encourage more diversity, these behaviors can make it difficult for women to enter and challenging to remain working in men's professional sport.

METHODS

To explore the lived experience of women working in men's professional rugby union, a qualitative phenomenological research design was employed, using semi structured interviews, with 12 female physiotherapists. The interviews focused on the challenges they faced, and strategies used for navigating traditional masculinities and stereotypes.

RESULTS

Thematic analysis identified four higher-order themes (1. Establishing professional identity in a male-dominated environment, 2. Navigating sexual objectification, 3. Career progression and organizational barriers, and 4. Work-life balance and personal costs) that depicted their experiences.

DISCUSSION: Notwithstanding legislative changes to make sport more inclusive, these physiotherapists described persistent inequalities, microaggressions and exclusions. The findings highlight the need for structural and cultural reform in sport organizations to remove gender biases, and create professional environments where women's expertise is recognized, respected, and equitably supported.