| This dissertation examines Foucault's (1977) concept of normalization as applies to the emotions of female elite amateur rowers. In addition, investigations are made as to how a specifically developed technology of emotion, an addition to Shogan's (1990) technologies of gender, race, ability, and sexuality, functions through normalization to coerce athletes to continue to train when they are unhealthy.; In-depth interviews were conducted with 11 retired elite amateur female rowers who suffered health problems when they were training for rowing yet who continued training despite these health problems. Analysis of the data identifies the technology of emotion and the normalization of emotion as influential factors in the rowers' decisions to continue training after they developed injuries and eating disorders and as their health continued to deteriorate. All the rowers in this study retired from rowing due to complications stemming from injuries and related health issues that went unacknowledged.; Interpretation of the data shows evidence that all the rowers suppressed their emotions so as not to appear mentally weak. The rowers needed to express their concerns about training volumes and health issues in order to minimize the deleterious effect that continued training eventually had on their health. The coaches influenced the rowers' behaviours and needed to encourage their athletes to express themselves. It was evident that the rowers and coaches were fixated on finishing first, which persuaded both parties to ignore issues identified in this thesis. This study concludes with suggestions for further research directions, recommendations for practice, and a call for a critical look at practical alternatives to the "winning at all cost" philosophy so prevalent in high performance sport today.; Key words: normalization, technologies, power, emotion, identity, self confidence, coaching, sport psychology, psychological skills training, mental training, mindful-acceptance-commitment theory (MAC), emotional suppression, emotional control, emotional processing, health problems, eating disorders, female athlete triad, depression, burnout, overtraining, injuries, amateur athletes, female athletes, elite sport, rowing. |
