Our research and expertise
The Tucker Center advances research on girls and women in sport and physical activity. See our main focus areas below.
For students
Review our research to see if you would like to join the Tucker Team.
For members of the media
To request an interview with one of the Tucker Center members, please contact Rachel Cain.
Recent publications
Visit EXPERTS@MINNESOTA for a list of recent publications by the Tucker Center's director.
Research areas
This area examines portayals and narratives around sportswomen and women's sport. The research focuses on media production practices, representation patterns, storytelling, and the impact of portrayals on girls and women. Recent work for this area is below:
"Getting Noticed, Respected, and Supported": Mediated (In)visibilities of Women's American Football in the United States
The WFA joined the broader ‘momentum’ of women's sport in the United States through the league's social media platforms and their sponsors. These groups aligned their messages with cultural narratives around women's sport to invoke gender equity in promoting women's American football.
"It's Always Something": The Scrutiny of Female Sportscasters' Professional Clothing
As women working in sports media encounter gender-related barriers, female sportscasters in particular are routinely scrutinized for their physical appearance by fans, athletes, and bosses. This research examined women sportscasters’ conversations about clothing-related expectations, as well as how women-led collectives deconstruct sexist attitudes and disrupt gender norms related to professional attire.
This research area aims to help increase the percentage of women in coaching, provide an institutional accountability mechanism, create awareness, and foster a national dialogue on this issue.
In collaboration of WeCOACH, the Tucker Center produces an annual report card. This report card gives institutions, conferences, and sports an A-F grade based on the percentage of women head coaches of women's teams.
View recent Women in College Coaching Report Cards below:
- 2024 - Trends & Opportunities: Driving Change for Women Sport Coaches [PDF]
- 2023-2024 - Women in College Coaching Report Card, NCAA Division-1 Institutions [PDF]
- 2022-2023 - A New Era: The Women in College Coaching Report Card, Year 11: Select Seven NCAA Division-1 Institutions [PDF]
- 2022-2023 - Head Coaches of Women's Collegiate Teams in the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference [PDF]
- 2021-2022 - Head Coaches of Women's Collegiate Teams: A Comprehensive Report on NCAA Division-1 Institutions [PDF]
- 2020-2021 - Head Coaches of Women's Collegiate Teams: A Comprehensive Report on NCAA Division-1 Institutions [PDF]
- 2020-2021 - Head Coaches of Women's Collegiate Teams in the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference [PDF]
Institutional grade earned by percentage of women head coaches of women's teams. Figure from 2023-2024's Women in College Coaching Report Card.
This research area examines how physical activity impacts girls and women.
To celebrate the Tucker Center's 25th anniversary, we released the 2018 Tucker Center Research Report: Developing Physically Active Girls: An Evidence-based Multidisciplinary Approach. This report connects research-based knowledge to strategies and practices that help ensure girls have ample opportunity to engage in sport and physical activity. The overarching focus of the report examines two essential questions:
- What does the research tell us about critical factors (e.g., societal, environmental, interpersonal, intrapersonal) that influence adolescent girls' physical activity in the United States?
- What are the outcomes (e.g., psychological, physical, social, emotional, moral) that participation in sports and physical activity have on adolescent girls?
This research area examines changes in the women's sports industry. This research connects ownership, marketing (e.g. branding, sponsorship, merchandising), digital technologies, strategic communication, community partnerships, athlete voices, and fan engagement. Recent work for this area is below: