The significance of the body as a project: for an understanding of physical activity among women with a spinal cord injury

The aim of this study is to explore the significance of the body as a project for an understanding of physical activity among women with a spinal cord injury (SCI). The majority of sociological research has treated the above concepts in isolation. In order to explore this area the work of sociologist Erving Goffman (1963) has therefore been used to construct a theoretical framework. Throughout this study it is assumed that the body occupies a dual location as the property of the embodied individual, as well as the property of society where its meaning is constructed. Particular attention is given to the construction of the social body (focusing upon the rules and expectations surrounding its construction), in order to reveal the important concepts of femininity and disability. It will emerge throughout this exploration, how these Socially constructed concepts may weave a confusing web for a SCI woman who wishes to work at her body project with the use of physical activity.