The claimed benefits of sport events on sport participation rely on an asserted “trickle-down effect”. There is a lack of empirical evidence that events can trigger increased physical activity and sport participation, and research has focused on large-scale events. This paper compares two previously hosted medium-sized sport events, and examines the degree to which local (sport) organizations and local organizing committees (LOC) endeavoured to leverage each sport event for sport participation purposes. Document analysis and semi-structured interviews revealed overarching assumptions that the events in and of themselves were sufficient to engender participation outcomes. Strategies for leveraging were absent, and only a few tactics were identified. Leverage could come from augmented exposure via amplified media, celebrations, further demonstrations of the sport, and teaching about the sport. A key constraint is identifying who should be responsible for implementing and executing the leveraging strategy and tactics. The findings inform various stakeholders – event organizers, sport organizations, and local communities, to find ways to use events as a lever for sport participation by making it a part of their overall marketing efforts.
This research examines the relationship between sport, dance events and tourism. Audience members at a dancesport event in Melbourne, Australia were interviewed to determine why they attended and whether they considered themselves to be tourists. The study found that there were differences between types of audience members in respect to their personal sport, travel and tourism-related behaviour, their motivation to attend the sports event activity and the facilities they expect at the venue. The study revealed that the audience members exhibit many similar characteristics to other sports fans and the implications for dancesport event managers are discussed.
With the functionality of an internet-connected computer and an array of creative software, the modern cell phone is designed to entertain. Yet, the potential intersection of cell phone use and leisure has not been well explored. For this study, a random sample of 379 students from a large public US university completed a brief survey measuring cell phone use, perceptions of leisure, and perceptions of the cell phone's role in facilitating leisure. An analysis of variance was used to compare mean responses among low-, medium-, and high-frequency cell phone users. Results showed no difference between the three groups' understanding of leisure. However, significant differences emerged when comparing the three groups' perceptions of the cell phone's role in facilitating leisure. Specifically, high-frequency users appeared more dependent on the cell phone for experiencing leisure. Management implications are discussed in the context of Yellowstone National Park which recently became the first US National Park to approve a cell phone management plan.
It is recommended that this book is used by students who are taking undergraduate and/or graduate coursework in Sport Management/Sport Administration programmes whilst may also be used by individua...
Benefits-based management (BBM) is a prominent framework for managing outdoor recreation on public lands. BBM provides public land managers a framework to both identify and facilitate established recreation benefits for visitors to their lands. Despite its wide adoption among public land agencies, BBM has been criticized for being too complex and difficult to implement because of its broad theoretical construction and all-inclusive definition of benefits. To overcome these problems – using a national (the USA) sample – we identify: (1) the benefits that are most salient among outdoor recreationists and (2) six distinct groupings of public lands outdoor recreationists united by their desired benefits, relevant behaviors, values, and demographics. These findings open BBM to a more general application and understanding of outdoor recreationists.
Little consensus has emerged about how organizational performance should be defined and measured. Most studies have used traditional approaches to give their own perspective about organizational performance and effectiveness, but none have recently tried to encompass these different views into one unified model. In the present paper, Chelladurai's systems view of organizations is used to integrate the dimensions of organizational performance highlighted by previous studies on non-profit sport organizations (NPSOs). These organizational performance dimensions are highlighted and categorized into macro-dimensions (e.g. financial resources acquisition, size, internal atmosphere, organizational operating, financial independence, achieving elite sport success and mass sport participation). Relationships between these macro-dimensions are analyzed. A multidimensional framework is developed which gives an overview of which dimensions constitute organizational performance in NPSOs and of how to measure them. Further research directions and management implications are discussed.
The increasing globalisation in many areas of social and economic life calls for a book that specifically looks at the globalisation of sport. The authors have more than met this call: The book pro...
Urban parks provide numerous benefits to our society. In densely populated metropolises such as Hong Kong, urban parks are in high demand. A variety of indicators can be used as tools for improving park planning and management. Facing a dynamic society and increasing user expectations, urban park managers in Hong Kong have encountered different challenges over time, and the quest for changing park managerial strategies. In 2004, a set of indicators for urban park management in Hong Kong was produced as part of a Master's research. Local park managers were asked about their views on the respective importance and performance (I–P) of the indicators. In 2012, a follow-up questionnaire survey was conducted with the managers to study if their views regarding these indicators and their performance had changed. Results from the 2004 and 2012 surveys revealed changing perceptions regarding both I–P of the park indicators. Urban park managers in Hong Kong believed they have worked with the correct aspects of park management. They also had demonstrated an increasing satisfaction with the performance in most aspects of park management and improvements in the overall park condition. Shortcomings in urban park management in Hong Kong were also revealed through a cross-reference of the perceived I–P levels of indicators by managers. These problems include a prolonged shortage of funding by the park authority, the lack of integration of managerial and educational functions of urban parks, and a less responsive role of park managers to address the changing socio-economic condition in the city. Findings from this longitudinal study provide useful information about dynamic park management. The observations of park managers' perceptions can assist in identifying areas of change and in guiding the direction for future park management. Moreover, these findings also provide a source of comparison, and perhaps inspiration for urban green space authorities in other cities.
While substantial literature has addressed the benefits that sponsors seek from linking with a sports property, relatively little attention has been given to the potential costs businesses risk from such relationships. This paper suggests that beyond ambushing there are eight risks companies are likely to consider. Four can be controlled relatively easily: liability exposure; insensitivity to public sentiment to changing established rules or formats, the name of a facility or team or a team's uniform; insensitivity to the prevailing societal and political environment; and opposition from workers or stockholders. Companies have less control over: poor presentation of the event; poor performance by either the sponsored team/player or the company's products if the event is being used as a demonstration platform; association with disreputable behaviour; and trauma to performers.
The current paper examines a Canadian city where the municipal government proposed a referendum to fund several facilities, including a cultural centre, recreation centre, and entertainment and sport centre, projected to cost the average homeowner an annual tax increase of over $150 per year over 25 years. In promoting these projects to the public, development proponents attempted to engender public support by strategically reaching out and creating partnerships with various community organizations. To explore this case, we borrow from diffusion of innovation theory and the analytical tool of social networks. Findings show how development proponents in this case relied on the formation of partnerships with community groups in order to gain legitimacy for the projects with sceptical citizens, and were successful despite the substantial increase in property taxes. Through interpersonal communication within the community, proponents mobilized support for the developments and legitimized the motivations of the pro-development members of city council leading to the adoption of the innovation.
Understanding and conveying the benefits of providing visitor experiences in national parks is critical for their survival, but to date has received relatively little attention. This paper uses a series of semi-structured interviews and an online survey with senior/executive managers from three Australian parks agencies, as well as an analysis of corporate and strategic documents, to identify each agency's strategic focus with respect to benefits associated with the provision of visitor experiences. Results reveal 39 personal and community-wide benefits that mattered for managers across the three Australian parks agencies. Key benefits identified by senior/executive-level managers included accessing natural experiences, connecting with nature, and appreciating scenic beauty and the protection of biological diversity. These findings can help inform communication designed to reposition national parks, which is critical if agencies are to remain viable as providers of recreation and leisure experiences in the twenty-first century.Keywords: communicationnational parkbenefitmanagervisitorcommunity ACKNOWLEDGEMENTSThe authors would like to thank Dr Isabelle Wolf, Dr Amanda Smith, Dr Kelly Hunt de Bie, Mr Dino Zanon, and Dr Ingrid Sieler for their input into the research. Finally, the authors would also like to acknowledge the senior managers from three participating parks agencies who generously gave up their time to participate in this research.FUNDINGThis research was supported under the Australian Research Council's Linkage Project funding scheme [project number LP100200 014].
Volunteer research in sports clubs has paid hardly any attention to the individual expectations even though matching conditions to the specific volunteer's expectations represents a major management challenge. This article presents a person-oriented approach to the expectation profiles of volunteers that delivers the basis for identifying different volunteer segments. The approach assumes explicitly that volunteers in sports clubs develop specific expectations regarding their working conditions. These expectations were determined in a sample of 441 members of 45 selected sports clubs. Proximately, a cluster analysis revealed that volunteers vary in their expectations regarding voluntary work. Four different types of volunteers could be identified: (1) recognition seekers, (2) material incentive seekers, (3) participation and communication seekers, and (4) support seekers. These “expectation-based volunteer types” could also be characterized in socioeconomic, membership-related, and volunteer-work-related terms. These types could serve as a basis for designing specific voluntary work conditions in sports clubs.
"The World Leisure International Innovation Prize-Winning Projects 2006–2012." Managing Leisure, 19(5), pp. 376–377
Lifestyle sports are no longer a niche market and provide a significant business opportunity for suppliers of clothing, equipment and services such as education and tourism. The purpose of this study was to understand the motives of kitesurfers and windsurfers via motive-based segmentation, which, when matched with demographics and behavioural variables, can provide understanding of customers and suggest segment-specific marketing and communication strategies. Researchers conducted an online survey (n = 576) via special interest websites in summer 2012. A cluster analysis based on 14 motives was performed to segment the heterogeneous group. A sports motivation consumption scale was applied to measure the motives. Cluster analysis resulted in three clusters which were labelled casuals, recreational athletes and core participants. Discriminant analysis confirmed the three clusters. Differences in motivational, demographic and behavioural variables were analysed. Participants were found to be highly motivated by fun and stress release to engage in lifestyle sports, but not by competition. The study reveals marketing implications for watersport schools, travel agencies and other providers.
This paper examines the emergence of Health and Wellbeing Boards in Nottinghamshire and the City of Nottingham and explores the implications for sport and physical activity. At the time of writing the transfer of responsibilities for public health and the establishment of Health and Wellbeing Boards in both the City of Nottingham and within Nottinghamshire County Council are considered to be relatively advanced by the Strategic Health Authorities, the respective local authorities and by the boards of the two Primary Care Trusts. “Shadow” Health and Wellbeing Boards have been established in both authorities and they have been meeting regularly for several months. Public health and commissioning staff have also been successfully relocated and new strategies and priorities are starting to emerge. Nottingham and Nottinghamshire have traditionally acknowledged the role of sport and physical activity to the wider determinants of public health and given a relatively high priority to the contribution that sport and physical activity can make to their preventative health and early intervention agendas. This paper looks at the transition to Health and Wellbeing Boards to assess how the role of sport and physical activity may be changing and to identify opportunities for its contribution to policy and practice in the future.It examines both the theory and practice behind the emerging governance arrangements, the strategic objectives and priorities, and the developing evidential base for future policy and delivery within the two areas.
Previous research revealed that sport clubs increasingly experience problems regarding the recruitment and retention of members. Demographic shifts in Western societies (e.g. low birth rates, more females, and old people) and an increasing number of leisure substitutes and sport providers on the market contribute to decreasing club memberships. Also, the pay as you play trend combined with increased opportunities to play sport in a more non-organised fashion intensifies pressures on clubs to sustain their viability. By applying the sport development processes framework, this study examined the attraction and retention processes of cycling members in Australia. Data were gathered via interviews with cycling representatives at a national, state, and club level. The results suggest that cycling clubs experience difficulties offering value for money. The findings have implications for club management. Club managers should actively engage in marketing activities that highlight the social value of sport clubs as well as skill development.
Today, with the aim of gaining competitive advantage, as well as achieving customer satisfaction, health and fitness clubs seek ways to expand their services. However, understanding the importance and influence of the services on customer satisfaction becomes very important, when making managerial decisions about the priority of numerous service attributes. Therefore, the present study identifies the service attributes of a fitness club by using the Service-Quality Assessment Scale and compares the results of importance-performance analysis (IPA) which adapts symmetric influences; and the Three-Factor Theory of Customer Satisfaction which adapts asymmetric influences of the attributes. Findings show that many of the attributes are classified differently, because of the distinct perspectives of the two techniques. For example, "Workout Facility" is a "needs to be improved" attribute in the IPA results, although it is classified as a basic factor when the asymmetric influence is taken into account. The only service element that both techniques highlighted is the "Staff" according to its importance and influence on overall customer satisfaction.Keywords: satisfactionservice qualitycustomer satisfactionimportance-performance analysisfitness club
Global sport business: Community impacts of commercial sport is an attempt to show that the burgeoning business of sport can create and sustain a variety of community and social benefits. This titl...
