scholarly journals Exploring sense of community among small-scale sport event volunteers

2015 ◽  
Vol 15 (1) ◽  
pp. 77-92 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shannon Kerwin ◽  
Stacy Warner ◽  
Matthew Walker ◽  
Julie Stevens
Keyword(s):  
Sense Of Community ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Sport Event ◽  
Sport Event Volunteers

The Volunteer Experience in a Para-Sport Event: An Autoethnography

2020 ◽  
Vol 34 (2) ◽  
pp. 93-102 ◽  
Author(s):  
Erik L. Lachance ◽  
Milena M. Parent
Keyword(s):  
Conceptual Framework ◽  
Sense Of Community ◽  
Quantitative Methods ◽  
Strong Sense ◽  
Sport Event ◽  
Holistic Understanding ◽  
Sport Event Volunteers ◽  
Event Managers

Sport event volunteers have predominantly been examined in able-bodied events using quantitative methods. Studies examining the volunteer experience have focused on its relationship with different constructs, resulting in a siloed body of literature in which a holistic understanding of the volunteer experience remains poor. The purpose of this study was to explore the relationships between key constructs (satisfaction, motivation, commitment, and sense of community) and the first author’s (E.L. Lachance) volunteer experience in a para-sport event. The analysis of the narrative using a volunteer experience conceptual framework composed of the key volunteer constructs identified two themes: (a) the power of sense of community and (b) the volunteer role as a source of dissatisfaction. Contributions include the volunteer experience conceptual framework and the relationships between the four constructs and the volunteer experience. Event managers should implement strategies to create a strong sense of community to enhance their volunteers’ experience.

What Predicts the Sport Event Volunteer Experience? Examining Motivation, Satisfaction, Commitment, and Sense of Community

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Erik L Lachance ◽  
Jordan T Bakhsh ◽  
Ashley Thompson ◽  
Milena M Parent
Keyword(s):  
Sense Of Community ◽  
Structural Equation ◽  
Direct Relationship ◽  
Large Body ◽  
Equation Model ◽  
Sport Event ◽  
Linear Relationships ◽  
Indirect Relationship ◽  
Relationship Of ◽  
Sport Event Volunteers

Despite the large body of literature on sport event volunteers, researchers have a poor understanding of the volunteer experience despite studies claiming direct and indirect relationships involving motivation, satisfaction, commitment, and sense of community towards the volunteer experience. In fact, most studies fail to statistically measure experience as a dependent variable. As such, the importance of these four antecedents as predictors of the volunteer experience remains assumed and uncertain. The purpose of this study was to empirically test if and how sport event volunteers’ motivation, satisfaction, commitment, and sense of community predict their experience. Following the 2019 Osprey Valley Open, 161 volunteers (65% response rate) completed an online self-administered questionnaire. A two-step structural equation model analysis tested the hypothesized linear relationships. Results indicated direct (i.e., motivation and satisfaction) and indirect (i.e., commitment and sense of community) relationships between antecedents and the volunteer experience. Commitment had an indirect relationship to the volunteer experience through motivation’s direct relationship, while the indirect relationship of sense of community occurred through satisfaction’s direct relationship to the volunteer experience. Confirmatory factor analysis also indicated motivation and sense of community had poor factor loadings, while satisfaction and commitment loaded adequately. Moreover, only the egoistic motivation factor was supported in this study motivation’s direct relationship to the volunteer experience. These findings empirically support previous claims for motivation and satisfaction’s direct relationship to the volunteer experience but dispute previous claims of direct relationships involving sense of community and commitment. Contributions include the need to move beyond investigating individual antecedents of the volunteer experience as it requires a multi-faceted analysis due to conceptual interrelationships. EventCopyright © Cognizant Communication Corporation 3MS 20 088 Event Management E-pubmanagers should understand their volunteers’ experience as being complex and develop strategies aimed at each of the four antecedents.

scholarly journals PREDICTING THE BEHAVIORAL DEPENDABILITY OF SPORT EVENT VOLUNTEERS

2004 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
pp. 73-89 ◽  
Author(s):  
GRAHAM CUSKELLY ◽  
CHRISTOPHER AULD ◽  
MAUREEN HARRINGTON ◽  
DENIS COLEMAN
Keyword(s):  
Sport Event ◽  
Sport Event Volunteers

Outcomes of the sport event volunteer experience: examining demonstration effects on first-time and returning volunteers

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Jordan T. Bakhsh ◽  
Erik L. Lachance ◽  
Ashley Thompson ◽  
Milena M. Parent
Keyword(s):  
Behavioral Intentions ◽  
Sport Participation ◽  
Community Members ◽  
Sport Event ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Future ◽  
Sport Events ◽  
First Time ◽  
Sport Event Volunteers ◽  
The Relationship

PurposeThe purpose of this study is to examine if sport event volunteers were inspired by their event experience to volunteer in the future.Design/methodology/approachA postevent questionnaire was administered to 161 professional golf tournament volunteers, in which 93 respondents were identified as first-time volunteers of the event and 68 as returning volunteers. A moderation analysis was conducted to assess if previous event-specific volunteer experience moderated the relationship between volunteers' inspiration and future volunteer intentions.FindingsFirst-time event-specific volunteers were significantly more inspired to volunteer again than returning event-specific volunteers. Findings indicate volunteers can be inspired from their event experience toward future volunteer intentions.Research limitations/implicationsThis study offers conceptual understandings and new application of inspiration–behavioral intentions by examining sport events' (in)ability to inspire first-time and returning event volunteers to volunteer in the future. Findings are limited to the sport event volunteers' intention discussion.Practical implicationsThis study demonstrates how event stakeholders can create positive future behavioral intentions for community members through hosting sport events. By positioning first-time event-specific volunteers within roles that can elicit inspiration (e.g. interacting with athletes), event managers can foster stronger future volunteer intentions.Originality/valueThis study extends the understanding of demonstration effects by moving beyond the traditional sport event spectators and sport participation intention foci. It demonstrates that sport events can inspire different spectator groups (i.e. event volunteers) toward different future behavioral intentions (i.e. volunteer intentions). Findings address previous sport event volunteer assumptions regarding intention, inspiration and volunteer segments.

TechCreate

2019 ◽  
pp. 88-110
Keyword(s):  
Learning Communities ◽  
Sense Of Community ◽  
Intermediate Level ◽  
Educational Services ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Industrial Park ◽  
For Profit ◽  
Mixed Use

TechCreate is a relatively small makerspace, much like an open classroom, located in a mixed-use industrial park. It was founded as a for-profit space, with the intention to create a community of makers for the outer Dublin area. Because adult memberships have been slow to grow, the space has pivoted towards small-scale manufacturing services and, at the same time, provides educational services to youth in the community. While learning communities for adults are largely non-existent, the space works diligently to provide opportunities for youth to work in teams and in near-peer combinations to foster a sense of community. Most youth participants in the space start the experience with TechCreate by taking a six-week basic coding class and from there may choose to specialize in making by joining a making club for youth or may choose to take an intermediate level coding course and then join a coding club. This chapter explores TechCreate.

Destination Image, Sport Event Quality, and Behavioral Intentions: The Cases of Three World Sambo Championships

2019 ◽  
pp. 109634801988392 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ivana Milovanović ◽  
Radenko Matić ◽  
Kostas Alexandris ◽  
Nebojša Maksimović ◽  
Zoran Milošević ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Behavioral Intentions ◽  
Structural Models ◽  
Destination Image ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Sport Event ◽  
Destination Loyalty ◽  
The Core ◽  
Sport Events ◽  
Novi Sad ◽  
The Relationship

This research tested the interactions among destination image, destination quality, sport event quality, and behavioral intentions in the context of small-scale sport events. The study included elite sambo athletes (N = 350) who participated in the World Sambo Championships, which were organized in Novi Sad (Serbia) in 2017 and 2018. The destination image was measured with the affective and cognitive dimensions, while the event quality was measured with the core, tangible and supporting dimensions. The results supported the measurement and structural models. They further indicated that the core aspect of the event quality directly influences participants’ behavioral intentions, while the destination quality partially mediates the relationship between destination image and participant behavioral intentions. The event quality was shown to have a direct relationship with the development of destination loyalty. The theoretical and applied value of these results are discussed.

scholarly journals Using a Sport Event to Create a Sense of Community: Charity Sport Event Manager Perspectives

2020 ◽  
Vol 24 (1) ◽  
pp. 57-74
Author(s):  
Ebe Daigo ◽  
Kevin Filo
Keyword(s):  
Sense Of Community ◽  
Research Question ◽  
Point Of View ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Discussion Forums ◽  
Event Management ◽  
Sport Event ◽  
Online Discussion Forums ◽  
Sport Events ◽  
Event Managers

Charity sport events not only involve completing the activity, but also the opportunity to bring people together. A variety of research has examined charity sport events' capacity to foster a sense of community from the participant point of view. The current research examines sense of community within charity sport events from the event management perspective and advances the following research question: What do charity sport event managers feel they have put in place to create sense of community among participants? To address this research question, qualitative data were collected via interviews with 15 charity sport event managers in Japan. An interview guide comprised of six demographic questions, along with nine questions based upon the sense of community in sport framework was utilized. Five themes were identified within the interviews: charitable contribution, soliciting feedback from participants, interactive event environment, supplementary activities, and lack of competition. Two themes from the sense of community in sport framework that did not emerge across the interviews underscore opportunity for event managers to leverage mobile applications and online discussion forums to engage participant's shared interest in sport, as well as enlist leaders among event participants to serve as advocates. Based on the current results, future research can include managers from the designated charities aligned with events to assess whether the sense of community created within these events leads to long-term benefits for the organization.

“Out of the Black, Into the Big Blue” on a Single Breath: Sport Event Value Co-Creation as Symbolic World-Making

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-20
Author(s):  
Vassilios Ziakas ◽  
Christine Lundberg ◽  
Giorgos Sakkas
Keyword(s):  
Social Space ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Cultural Dynamics ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Sport Event ◽  
Symbolic Action ◽  
Shared Meanings ◽  
Single Breath ◽  
Multi Stakeholder ◽  
Symbolic World

Building upon the perspectives of sport value co-creation and symbolic action, this study employs a hermeneutic analysis of the socio-cultural dynamics shaping value in events. It examines the symbolic co-construction of a participatory small-scale event and the attached meanings that instantiate perceptions of value. The authors investigate a free-diving event held on the Greek island of Amorgos commemorating the 1988 film “Big Blue.” Fieldwork was conducted during the event, including focus groups, semi-structured interviews, and observation. Findings demonstrate the event’s dramaturgic hypostasis acting both as symbolic social space and multi-stakeholder value co-creation platform. Three overarching themes epitomize the actors’ experience: connecting, communing, and belonging. This reveals a dramaturgical world-making stage in which co-creative instantiators embody meanings that coordinate interaction, communicate information, integrate resources, and evaluate value. This study calls for comprehensive dramatological inquiries embracing the collective embodiment of events as social dramas that enable collaboration through the instantiation of shared meanings.

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