Self-Expressiveness in Sport Tourism Bosnjak, Michael; Brown, Carroll A.; Lee, Dong-Jin ...
Journal of travel research,
01/2016, Volume:
55, Issue:
1
Journal Article
Peer reviewed
This study develops and tests a model of self-expressiveness in sport tourism, defined as the extent to which a tourist perceives that a sport activity is reflective of his or her personal identity. ...Self-expressiveness in a sport activity experienced by a tourist should depend on the activity’s perceived difficulty, perceived effort, perceived importance, and potential for self-realization. In turn, a tourist’s self-expressiveness in a sport activity should exert a positive influence on the tourist’s experience of personal happiness (subjective well-being). The results of two surveys involving 1,251 travelers who participated in a dance festival (study 1) and ski activities (study 2) during their vacations confirm the hypotheses, revealing several interesting theoretical and managerial implications.
Purpose: The purpose of this study was to analyze the trend of sport tourism in Isfahan based on Social, Technology, Economical, Environmental, Political and Values (STEEPV).Methodology: For the ...descriptive-analytic in this study, we used a survey. The statistical population included all faculty members and sport management students, managers of travel agencies, and experts in sport organizations in Isfahan. According to the Cochran formula, the statistical population was 483. But 215 were selected as the sample. After confirming the formal validity of the Check List by ten sports management specialists, reliability was calculated to be 0.89 based on Cronbach's alpha.Findings: The results showed that one of the most important social factors: increasing the share of sport tourism in the leisure time of the people according to their interest in sport tourism; technological: using the capabilities of cyberspace in the development of sport tourism; economical: trying to increase investment in sports tourism; boom Sport: Developing sports tourism to improve the environment; Political: Efforts to improve the status of international societies and values: Use of culture and identity of the city to increase athletic motivation in sport tourism.Originality: In general, implementing unit management in sport tourism policy is suitable for creating synergy. Ultimately, this synergy leads to the realization of landscape in the tourism field of Isfahan.
Purpose: The goal of this study was to investigate the role of social marketing in the development of sports tourism in Tehran Province.Methodology: The study is applied in terms of purpose, and it ...is a descriptive correlational research in which 100 experts in the field of social marketing (professors of marketing), specialists in sports tourism (professors), authorities in sports tourism (professors and researchers of this field), as well as managers and experts of Iranian Cultural Heritage Organization were selected as the sample using available and selective sampling. The data collection tool was a researcher-made questionnaire taken from previous studies. The professors confirmed the face and content validity, with reliability confirmed by Cronbach's alpha coefficient of 0.99.Findings: Data were analyzed by SPSS21 and LISREL 8 software. The results showed seven components of social marketing. They include technology, government laws and policies, environment, economic status, safety and security in sports venues, use of ads and communication channels, all but the last item have a positive and significant effect on the development of sports tourism.Originality: The results of this study showed that the investment of tourism organizations in social marketing factors is effective. The present study is one of the few comprehensive studies that have been conducted on credit and infrastructure investments in Iran concerning sports tourism.
Strategic planning of sport events should promote the maximisation of local communities' benefits. Among other dimensions of interest to the host destination's stakeholders, given the aim of ...sustainable development, sport events leveraging must integrate economic, social and environmental perspectives, justifying its multidimensional extensiveness. The general objective of this study was to stimulate and understand the process of planning and implementing strategic multi-leverage of international open water swimming events hosted in Portugal, in 2022, addressing the economic, social, environmental, partners and sport dimensions.
This study employed a case study approach within an action-research methodology. The research design covered three action-research stages: planning, implementation and analysis. The data collection combined nominal group sessions, field observation, document analysis and interviews. The qualitative analysis used the triangulation of the data collected, and the content analysis was performed using the NVivo software.
Actions were strategically planned targeting economic, social, environmental, partners, and sport dimensions, albeit with a prominent focus on economic and sport leverage. Excluding sport, the implementation of strategic actions ensured all dimensions' operationalisation. Six constraints (e.g. little adherence from local partners) and three drivers (e.g. commitment and authority of the leverage coordinating team) conditioned the strategic leverage implementation. The strategic planning of future sport events should outline actions that intensify the destination’s image, focusing the attention of stakeholders on valuing the natural attributes. This study strengthened knowledge about the multi-leverage approach applied to two sport events, reinforcing the need to implement cross-leveraging among the aforementioned dimensions to enhance the success of strategic leverage.
•Collaborative strategic planning drove innovation through multi-leverage approach.•Events' stakeholders prioritized leveraging objectives through action-research.•Strategy must focus stakeholders' attention on destination natural attributes.•Strategic planning must reinforce multi-dimensional leverage and cross-leveraging.•Leadership and local resources activation drove strategic leveraging success.
This article evaluates the impact that COVID-19 has had on small-scale sporting events within the context of South Africa. To this end, it considers the impacts that the pandemic has had on these ...types of events, and reflects on the strategic direction in the management and organisation of these events going forward. To achieve this, a content analysis of existing frameworks and documentary analysis of government policies and strategies, coupled with interviews with stakeholders involved in the organisation and management of small-scale sporting events domain was conducted. Through a purposive sampling technique, as well as snowballing, key stakeholders in the small-scale sporting event domain were interviewed using a semi-structured interview schedule. The key findings revealed that small-scale sport events experienced great financial loss due to the global pandemic which resulted in some of these events having to cease their operations during the hard lockdown levels. However, the lessons learnt during these times have offered event organisers ideas and guidelines for dealing with future external shocks. A key observation is made for increased governmental support for small-scale sporting events in this regard. This research forms a basis for improved understanding of sport tourism, and specifically small-scale events especially in changing times.
Sports tourism is an important type of tourism that is growing and developing rapidly. Tourist destinations in the field of sports not only support sports tourism policies but also attend to ...environmental issues in a bid to promote green behaviors among tourists. This research aimed to investigate the role of sports tourism in promoting green behaviors among tourists in Ardabil Province. As a mixed methods research, the study relied on a sequential exploratory approach consisting of qualitative and quantitative phases. The methods of thematic analysis and survey were used to analyze the data. The first phase of the study involved interviewing experts in sports tourism, sports management, and behavior management through purposive sampling. The second phase used systematic sampling and the influential actors of the field as the statistical population, with 31 experts responding to the questionnaire. According to the research findings in the first phase, 36 basic themes, 15 organizing themes, and three global themes were extracted from the semi-structured interviews. In the second phase, the identified themes were approved by the experts as the factors affecting the role of sports tourism in promoting green behaviors among tourists. The study highlights that sports tourism not only creates macro social, cultural, and economic benefits for residents and visitors, but also has a significant contribution to green behaviors among tourists. Green behaviors, in addition to protecting the environment, have a positive impact on the development of sports tourism and can strengthen and develop pro-environmental attitudes among tourists, besides creating recreational experiences.Introduction Sport is an ever-evolving phenomenon, with new sport events emerging regularly. Organizations need to study specific aspects of sports in order to manage their resources more effectively. As one of the most important fields in this respect, sports tourism refers to those trips for recreational (non-commercial) reasons to participate in or observe sports activities outside one’s usual residence, with or without competitive goals. Sports tourism has gradually gained popularity in different countries, leading to the establishment of specialized sports tourism agencies in large cities and small local towns. Sports activities, such as beach volleyball, rock climbing, river tracking, etc., allow tourists to participate freely in the tourism process, Sports tourism is a low-cost recreational activity that can improve physical and mental health. Travelers from many countries are paying increasing attention to sports tourism, creating many sports activities in sightseeing spots and resorts, including mountain climbing, cycling, road running, river trekking, rock climbing, and swimming.The sports tourism industry is highly competitive. Implementing and managing sustainable tourism development programs and a greener competitive advantage in these areas provide potential benefits for sports tourism destinations. Nowadays, sports tourism destinations tend to take measures to attract tourists and increase the credibility of sports tourism. Sports tourism departments have taken steps towards the greening of tourists’ behaviors. In addition to economic, political, and cultural fields, sports tourism has attended to environmental issues and greening. Green behaviors among tourists can positively affect the host community as well as the environment. Destinations providing sports tourism can benefit by encouraging tourism service providers to develop green measures and strategies. Green behaviors among tourists can play a fundamental role. Therefore, it is necessary to investigate and analyze the role of sports tourism and its influential factors in promoting green behaviors among tourists. The present study aimed to investigate this issue in Ardabil Province, which has ten cities with sports tourism in several sports, such as skiing, rock climbing, mountaineering, river trekking, water sports, hiking, camping, etc. Considering the province’s pristine and beautiful nature, it is vital to promote green behaviors among tourists. Materials and MethodsAs an applied research based on a mixed methods design, the present study utilized a sequential exploratory approach involving both qualitative and quantitative data collection and analysis. Given more analytical weight, the first phase used the qualitative method of thematic analysis. Using tools such as semi-structured interviews, the study could obtain relevant codes. In an inductive approach (part to whole), the identified themes were categorized under basic, organizing, and global themes. During the second phase, the study employed the quantitative survey method, and each of the themes was sent to the experts for verification, review, and measurement of its components and assessment of its validity. The participants of the study were categorized separately for both phases. In the first phase, the purposeful sampling method was used to identify 11 experts in sports tourism, sports management, and behavior management, who participated in the study online. The second phase of the study used the influential actors in the field, who were mainly active in the academic and executive sectors. The second phase relied on the systematic sampling method, and 31 experts responded to the questionnaire. Results and DiscussionHaving examined the semi-structured interviews, the study identified 121 indicators, from which 36 basic themes, 15 organizing themes, and three global themes were extracted. Each organizing theme is the principal element and constituent of the global themes. The themes indicate that these factors influence and determine the role of sports tourism in promoting green behaviors among tourists in the host community. In the quantitative phase, the themes received values higher than the acceptable limit, which indicates the appropriateness of the measurement model. The theme of creating, supporting, and promoting pro-environmental behavior (among the global themes) and the theme of enhancement of environmentally responsible behaviors of sports tourists (among the organizing themes) had the most significant effect with values of 0.56 and 0.57, respectively. ConclusionSports tourism contributes to the host society’s economic growth, cultural promotion, and enrichment. It is also considered important in environmental protection and greening of tourists’ behaviors. Many countries use mechanisms such as sports tourism to green tourists’ behaviors in order to face challenging environmental issues and problems. The findings of the study can offer important practical implications for the stakeholders in the sports tourism industry. The relationship between tourists’ green behaviors and environmental behaviors in tourist destinations creates a specific context with opportunities. One of the most fundamental topics in the field was found to be the global theme of creating, supporting, and promoting pro-environmental behaviors, which plays an essential role in sports tourism by influencing tourists’ green behavioral intentions. This theme emphasizes the significance of participation and interaction of sports tourists with the host community in order to promote greener behaviors, which in turn makes green consumption and measures a necessary part of their daily life. Another global theme is sustainable green engagement and communication which stresses a multi-faceted relationship with tourists and the local community. Moving towards greener behaviors among sports tourists and creating green destinations is not just an objective but a systematic and extensive process that requires much attention. Environmental education through media (e.g., television, newspapers, internet, social media, etc.) is needed to teach professional environmental practices to travelers and non-travelers. The environmental education helps tourists understand the importance of green behaviors. Destinations can thus help educate tourists by familiarizing them with environmental protection information. These measures can create interaction and participation as critical and valuable measures in the field. The attempt at greening of behaviors can thus help create environmentally responsible behaviors among tourists. Concerning the organizing themes, the theme of enhancement of environmentally responsible behaviors of sports tourists had the highest path coefficient effect. Environmentally responsible behavior refers to the cases in which a person or a group of people follow actions or behaviors that control environmental impact and are highly responsive to the environment and its subsequent issues. In addition to the preservation of the environment, such behaviors are necessary to maintain the growth of sports tourism.
This study is premised on the idea that sporting events have been used as part of strategic tourism development, particularly for the domestic tourism market. The study examines the nature and ...characteristics of domestic sport tourism in Central Africa using the context of Cameroon. Using data collected from event attendees (n=963) across multiple events within various time frames, and interviews conducted with 16 key stakeholders involved in sport and tourism, the key findings from this enquiry revealed that many of the domestic sport tourists are educated and employed youth, who travel to different provinces from urban cities and are motivated by both the sport and VFR intentions. They tended to link the event attendance with other commitments with friends and relatives as well as trading and business endeavours in the informal business sector. Thus, the study contributes to an enhanced understanding of domestic sports tourism, especially within the Central African region underscoring its significance as a sector with potential to further harness domestic tourism benefits for host destinations.
•Nostalgia is acknowledged as a powerful catalyst for taking part in sport tourism experiences.•Findings show how nostalgia manifests in multiple ways before, during, and after a sport tourism ...experience.•Existing nostalgic memories evoked a desire to experience Le Tour firsthand.•Seeing and Embodying nostalgic Le Tour sites encouraged memento collecting.•Trip memories evoked new feelings of nostalgia after returning home.
Nostalgia in sport tourism is increasingly understood as multifaceted. Early conceptualizations of nostalgia may be inadequate in explaining contemporary sport tourism. Utilising an organized tour of the 2011 Tour de France, a hybrid experience combining active cycling with passive spectating, interviews were conducted with 13 tour participants and two tour guides. A grounded theory model reflecting multiple dimensions of nostalgia across three trip phases is proposed. Pre-trip, nostalgia inspired participation. During the trip participants viewed and acted upon desires to engage with preconceived nostalgic images by cycling iconic mountains. Mementos and experiences were collected to facilitate future memories and aid nostalgic recollections post-trip. The study demonstrates how sport tourists adopt multiple, reflexive roles to enrich nostalgic value throughout a trip.
La proliferación de eventos deportivos ha despertado el interés por conocer su uso como herramienta de atracción turística en aquellas localidades que los albergan. Frente a la innegable repercusión ...de los grandes acontecimientos deportivos, surge la necesidad de evaluar si en el caso de eventos en zonas o localidades pequeñas, se producen efectos positivos desde un punto de vista turístico. En el presente trabajo se analiza el caso particular de la prueba cicloturista la Quebrantahuesos en la localidad de Sabiñánigo, situada al norte de la provincia de Huesca. A partir de una encuesta a los participantes en la edición de 2016, hemos podido conocer su valoración respecto a la experiencia vivida, los servicios y actividades que se ofrecen antes, durante y después de la prueba, así como la capacidad de atracción al destino y una aproximación al gasto medio realizado durante la estancia. A partir de los resultados de este estudio, se puede afirmar que La Quebrantahuesos es un producto consolidado y excelentemente bien valorado, con un impacto positivo sobre la promoción turística de un municipio de pequeño tamaño.
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