Community-sport service provision, participant satisfaction, and participation

Abstract

Purpose Since 2014, “sport for all” has been promoted as a new national strategy in China, which injects powerful dynamism and vitality for its development in numerous aspects. However, there has been very little feedback on sport service provision in community, and the satisfaction level of community participants is largely unmeasured. To promote physical and mental health of residents and form a stronger foundation of sport culture, more attention should be directed to community sports. The purpose of this paper is to examine the impact of community-sport service provisions on participants’ satisfaction and, in turn, on their sport participation behavior. Design/methodology/approach Community-sport program participants in China (n=576) responded to a survey measuring the proposed concepts. Findings Structural equation modeling analyses revealed that community-sport services in the areas of sport facility, grassroots sport organizations and sport activity programs had strong influences on participant satisfaction and, in turn, their desire for participation, which highlighted the demand for high-quality sport service provision by community. Originality/value The study contributed to the literature by proposing two clear dimensions (core sport service and peripheral sport service) for the measurement of public sport service provision in community sports. A second theoretical contribution of the study relates to the clarification of the relationship between the two dimensions of community-sport service provision (both core and peripheral services) and community participants’ satisfaction levels.

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“…As sports are such an import part of modern society with individual, educational, social and economic impacts, researchers attempted to systematically examine their overall value to the community and society. Physical benefits of participating in sport activities are well documented, which include both health-related and motor-related fitness (Baumgartner et al, 2016;Zhou et al, 2019). According to Chelladurai and Kerwin (2017), participation in organized sport provides physical and psychological benefits at both individual and team levels.…”

Satisfaction Levels of Young Urban Residents With Public Sports Services in China During the COVID-19 Epidemic

“…This may not provide the most reliable basis for research in China, especially when measuring satisfaction levels with public sports services, the provision of which differs substantially between China and western countries. Sports in western countries have been highly industrialized: beyond free public sport services, pay-for-use has become common because of financial problems and very costintensive maintenance of sport facilities (Ibsen and Levinsen, 2019;Zhou et al, 2020). On the contrary, China's public sports services are provided by the government and free of charge (Yuan, 2016).…”

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