Social Identity in Serious Sport Event Space

Abstract

Sport events offer valuable experiences in distinctive settings, and serve as settings for social identity formation. Drawing on the literature from a range of disciplines, events characteristics are seen to provide spaces for the cocreation of values, liminality, communitas, flow experiences, and authenticity. It is suggested that sport events facilitate career progression in relation to serious leisure and the development of social identification. This article provides further insight about the nature of event experiences with implications for event management.

Liminality and Event Design: Liminal Space Design for Sport Events

“…fan and or spectator). The transcendental encounter echoes the theoretical and conceptual perspectives of 'flow' in sport, proposed by Csikszentmihalyi and Csikszentmihalyi (1998), as Lee et al (2016) state:…”

“…The co-creation element can be located in Pine and Gilmore's (1999) escapist experience domain 1 as the emphasis here is upon active engagement and a state of immersiveness is encountered, which is reflective of liminoid liminality. McDonald and Karg (2014) and Lee at al. (2016) recognise this experiential value of co-creation for marketing of the sport event because there is an opportunity to influence fan behaviour in terms of consumption and participation.…”

“…emotions, myths, nostalgia) as these are symbolic representations of "communal participation or group unity transcending individual existence" (Cheska, 1978, p.64). Lee et al (2016) emphasise the importance of event spaces (e.g. arenas or stadiums) in developing liminality and forming communitas: "these places encourage casual sociability and strengthen the feeling of belonging and recognition as a member of a social group…" (p.495).…”

“…(2016) recognise this experiential value of co-creation for marketing of the sport event because there is an opportunity to influence fan behaviour in terms of consumption and participation. Lee et al (2016) propose combining core (e.g. event programme) event products with augmented event experiences (e.g.…”

Events and sustainability: why making events more sustainable is not enough

“…Their research revealed a general consensus amongst host communities that events have "fairly substantial economic, entertainment, social and development benefits." Events are also powerful modes of communication, engagement and affiliation, and researchers have explored the ways sport events help to nurture community development (Warner & Dixon, 2011), shared values and social identities (Lee et al, 2016). The ways events generate social capital is now widely recognised too, even beyond the events literature.…”