The influence of social responsibility on sport tourists

Abstract

Sport events have emerged as integral fundraising mechanisms for charitable organisations allowing host communities to leverage the motives for sport participation and charitable giving to increase sport tourism activity. This paper explores the meaning elicited by these events for participants. Using the Psychological Continuum Model (PCM) as its theoretical framework, the current research explores the role of social responsibility in fostering attachment to a charity sport event. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with charity sport event participants (N=32) to discuss their overall event experiences. Results revealed that social responsibility does contribute to participant attachment, which can shape travel decisions. The results provide further refinement of attachment within the PCM framework, as well as additional support for its application in the sport event context. Suggestions are made for event organisers to leverage social responsibility to enhance the host community and promote social change.