The relationship between the resident's perceived social impacts, quality of life and support for the small-scale sport event in Tai Pan, Guizhou, China

Small-scale sport events are widely recognized for their multitude of positive effects and minimal negative impacts, contributing to their global popularity. The intangible yet crucial social impact of these events has consistently garnered attention from scholars and practitioners. Particularly, the residents perceived social impacts are paramount, as they serve as pivotal determinants of the event’s success or failure. Therefore, the purpose of this study is grounded in Social Exchange Theory and utilized quantitative methods to investigate the relationships between residents perceived social impacts of small-scale sport events, their quality of life, and their willingness to support the events. Data were collected using questionnaires from 296 residents living in Taipan Village, based on the representative case of ‘Village BA’ in Guizhou Province, China. The study’s data consist of several variables, including four factors of perceived positive social impacts, four newly introduced factors of perceived negative social impacts, subjective evaluations of residents’ quality of life, and residents’ willingness to support the specific event. Generally, this study utilized Structural Equation Modelling with Mplus to analyse and test the relationships among these variables. The findings suggest that residents’ high quality of life evaluation is associated with their strong perceptions of positive social impacts and weak perceptions of negative ones. Consequently, according to Social Exchange Theory, residents demonstrate a significantly high willingness to support the specific event. All variables related to positive social impacts are strong predictors, exerting significant direct or indirect effects on residents’ willingness to support the event, with residents’ quality of life serving as an important mediator. However, the perception of negative social impacts shows limited direct effects with only social disputes weakly reducing support, while quality of life mediates the influence of economic and traffic issues on support. This quantitative confirmation aligns with many scholars’ qualitative assessments regarding the minimal negative impacts of small-scale sport events. The findings of this study not only contribute to academic literature on small scale sport events and expand the research framework but also offer valuable insights for practitioners