Attributes and typology of parkrun participants in Japan

Findings from the Participant Survey

Abstract

The "parkrun" event has been spreading across Japan in recent years. In this study, we focused on parkrun events held in Japan and clarified the attributes of the participants and what they consider to be important. And, we compared the characteristics of parkrun in Japan with those in other countries and discussed the relationship between the types of participants and the venue. The results of the survey revealed that event participants were categorized into four clusters based on the importance of "interaction," "exercise," and "nature" in parkrun: "Natural non-valuable," "Exercise-oriented," "Interaction-oriented," and "All Items-oriented.” Finally, we concluded that the characteristics of parkrun in Japan are similar to those in other countries, and that the types of participants differ from venue to venue.