Do Big Sport Events Influence Future Volunteer Participation? —Effects of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic and Paralympic Games—

Abstract

Big sport events such as the Olympic Games often recruit many volunteers to facilitate projects. Such volunteering is expected to increase the number of individuals who volunteer in future activities. We surveyed individuals who participated as volunteers in the Tokyo 2020 Olympic and Paralympic Games and those who did not. Regression analyses indicated that volunteer participation in Olympic and Paralympic Games was not a significant predictor of the number of times volunteered or the amount of time spent volunteering after the Olympic and Paralympic Games. In contrast, factors related to being asked to volunteer were significant predictors of future volunteer participation.