Partnerships in collegiate sport clubs: a social exchange perspective

ABSTRACT

Research question

: Sport clubs are complex organizations made up of amateur athletes, many of whom not only play on the team but also lead the club and interact with internal and external actors. While the actions and responsibilities of club members are well researched, little is known about the relationships these clubs have with other actors. The current case study investigated these exchange relationships within collegiate sport clubs (CSCs) through examining the following research question. What are the characteristics and outcomes of the social exchange relationships within CSCs?

Research methods

: Guided by social exchange theory and social constructivist epistemology, the researchers conducted focus groups with representatives from 29 clubs and interviews with four recreation professional staff at three universities across the United States.

Results and findings

: Analysis of the transcripts found multiple exchange relationships exist within CSCs, with primary importance placed on the relationships between the club’s executive board and club members, and the club members and the university. Each exchange relationship was found to contribute to specific desirable outcomes for the engaged actors that could not be had without the exchange partner.

Implications

: Analysis of the findings led to recommendations for practitioners on how to maximize the outcomes of the found exchange relationships and maintain quality exchanges between actors.

KEYWORDS:

• Social structure
• exchange relationships
• case study
• sport clubs

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by NIRSA Foundation.