Recruitment of volunteers connected with sports mega-events: A case study of the PyeongChang 2018 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games

Volunteers play an important role in the successful hosting of sports mega-events. Volunteers help reduce operational costs of sports mega-events by reducing labor compensation. Volunteers offer skills and effort without rewards, but recruiting qualified volunteers for sports mega-events without incentive and reward is challenging. The present study adopts volunteer motivation and human resource management approaches. The psychological connection of volunteers with their task provides useful insights into their interests and their connection with volunteer work. This study empirically tests the relationships among volunteer motivation, recognition and rewards, connectedness, and intention to volunteer in the context of the PyeongChang 2018 Winter Olympic Games. A total of 232 surveys were administered to individuals. Empirical research suggests that leisure motivation is the most influential factor that affects the connectedness of volunteers followed by purposive motivation and egoistic motivation. External influences did not significantly affect connectedness. Among the factors of recognition and rewards, economic recognition and rewards positively influenced connectedness. Psychological and managerial recognition and rewards did not show a significant effect on connectedness. Empirical research also found that connectedness positively influenced intention to volunteer. This study empirically demonstrates that participation in volunteer work not only enhances the internal motivations of volunteers, but also strengthens the organizational supports offered by Olympic committees. This study extends this area of research on volunteer motivation to recognition and rewards in sports organizations, which is related to connectedness and behavioral intention of individuals. This present study provides several theoretical and practical implications.