Social Media Education Provided by National Governing Bodies of Sport

An Examination of Practices for Youth Olympic Games and Olympic Games Athletes

Bibliographic Data

ID13049101
AuthorsAndrea N Geurin (0000-0002-5259-351X, Loughborough University, corresponding author)
Year2021
Volume11
Issue2
Pages238-264
Publication date2021-12-08
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueCommunication & Sport (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 2167-4795 • E-ISSN: 2167-4809
PublisherSAGE Publishing (PUBLISHER • US)
DOI10.1177/21674795211053627
OpenAlexW4200455875
LanguageEN
Citations received5
References cited30

Social media provides athletes with many opportunities as well as challenges. Scholars have argued for proactive, educational social media training instead of traditional policy and punishment models, yet research on this topic is limited. Therefore, this study sought to understand the social media training/education national governing bodies (NGBs) provided to athletes ranging from Youth Olympic Games (YOG) to Olympic level, and to examine NGB communication employees’ perceptions regarding athletes’ social media use and their organization’s social media training. Utilizing uses and gratifications theory, a sequential mixed method was employed involving a survey of U.S. NGBs and in-depth interviews with NGB communication personnel. While most NGBs used proactive, educational social media training for Olympic athletes, few did the same for YOG athletes. NGB employees felt social media use posed significant benefits or gratifications to athletes, and education and training helped to enhance those benefits as well as minimize the challenges, or failed gratifications, athletes experience on social media

Advertising · Athletes · Business · Perception · Political science · Public relations · Social media · Impact of Technology on Adolescents · Psychology · Sport and Mega-Event Impacts · Sports, Gender, and Society

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Open DOIOpen Access