Developing an Instrument to Measure the Social Impact of Sport: Social Capital, Collective Identities, Health Literacy, Well-Being and Human Capital

Abstract

The objective of this study is to develop an instrument to measure the social impact of sport. While there is a rich literature suggesting and measuring the ways in which sport contributes to society, no broad, encompassing scale has been developed. A measure of this type is useful if sport initiatives are to gain social, political and financial support, especially in the form of corporate sponsorship. The proposed “Social Impact of Sport Scale” includes the dimensions of social capital, collective identities, health literacy, well-being and human capital. In addition to development of a detailed 75 item composite scale stemming largely from past measurement, a shorter set of global measures is also examined. A convenience sample of university students is used in scale development as well as a partial test of the scale in context. Results find support for the detailed scale and for the short global measure instrument. In addition, the partial test of the scale in a context of sport experience relevant to students is reported. The value of the scale in use and areas of future research are discussed.