Sociological Study of Sport Participation Process Based on Symbolic Interaction Approach

Sports and sporting events in today's world have become an important part of everyday life. People's sport participation is influenced by various factors, including the sport socialization, structural and social factors. Therefore, the present study uses a symbolic interaction approach to explore the sociological study of the process of sports participation. In this regard, using the quantitative method and Socialization of Sport, athletic identity, sport commitment, social-structural constraints and sports participation scales, a sample of 574 athletes in the city of Rasht, the hypothesis were tested using structural equation model. The results indicate that the athletes' sport participation process in the first place generally began with sport socialization and the amount of sport support received, In the next step, athletes’ athletic identity and sport commitment are formed with continued participation in sports. Furthermore, the structural and social pressures play a decisive role in the sport socialization, athletic identity, sport commitment and sport participation of athletes. In general, as the findings of this study showed, sports participation is socially constructed and sustained by structural-social factors.