Service Quality in Municipal Sport  Programs How the Implementation  of an Intervention Program Shapes  Participants� Loyalty

Sevastia Avourdiadou; Athanasios Laios; Kosta George

Volume : III, Issue : I, January - 2014

Service Quality in Municipal Sport Programs How the Implementation of an Intervention Program Shapes Participants� Loyalty

Sevastia Avourdiadou, Athanasios Laios, Kosta George

Abstract :

The present study focuses on the field of sport management and more specifically on Municipal Sport Centers, carrying out a longitudinal investigation with the implementation of an intervention program. In total, there were 1,179 participants from the SfA (Sport for All) programs offered by two adjacent Municipalities of the Prefecture of Thessaloniki, in Northern Greece. The findings of the current study indicate that the implementation of an intervention program during a six-month period improves participants� perceptions of the dimensions of the offered service quality, and increases their satisfaction and their levels of loyalty to the SfA programs. The present study contributes significantly to the development and improvement of the sport programs offered by the Municipal Sport Organizations in Greece, since it approaches key concepts in a particular manner and promotes the ulterior purpose of life-long exercise. Finally, the practical applications and the limitations of the study are presented and analyzed.