Exploring virtual race participants’ perceptions of event mobile apps and behavioral intention: The stimulus-organism-response approach

As COVID-19 compels the event industry to embrace a digital transformation with innovative and safer ways of organizing events, investigating event attendees’ emotional responses and behavioral intention toward virtual sporting events becomes extremely important for event stakeholders. However, there is little empirical research on what factors lead to event participants’ hedonic benefit, which is a crucial determinant of satisfaction and revisit intention in the context of virtual sporting events. Based on the Stimulus-Organism-Response (SOR) model, this study therefore develops and examines a conceptually comprehensive model on the interrelationship between mobile app attributes, hedonic benefit, satisfaction with event experience, and revisit intention in the context of a virtual race event. Results identified user interface attractiveness and perceived usefulness as significant determinants of hedonic benefit which, in turn, affect satisfaction with event experience and revisit intention. Further, the results revealed that hedonic benefit mediates the relationships. The findings of this study provide significant theoretical and managerial implications for both researchers and practitioners who are interested in the use of mobile apps in virtual race events.