The role of WATs in shaping consumers’ athletic identity
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2025-07-07
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en
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This research investigates how amateur athletes experience wearable activity trackers (WATs) in relation to their athletic identity. Prior research has mainly focused on the functional and health-related aspects of WATs. This study addresses a gap in the literature by exploring their symbolic and emotional meaning to users. The objective was to understand whether and how WATs influence athletic identity. To achieve this, twelve semi-structured interviews were conducted with amateur athletes from various sports. The results showed that, although participants mostly acquired the tracker for functional reasons, their continued use led to symbolic and emotional attachments. For some participants, WATs provided motivation, pride, accountability and a sense of belonging within the fitness community. Long-term athletes with consistent practice viewed WATs more as useful tools than as something defining them. In contrast, athletes newer to consistent practice depended more on the tracker to reinforce their athletic identity. To conclude, WATs play both functional and symbolic roles in athletes’ lives. These findings offer theoretical contributions by combining a marketing and identity perspective and practical implications for designing and promoting WATs to athletes.
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Faculteit der Managementwetenschappen