The role of volunteers is an important factor for the sustainability of mega sports events. Key issues in the literature on sports event volunteers are volunteer satisfaction and its determinants and outcomes. Therefore, the purpose of the current study was to investigate the effects of the fulfillment of volunteers’ psychological needs and Volunteer Management Practices (VMP) on overall volunteer satisfaction, and to test their conditional effects depending on volunteer involvement. Additionally, the present study aimed to examine the effects of volunteer satisfaction on future volunteer activity, word-of-mouth, and host city visitation. For these purposes, a survey was conducted with 2442 volunteers in the context of the 2018 PyeongChang Winter Olympics in South Korea. The results of a Latent Moderated Structural Equation (LMS) revealed that the fulfillment of volunteers’ general needs and volunteer satisfaction with the VMP have positive effects on overall volunteer satisfaction. Interestingly, these effects were differently moderated by the level of volunteer involvement. Overall volunteer satisfaction was found to positively affect future volunteering intention, spreading positive words regarding sports event volunteering, and intention to visit the host city as tourists. In conclusion, sports event managers need to design an optimal work environment that can fulfill volunteers’ psychological needs and improve VMP to enhance the sustainability of mega sports events.

This study aims to explore the participation preferences of players in Play-to-Earn (PTE) games, a topic of growing relevance as PTE games gain increasing attention. These games offer players the unique opportunity to earn real-world rewards through virtual gameplay activities. By examining the factors that drive players’ decision-making in PTE games, we deepen our understanding of the intersection between virtual economies and real-world financial needs. The insights from this study can provide game developers and policymakers with valuable information to design and implement effective strategies that support individuals seeking alternative income sources and new economic models in the face of unprecedented challenges. To determine the prioritization of motivating factors among PTE game players, we utilized the Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) analysis as part of a three-stage process: a literature review (Stage 1), expert evaluation (Stage 2), and AHP analysis (Stage 3). The study derived 12 critical factors in PTE gameplay from literature review, divided into three primary elements, each with four sub-factors. These primary factors include Gaming Experience (comprising Fun factor, Game Quality, Game Genre, and Challenge), Financial Outcomes (consisting of Tokenomics, ROI, Game Company Reliability, and Coin Price), and PTE Game Awareness (including Management, Game Entry Timing, Game Platform, and Community). This study uncovers the three primary factors that encourage participation in PTE games, with Gaming Experience emerging as the most critical, followed by Financial Outcomes and PTE Game Awareness. This finding underlines the need for game developers to prioritize the gaming experience to ensure the development and sustainability of PTE games.