Understanding consumer commitment in slow-reward lifestyle sports: Study amongst ashtanga yoga practitioners

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School of Business | Master's thesis
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Date

2024

Department

Markkinoinnin laitos

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Mcode

Degree programme

Marketing

Language

en

Pages

59

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Abstract

This study investigated consumer commitment to slow-reward lifestyle sports, using ashtanga yoga as its research context. Lifestyle sports, often non-competitive and surrounded by countercultures, include both extreme sports and slower-paced activities like yoga and long-distance running. Slow-reward lifestyle sports, a term coined in this study, are characterized by delayed gratification requiring persistent practice over months or years. Previous consumer research has predominantly centered on extreme sports with instant thrills, neglecting the slow-reward types. To fill this gap, this study explored the factors driving commitment in slow-reward sports, challenging the prevailing instant-gratification narrative in consumer behavior. Interviews with ashtanga yoga practitioners served as the primary data source. Ashtanga yoga was chosen due to its demanding nature requiring significant discipline and time investment. Using grounded theory’s three-stage coding system, the study identified key commitment factors aligning with the self-determination theory (SDT) by Deci and Ryan, which emphasizes three psychological needs: autonomy, competence, and relatedness. It was found that the sense of autonomy was gained through learning to control one’s physical and mental states and through focusing on the learning process rather than outcomes. The sense of competence was gained through improvements in physical abilities, in body awareness, consciousness techniques, emotional resilience and self-awareness. Both autonomy and competence were described as processes of unlearning unwanted patterns rather than learning of new skills. The sense of relatedness was the most emphasized factor. It was experienced through shared practices, belonging to a tradition, international community connections, and like-mindedness with fellow practitioners. Contrary to previous research that has highlighted self-construction in yoga, this study found that ashtanga practitioners are motivated by self-deconstruction, achieved through the meditative aspects of yoga and the ability to dissociate from impulses. The study differentiated slow-reward lifestyle sports from other lifestyle sports by highlighting the importance of slowness, self-transformation, and tradition conservation for ashtanga practitioners. Common motivations across both types was found to include self-reflection and growth, but in ashtanga yoga, personal growth was viewed as a lifelong transformation process whereas for extreme sport participants it meant acquiring new skills. Contributions of this study for consumer research literature are that it coins the term slow-reward lifestyle sports; it provides detailed insights into the specific commitment factors for ashtanga yoga practitioners; it challenges previous findings on yoga consumption by emphasizing self-deconstruction over self-construction; it offers managerial implications for marketing strategies targeting ashtanga yoga consumers. This study suggests further research on other slow-reward lifestyle sports, such as ultra-running, and the applicability of SDT to these activities.

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Thesis advisor

Mikkonen, Ilona

Keywords

consumer commitment, consumer research, lifestyle sports, ashtanga yoga, extreme sports, yoga, self-determination theory, self-deconstruction

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https://urn.fi/URN:NBN:fi:aalto-202408185447

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[gradu] Kauppakorkeakoulu / BIZ