Socio-psychological factors associated with the public’s willingness to pay for elite sport policy

This chapter presents the initial results of an application of the contingent valuation method on elite sport policy and investigates the relationship between the willingness to pay for the elite sport policy and the socio-psychological factors focusing on the notion of public acceptance. Respondents, drawn from a Japanese Internet research service company, were asked for their willingness to pay (WTP) for elite sport policy. The current national policy aims to have Japan ranked in the top-five in total number of gold medals in the summer Olympics and in the top-ten in the winter. Annual mean WTP and median WTP were estimated as 1,449 JPY and 292 JPY through a log logit model. Statistical analysis of WTP determinants indicated specific key socio-psychological factors that were important for the promotion of elite sport policy with the goal of obtaining public acceptance. These were: Social benefits perception, personal benefits perception, risk perception, trust, and athlete role model influence.