Association between leisure motivation and continuous participation intention among Chinese ultimate frisbee participants: exploring the roles of leisure involvement and information acquisition

Introduction Understanding continuous participation intention in emerging leisure sports such as Ultimate Frisbee is important for promoting leisure-time physical activity. Drawing on leisure motivation theory and Social Information Processing theory, this study examines the relationships among leisure motivation, leisure involvement, information acquisition, and continuous participation intention among Chinese Ultimate Frisbee participants. The research aims to provide a clearer explanatory perspective for understanding sustained participation in emerging leisure sports and to offer practical implications for promoting participation in community-oriented leisure sports. Methods Using snowball sampling, an online questionnaire survey was conducted with 724 Ultimate Frisbee participants from multiple regions in China. Data were analyzed using SPSS 27.0. Regression analyses were first conducted to examine the relationships among the study variables. PROCESS Model 6 with 5,000 bootstrap resamples was then used to test the indirect associations. Results The results showed that leisure motivation was positively associated with continuous participation intention. Leisure involvement and information acquisition each showed significant indirect associations in the relationship between leisure motivation and continuous participation intention. In addition, a significant serial indirect association through leisure involvement and information acquisition was observed. Overall, a substantial proportion of the relationship between leisure motivation and continuous participation intention was reflected in these indirect associations. Discussion The findings provide empirical evidence for understanding continuous participation intention in Ultimate Frisbee and also highlight the importance of leisure involvement and information acquisition in community-oriented leisure sports. In the context of the internet era, further improving the accessibility and effectiveness of Ultimate Frisbee-related information will help enhance individuals' continuous participation intention.