Research on the group path of enhancing the efficiency of public sports services in China - Based on DEA and fsQCA analysis

doi:10.21203/rs.3.rs-4094185/v1

Download PDF

Article

Research on the group path of enhancing the efficiency of public sports services in China - Based on DEA and fsQCA analysis

https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-4094185/v1

This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License

You are reading this latest preprint version

Background

Public sports services crucially affect the development of a healthy China as a robust sports country, and the improvement of public sports service efficiency is a crucial manifestation of its high-quality development.

Materials and methods

We utilize the data of 30 provinces in China in 2020 as the research object, and we utilize Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) to measure and evaluate the efficiency level of China's public sports services as well as Fuzzy Set Qualitative Comparative Analysis (fsQCA) to identify the critical influencing factors; moreover, we explore the grouping path that affects the efficiency improvement of public sports services.

Results

The results indicate the following: 1) although the efficiency level of China's public sports services is high overall, there are significant differences among regions. 2) The level of regional GDP per capita, the strength of government support, and the number of years of education per capita are the critical influencing factors for enhancing the efficiency of public sports services. 3) Population-intensive and government-driven, economic vitality and resource-inputting, and economic-educational double-driven paths are the core paths enhancing the efficiency of China's public sports services.

Conclusion

Therefore, the following recommendation is made: to boost the efficiency of China's public sports services by focusing on the level of regional economic development and rationally allocating public sports resources; increasing the investment of public sports funds to enhance the quality and level of services; strengthening the government's purchasing efforts to promote the market-based operation of public sports services; and increasing the average years of education to strengthen the public's awareness and participation in sports.

Earth and environmental sciences/Environmental social sciences

Physical sciences/Mathematics and computing

public sports services

efficiency

group path

data envelopment analysis

fuzzy set qualitative comparative analysis

As China enters a new stage of high-quality development, public sports service, as a crucial component of China's basic public service system, can significantly promote the development of national fitness and enhance individual’s physical fitness and health. Recently, the country has successively introduced national strategies such as Healthy China, Fitness for All, and Sports Power. Improving the level of public sports services has become a crucial symbol of common prosperity and national modernisation ¹. With the continuous implementation of relevant policies (see Table 1), the construction of China's public sports service system has developed rapidly. However, the contradiction between the supply of public sports services and the ever-increasing sports demand of the public persists, and the problems of unbalanced resource allocation and mismatch between supply and demand as well as the high-quality development of public sports services has become a critical issue that should be solved urgently ². The efficiency of public sports service refers to the ratio of the input of public sports service resources to the output of the effect ³. Enhancing the efficiency of public sports services can enhance the effectiveness of the allocation of public sports service resources, enhance the overall level and quality of public sports services, and better meet the people's sports needs and health level. The quality improvement and upgrading of public sports service efficiency is a systematic and complex endeavor, which is jointly determined by the intertwined influence of multiple factors. Currently, scholars have performed some research on the enhancement of public sports service efficiency, proposed different influencing factors for the enhancement of public sports service efficiency, and analysed the influence effect of individual factors ⁴; however, there are few studies that analyze the multiple interaction effect of influencing factors on the improvement of public sports service efficiency from the perspective of the multifactorial "group state". interaction effect on the improvement of public sports service efficiency. Therefore, by measuring the efficiency of public sports services in 30 provinces (except Tibet) in 2020, this study utilizes the fuzzy set qualitative comparative analysis method to explore the core factors for enhancing the efficiency of public sports services, and specifies the group path to improve the efficiency of public sports services; the study aims to clarify which combinations of conditions affect the efficiency of China's public sports services, and which conditions crucially influence the enhancement of public sports services. Thus, we can provide robust support for upgrading the efficiency of public sports services in China.

Table 1

Policies related to the promotion of public sports services
Times	Title of the document	Publishing department
2014.2	The Report on Accelerating the Development of the Sports Industry and Promoting Sports Consumption Several Opinions	State Council (PRC)
2016.5	Thirteenth Five-Year Plan for Sports Development	State General Administration of Sport (SGAS)
2017.3	Plan for Promoting the Equalisation of Basic Public Services in the 13th Five-Year Plan	State Council (PRC)
2019.9	Programme for Building a Strong Sporting Nation	State Council (PRC)
2021.4	Project to make up for the shortcomings of fitness facilities for the whole population during the 14th Five-Year Plan period Implementation of the Programme	National Development and Reform Commission, State General Administration of Sport
2021.8	National Fitness Programme (2021–2025)	State Council (PRC)
2022.3	Opinions on Building a Higher Level of Public Service System for Fitness for All	General Office of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, State Council

1.1 Literature review

Public sports service efficiency, as one of the crucial standards for measuring the level of the national public sports service, has received sufficient research attention from domestic scholars ⁵. In regard to research content, scholars mainly focus on the construction of the indicator system, influencing factors, and empirical analyses of public sports service efficiency, thus exhibiting the transition from theory to empirical evidence and the tendency of expanding from regional research to national research. In regard to constructing the indicator system, scholars including Wei ⁶, Zheng Jiakun ⁷, Fan Hongwei ⁸, and Liu Liang ⁹ adopted the Delphi method (TDM) to establish an authoritative but biased subjective public sports service indicator system based on the consensus reached by experts. Zhang Fengbiao et al ¹⁰ utilized Structural Equation Modelling (SEM), which combines subjective and objective methods, to mitigate the overly subjective expert ratings in the Delphi method, while enabling its unique advantage in determining the weights of the indicators. Song Na-Mei et al ¹¹ combined the balanced scorecard method (BSC) with the hierarchical analysis method (AHP) to indicate the multiple dimensions and layers of public sports service efficiency evaluation in a more comprehensive manner. Yuan Chunmei ¹², Zhao Nie ¹³, Zeng Qiang ¹⁴, and Wang Jing et al. ¹⁵ utilized data envelopment analysis (DEA) to address multiple input and output indicators; thus, they assessed the efficiency of public sports services in China's provincial-level administrative districts and the whole country, demonstrating the trend of interdisciplinary integration in the efficiency-evaluation domain. In regard to influencing factors, Guopeng You ¹⁶, Chang Liu ¹⁷, and Weiyu Shao et al. ¹⁸ explored the influencing factors of public sports service efficiency from three dimensions, namely economy, population, and government, respectively, and proposed different impacts of different indicators on the efficiency of public sports services. In summary, Li Yanling ¹⁹, Feng Wei ²⁰, and Li Shujuan et al. ²¹, noted that the efficiency of public sports services in China is generally low and unstable, and there are significant differences between regions. By analyzing this topic, the government can potentially improve China's public sports service system, enhance the service level, and meet the people's sports needs; thus, the topic can significantly promote the theoretical innovation and practical progress of China's public sports service domain.

In summary, although the current academic research on the efficiency of public sports services has achieved certain results, there is a lack of overall, systematic research and in-depth discussions on how to specifically and effectively improve the efficiency of the services, which provides the direction and opportunity for this study. By conducting the literature review, it is noted that the current research on public sports service efficiency is still nascent in regard to the analysis framework and research methodology, especially with regard to the core factors and paths affecting the improvement of public sports service efficiency, and it is necessary to establish a structural mindset to examine its overall orderliness. Therefore, the influencing factors of public sports service efficiency and the possible complex relationship between them remain unexplored.

2.1 Research methodology

2.1.1 DEA

DEA is a systematic analysis method for evaluating the effectiveness of decision units of the same type ²². The basic models of DEA mainly include the CCR model and the BCC model; the former is based on the assumption of constant returns to scale, whereas the latter allows for the variability of returns to scale. In practice, owing to multiple factors such as financial constraints and government policies, numerous decision units are subjected to the variability of returns to scale ²³. Therefore, to comply with the research practice more effectively, this study adopts the BCC model as a method for analysing the input and output indicators of public sports services in each province, and measures the efficiency of public sports services using the Deap2.1 software. The measured efficiency values are all between 0 and 1 (the values approximate 1), which indicates higher efficiency ²⁴.

2.1.2 QCA

The QCA qualitative comparative analysis approach was developed in the 1980s, and its core concept entails considering cases as a specific set of configurational conditions, and explaining the generation of results through the combination of their conditions ²⁵. QCA can be divided into three basic categories: clear set qualitative comparative analysis (csQCA), fuzzy set qualitative comparative analysis (fsQCA), and multi-valued set qualitative comparative analysis (mvQCA) ²⁶. Compared to csQCA and mvQCA, which are applicable to only specific problem categories, fsQCA can handle problems involving degree change and partial affiliation. Therefore, the fsQCA method was chosen, and its advantages are as follows: 1) Since the factors affecting the efficiency of public sports services are complex and intertwined rather than linear, it is difficult to analyse the combined effects of multiple variables by focusing on only verifying the significance of a single variable, whereas the fsQCA, which is based on multiple cases and centred on group comparisons, can analyze the relationship between the outcome variable and the combination of condition variables in depth from a systemic perspective The fsQCA can effectively explain the influence mechanism of multiple combined paths ²⁷. 2) The traditional quantitative analysis method mainly relies on regression analysis, which usually defaults to the symmetric interactions between the variables; however, the method cannot effectively explain the asymmetric causality. By contrast, fsQCA, based on the pooling theory, breaks through the symmetrical mode of thinking in traditional econometric studies and effectively addresses asymmetric causality. 3) This study selects 30 provinces in China as sample cases, which does not meet the case sample requirements of traditional econometric studies. By contrast, fsQCA is suitable for both small and medium-sized sample case studies as well as large case studies with more than 100 samples. The 30 sample cases in this study are small and medium-sized and meet the criteria for the application of fsQCA. In addition, the condition variables involved in the study differ in degree, but do not constitute a qualitative difference. Therefore, fsQCA will be utilized herein, and fsQCA 3.0 software will be utilized to conduct the analyses.

2.2 Data sources

This study selects 30 provinces in China (excluding Tibet) as the research unit. The data on the indicators of input and output are mainly obtained from the 2020 Statistical Yearbook of Sports, the official website of the State General Administration of Sports, and the official websites of provincial sports bureaus. (Tibet is not included in the analysis scope of this study because too much data is missing.) In regard to the data on the conditional variables and the outcome variables, the data on the outcome variables is derived from the efficiency value measured by DEA, and the data on the conditional variables is mainly obtained from the National Bureau of Statistics, the Chinese government procurement website, and the local government statistics website. The data sample is limited to 2020.

2.3 Selection of indicators

Reasonable analysis and evaluation of the efficiency of public sports services depends, to a large extent, on the scientific and effective selection of input and output indicators. When selecting input and output indicators, this study utilizes the existing research results of domestic scholars such as Yuan Chunmei and Yang Yikun²⁸, and refers to the statistical indicators compiled by the Economic Department of the General Administration of Sport of the People's Republic of China in the Statistical Yearbook of China's Sports Industry, following principles such as typicality, accessibility, quantifiability, and comparability ²⁹. Moreover, the study screens out the input and output indicators for the efficiency of China's public sports services in the following four dimensions: sports-related human resources, financial resources, material resources, and organisational resources ³⁰ and selects the input and output indicators for the efficiency of China's public sports services (see Table 2). Table 2 indicates the input and output indicators of public sports service efficiency in China.

Table 2

Input and output indicators
	Indicator name	Description of indicators
throw oneself into norm	Financial expenditure on mass sports	Refers to the financial expenditure on the mass-sports-related public sports services in the region in the current year.
	lottery ticket expenditures	Represents the expenditure and loss of funds incurred by the region during the year for lottery distribution and sales operations in the sports domain.
	sports ground throw oneself into	Refers to the sum of the total investment in outdoor fitness venues and facilities, the investment in the construction of sports facilities in the lottery's public welfare expenditure, the total investment in national fitness path venues, and the total investment in national fitness activity centres in that year in that region.
	Number of administrative staff	Refers to the number of employees of the administrative level sports administration in the region in the current year.
outputs norm	Sports space per 10,000 inhabitants	Refers to the sum of the area of outdoor fitness facilities, the area of national fitness paths, and the area of national fitness activity centres in each province divided by the population of each province.
	Number of sports instructors	Refers to the actual number of social sports instructors for the corresponding year.
	conditioning test Number of participants	Refers to the sum of the number of people in the area who took the fitness test that year.
	Number of social organisations and private non-enterprise units	Refers to the sum of the number of administrative-level sports social organisations and the number of sports private non-enterprises in the region in the current year.
	national constitution monitoring point	Refers to the number of National Physical Fitness Monitoring sites in the area for the year.

2.4 Definition of variables

According to the convention of the qualitative comparative analysis method, the number of condition variables should be controlled between 4 and 7 to ensure the accuracy and reliability of the study, which refers to the research and definition of variable selection conducted by Du Yunzhou and Zhang Ming et al. ³¹; based on previous analyses and discussions, and considering the institutional environment of China's provincial governments and the practical scenarios that influence the development public sports services efficiency, we constructed an appropriate "economy-demography-government" analytical framework (Fig. 1). The public sports service efficiency in the DEA analysis is utilized as the outcome variable of fsQCA, and regional GDP per capita, population density, public sports funding, government purchasing power, and average years of education are selected as the conditional variables of fsQCA from the economic, demographic, and governmental levels (see Table 3), because 1). The selected conditional variables cover the multidimensional influencing factor aspects of public sports service efficiency, and the results, which are mixed, are comparable in specific dimensions; 2) due to the availability and comprehensiveness of data, the data of the five conditional variables can ensure the consistency and reliability of the data sources, which reduces the error of the study and ensures the scientificity and authenticity of the analysis results.

Table 3

Result variables and condition variables
variant	variable name	Variable Interpretation
in the end variant	public sports Service efficiency	Refers to the efficiency of inputs and outputs of public sports services: the "relative efficiency" of more inputs and outputs, and not the "absolute efficiency".
prerequisite variant	Regional GDP per capita	Refers to a crucial macroeconomic indicator that can comprehensively reflect the economic activities of a country or region and understand and grasp the region’s macroeconomic operation.
	population density	Refers to the number of people per unit of land area and is a crucial indicator for assessing the distribution of population in a country or region.
	public sports Financial inputs	Refers to the state's financial investment in sports-related public services.
	Government purchasing power	Refers to the extent of expenditure on the purchase of goods and services by all levels of government and is part of government expenditure.
	Average years of schooling	Refers to the average number of years of schooling in academic education (including adult academic education, but not covering all types of academic training) for a specific group of people over a specific period of time and in a specific region.

(1) Economic level: Regional GDP per capita is not only a crucial basis for the government to provide public products and services, but also a key factor for enhancing the efficiency of services. The high or low regional per capita GDP determines whether the local government can have a stronger financial spending capacity, thereby enabling it to provide better and more efficient public sports services ³².

(2) Population dimension: including average years of schooling and population density. Urban population density is closely related to the natural environment and economic activities, which affects the efficiency of public services and determines the lasting power of regional development. Meanwhile, the average years of education is closely related to the quality of regional development ³³. Under the promotion of urbanisation, the aggregation effect of population density is increasing; however, this aggregation effect also induces a series of problems, such as the "misalignment of supply and demand" and the increase of management costs. These problems may exert a negative impact on the efficiency of public sports services, leading to a reduction in service efficiency.

(3) Government level: This includes government purchasing power and public sports funding. Currently, the main provider of public sports services is the government. Specifically, regardless of whether the government's financial resources are abundant or not, and whether its purchasing power is increasing or decreasing, its influence on the efficiency of public sports services is crucial. For a long time, government authorities have been decision-makers and administrators in the reform and development of public sports. However, this single and inefficient management mode has exerted a negative effect on the efficiency of public sports services delivery ³⁴. It can be observed that the governmental level is also an influencing factor for the improvement of public sports service efficiency.

3.1 Results of DEA efficiency evaluation

From the results (see Table 4), the average value pertaining to the comprehensive efficiency of China's public sports services in 2020 is 0.742, which indicates that the overall level of China's public sports services in 2020 is satisfactory; however, there is still room for improvement. Hainan, Jilin, Liaoning, Zhejiang, Henan, Shanxi, Ningxia, Qinghai, and Sichuan is 1, thus indicating that the efficiency of public sports services in these nine provinces is optimal and the service level is quite satisfactory. Hubei, Heilongjiang, Guangxi, Jiangsu, Shaanxi, Anhui, and Yunnan are the seven provinces where the comprehensive efficiency of public sports services does not attain 1; however, they are all above the mean value, and the service level is satisfactory. On the other hand, 13 provinces, namely Beijing, Fujian, Hunan, Guangdong, Jiangxi, Hebei, Gansu, Guizhou, Inner Mongolia, Shandong, Shanghai, Tianjin, Xinjiang, and Chongqing, have an overall efficiency below the mean, which indicates a low level of public sports services. For the regional dimension, the central region exhibits the most optimal performance with regard to efficiency, with an average value of 0.827. Compared to the central region, the western region is slightly less efficient, with an average value of 0.762, and the eastern region exhibits a relatively low efficiency, with an average value of 0.680. The regions include regions with high levels of economic development and high population density, such as Henan, Sichuan and Zhejiang, and also cover regions with slower economic development and smaller populations, such as Ningxia and Qinghai. It can be observed that although differences in economic and social foundations between regions lead to diversity in the allocation of resources for public sports services, some provinces and municipalities have been able to achieve high efficiency; therefore, the rationale for the grouping of high public sports service efficiencies should still be further analyzed.

Table 4

Efficiency of public sports services in China in 2020
Province (district, city)	Combined efficiency	Province (district, city)	Combined efficiency
Beijing, capital of People's Republic of China	0.474	Hubei	0.761
Fujian	0.274	Hunan	0.578
hillsides	0.594	Jiangxi	0.682
Hainan Island	1	Shanxi	1
anhui	0.492	Gansu	0.494
Heilongjiang river forming the border between northeast China and Russia	0.754	until 1959, Guangxi province	0.757
also Jilin prefecture level city, Jilin province	1	Guizhou	0.545
Jiangsu	0.784	Inner Mongolia	0.724
Liaoning	1	Ningxia prefecture level city in Zhejiang	1
Shandong	0.630	Qinghai	1
Shanghai	0.559	Shaanxi	0.786
Tianjin	0.370	Sichuan	1
Zhejiang	1	Xinjiang	0.435
Anhui	0.765	Yunnan	0.837
He'nan Mengguzu autonomous county in Qinghai	1	Chongqing	0.587
Mean value: 0.742

3.2 Data calibration

In fsQCA, calibration refers to the process of providing cases to assign set affiliation ³⁵. In summary, sets should be constructed by accurately calibrating the variables based on the existing theoretical body and the context of the specific case. The calibrated set exhibits a well-defined degree of affiliation which will be in the range between 0 and 1. Herein, the thresholds recommended by the Tosmana software (see Table 5) were utilized and combined with specific analyses of the research data to determine the choice of intersections ³⁶. In selecting the anchors, namely "fully affiliated" and "fully unaffiliated", the study identified 95%, 50%, and 5% quartiles of the sample data as anchors based on the relative position of the sample data and with reference to the methodology of previous studies ³⁷.

Table 5

Calibration of result variables and condition variables
variable name		calibrations
variable name		Full affiliation	junction	Totally unaffiliated
outcome variable	Efficiency of public sports services	1	0.755	0.401
conditional variable	Regional GDP per capita	140128.05	58526.5	43537.9
	population density	4990.09	3111.56	1728.29
	Funding for public sports	386598.5	161645.5	81030.45
	Government purchasing power	0.085	0.05	0
	Average years of schooling	11.57	9.86	8.83

3.3 Analysis of necessary conditions

Before conducting the conditional grouping analysis, each conditional variable must be individually tested for necessity to determine if any condition is a necessary precondition for the outcome to occur ³⁸. Once the necessity analysis is complete, two key metrics will be identified: consistency and coverage. The coverage metric reflects the proportion of cases that meet a given condition out of the total number of cases, while the consistency metric measures the similarity and consistency between cases that meet the condition (see Table 6). Typically, if the consistency value exceeds 0.9, the condition may be necessary to lead to the outcome ³⁹. The necessity analysis revealed that the consistency value of all the condition variables in this study did not attain 0.9, which indicates that it is difficult for a single condition to exert an influence, the improvement in the efficiency of public sports services is occasioned by a combination of multiple factors, and no variable can be utilized alone as a necessary condition for improving the efficiency of public sports services, and that it is necessary to analyse the influence of the condition grouping state further.

Table 6

Analysis of necessary conditions
	High efficiency of public sports services		Low efficiency of public sports services
conditional variable	consistency	degree of coverage	consistency	degree of coverage
High regional GDP per capita	0.537	0.565	0.659	0.717
Low regional GDP per capita	0.732	0.675	0.601	0.573
high population density	0.513	0.549	0.599	0.664
Low population density	0.686	0.623	0.593	0.558
High public funding for sport	0.516	0.536	0.659	0.709
Low public funding for sport	0.720	0.672	0.569	0.549
High government purchasing power	0.662	0.634	0.601	0.596
Low government purchasing effort	0.578	0.583	0.630	0.658
High average years of schooling	0.614	0.615	0.667	0.692
Low average years of schooling	0.693	0.688	0.628	0.627

3.4 Configuration analysis

The cohort analysis exerts a central role in the QCA approach, which aims to explore how different combinations of antecedent conditions collaborate to influence the generation of results. Schneider and Wagemann proposed a judgement criterion, namely the congruence level of adequacy, which is recommended to have a value of not less than 0.75 ⁴⁰. Individual variables do not constitute the necessary conditions for improving the efficiency of public sports services in China. Therefore, a combination analysis of the condition variables was implemented to explore the effect pertaining to the combination of differential factors on the outcome variables. This study adopts the QCA-based analytical results presentation method proposed by Ragin and Fiss, which can clearly reveal the relative importance of each condition in the grouping, thus providing strong support for the in-depth understanding and interpretation of the analysis results ⁴¹. Herein, the intermediate solution output from the software is selected as the main solution and the simple solution as the supplementary solution for its analysis, and the consistency threshold is set to 0.8 according to the default standard ⁴²; moreover, The case frequency threshold has been set at 1.0, and the consistency of the various paths and the overall consistency are above 0.8 (see Table 7). Thus, the solution derived from the current study exhibits a high level of reasonableness and credibility, which meets the needs of the study.

Table 7 presents three grouping paths for improving the efficiency of public sports services, where each column corresponds to a potential combination of conditions. The consistency of the solutions is 0.809, which implies that 81% of the cases in the provinces that meet these combinations of conditions exhibit a high level of efficiency. In addition, the consistency of all paths and the overall consistency of the solution exceed the critical value, thus proving the validity of the empirical analysis.

Table 7

Results of the group analysis for the realisation path of improving the efficiency of public sports services in China
conditional variable	Configuration S1	Configuration S2	Configuration S3
Regional GDP per capita	character utilized in Taiwan as a substitute for a real name (such as "X" in English)	●	●
population density	●	character utilized in Taiwan as a substitute for a real name (such as "X" in English)	character utilized in Taiwan as a substitute for a real name (such as "X" in English)
Funding for public sports	character utilized in Taiwan as a substitute for a real name (such as "X" in English)	●	●
Government purchasing power	●	●	character utilized in Taiwan as a substitute for a real name (such as "X" in English)
Average years of schooling	character utilized in Taiwan as a substitute for a real name (such as "X" in English)	character utilized in Taiwan as a substitute for a real name (such as "X" in English)	●
consistency	0.86	0.816	0.84
degree of coverage	0.251	0.28	0.266
Unique coverage	0.09	0.072	0.04
Consistency of solutions	0.809
Coverage of solutions	0.529
Note: ● = core condition present; ○ = core condition absent; ● = marginal condition present; ○ = marginal condition absent

(1) Densely populated and government-led

The grouping path of non-high regional GDP per capita, high population density, high government purchasing effort, and non-high average years of schooling as the core conditions, and non-high public sports funding as the missing marginal condition in grouping S1, can enhance the efficiency of public sports services in China. This path explains approximately 25% of the cases of efficient public sports services. Meanwhile, approximately 9% of the cases are explained only by this path. On one hand, the government enhances its support for public sports services, strengthens the construction and maintenance of sports facilities through direct investment as well as the procurement of sports equipment and services, and provides the public with a wider range of sports choices and opportunities, thus enhancing the efficiency of public sports services. On the other hand, in highly populated areas, the government has significantly increased the breadth of coverage and accessibility of public sports services by expanding sports venues and facilities and rationalising regional space, thereby meeting the sports needs of more people and enhancing the efficiency of public sports services. As a typical case, Hainan Province, due to its unique geographical location and developed tourism industry, has exhibited a significant increase in tourist arrivals in tandem with government investment in recent years. According to the preliminary statistics for 2020 published on the Chinese government website, in 2020, Hainan's tourism industry received 65 million domestic and foreign tourists, and the total tourism revenue attained RMB 86 billion ⁴³. Local governments in Hainan Province have included funding for national fitness and the construction, operation, and maintenance of public stadiums in their budgets, and have continued to invest in improving sports facilities and optimising the public sports service system in line with economic development. Under the influence of both high population density and strong government investment, Hainan Province has somewhat alleviated the difficulties occasioned by the underdevelopment of the regional economy, and the efficiency of public sports services has been continuously improved.

(2) Economic dynamism and resource-input-based

The grouping path of high regional GDP per capita, non-high population density, high public sports funding, and non-high average years of schooling as the core conditions and high government purchasing effort as the marginal conditions exist in grouping S2 and can enhance the efficiency of public sports services in China. This path explains approximately 28% of the cases of efficient public sports services. Meanwhile, approximately 7% of the cases are explained by only this path. 52 provinces are covered by the group including Shandong, Zhejiang, and Anhui. On one hand, an increase in regional GDP per capita signals economic prosperity, which not only enhances the people's ability to consume sports services, but also enables public sports services to receive financial support. The government and enterprises were able to increase their financial investment in the development of the sports industry, thus promoting the upgrading of the industrial structure. On the other hand, the increased investment in public sports funding can be utilized to strengthen the construction of sports facilities, coach training, and the organisation of sports activities and competitions. Meanwhile, the government guides the investment of social capital to enhance the capacity of public sports service provision, and further enhances its efficiency through the purchase of services. Zhejiang Province is a prominent example of this phenomenon: the recent Hangzhou Asian Games has undoubtedly accelerated the development of the province's sports industry during a critical period for the development of public sports, and the Wenzhou Zhongshi Ice and Snow City, along with three other sports service complexes, have been honoured with the title of National Typical Cases of Sports Service Complexes, which is the highest number of such cases in the country. Ningbo, as one of the first "Olympic Champion Cities" (recognised by the State General Administration of Sports), represents a robust foundation for the development of public sports services in Zhejiang, which exhibits one of the highest per capita GDP in the country and abundant public sports funding; thus, the province's level of public sports services has risen rapidly due to strong government promotion.

(3) Economically and educationally driven

The grouping path in grouping S3 with high regional GDP per capita, non-high population density, and high public sports funding, as well as non-high government purchasing effort as the core conditions, and high average years of schooling as the marginal conditions can enhance the efficiency of public sports services in China. This path explains approximately 26% of the cases of efficient public sports services. Meanwhile, approximately 4% of the cases are explained by only this path. The average years of schooling can enhance the efficiency of public sports services through its auxiliary role. The government and schools should strengthen physical education programmes and organise sports activities to cultivate students' interest and awareness in sports. Meanwhile, universal physical education programmes should be widely provided to encourage students to participate in all kinds of physical exercises and form good physical education habits. In Jiangsu Province, for example, construction in the field of education has immensely advanced. Under the leadership of the Jiangsu Provincial Party Committee and Provincial Government, departments such as the Provincial Development and Reform Commission and the Sports Bureau focus on enhancing people's health, thereby enabling them to pursue a better life. Jiangsu Province fully leverages its economic advantages by integrating multiple resources and vigorously promoting the national strategy of national fitness. Jiangsu Province basically completed the national fitness public service system and established a "10-minue sports and fitness circle" model of urban communities. Meanwhile, the province has become the first provincial public sports service system demonstration area in China ⁴⁴. With a high GDP per capita and sufficient financial investment in public sports, the efficiency of its public sports services has been significantly enhanced.

3.5 Robustness Tests

After drawing analytical conclusions using the fsQCA method, a robustness check of the adequacy of the obtained pathway configurations is required to verify the reliability of the results in more depth. Schneider and Wagemann proposed four operations for the robustness analysis: change of calibration, change of consistency thresholds, inverse test of the resultant variables, and addition and deletion of cases ³⁹.

Herein, two tests, namely change of calibration and inverse test of the outcome variable, were utilized; thus, the stability of the path groupings were tested. On one hand, the change of calibration was utilized to conduct the test by reducing the case calibration value used in the analysis from 0.95 to 0.9. The results of the study revealed three path groupings with an overall solution consistency level of 0.83. These three paths are subsets of path S1, path S2, and path S3, respectively. Therefore, it can be confirmed that the findings of this study are highly robust. On the other hand, this study utilized the reverse test of the outcome variable to analyse the combination of conditions that induced the outcome variable to be at a lower level. The results indicate that the consistency pertaining to the group path of reducing the efficiency of public sports services is 0.82, and the coverage rate is 0.65. By comparing the results of the 2 solutions of raising and lowering, it can be observed that the combinations of conditions in the lowering result are not proportional to the combinations of conditions in the raising result, and that there is not a group path that simultaneously raises the efficiency of public sports services and lowers the efficiency of public sports services. Therefore, the results of the study are robust.

4.1 Conclusions and recommendations of the study

Herein, 30 provinces in China were selected as samples, and the data envelopment analysis (DEA) and fuzzy set qualitative comparative analysis (fsQCA) methods were utilized to explore the paths of enhancing the efficiency of public sports services in each region, and the following conclusions and recommendations were obtained.

Conclusion: (1) The development of public sports service efficiency in China is unbalanced, and the service efficiency is in the following order from highest to lowest: central region > western region > eastern region. (2) Fuzzy set qualitative comparative analysis yields three grouping paths for enhancing the efficiency of China's public sports services: population-intensive and government-led, economic vitality and resource input, and economic and educational dual-driven. (3) Regional GDP per capita, population density, government purchasing efforts, and public sports funding are the core conditions for high public sports service efficiency in China.

Recommendations: First, the level of regional economic development and the rational allocation of public sports resources should be keenly considered. Economically developed regions have more resources and funds and are better able to support the development of public sports services. Nonetheless, substantial disparities exist in the economic development levels across various regions in China, leading to an uneven allocation of public sports resources. Therefore, it is recommended that local governments rationally allocate public sports resources according to the region's own level of economic development. In regions with faster economic development, the investment in public sports facilities should be increased appropriately to enhance the quality and coverage of services; in regions with slower economic development, policy support and financial support should be increased to enhance the level of development of local public sports services.

Second, (c) Increase funding for public sports to enhance the quality and level of services. The adequacy of funding is directly related to investment in the construction and maintenance of public sports facilities and the training of service personnel. Therefore, it is recommended that the government, social organisations, and enterprises increase their investment in public sports funding as a means of providing sufficient financial security for the advancement of public sports services. Meanwhile, the government can also formulate preferential policies to attract more social capital; thus, it can invest in the domain of public sports, thereby forming a diversified source of funding channels.

Third, Optimise the layout of public sports facilities by considering population density. The demand for public sports facilities is greater in densely populated areas, while the opposite is true for sparsely populated areas. Therefore, it is recommended that the government optimise the layout of public sports facilities by considering population density. In densely populated areas, the number and scale of public sports facilities should be appropriately increased to enhance the convenience and accessibility of services; in sparsely populated areas, public sports facilities should be constructed in accordance with local needs and characteristics, thus enhancing the efficiency and effectiveness of their use.

Fourth, Strengthening the government’s procurement capabilities and promoting the market-oriented operation of public sports services. By strengthening the government's purchasing power, the market-oriented operation of public sports services can be promoted, and more social forces can be introduced to participate in the provision of public sports services. This measure will not only alleviate the financial pressure on the government, but also increase the diversity and flexibility of public sports services and better meet the needs of the public. Therefore, it is recommended that the government further strengthens its purchasing efforts, formulate clearer purchasing standards and norms, strengthen supervision, and attract the diversified participation of social organisations and enterprises to ensure that the market-oriented operation of public sports services can achieve effective results.

Fifth, raising the average number of years of schooling enhances public awareness and participation in sport. Average years of schooling, as a marginal condition, plays a supplementary role in enhancing the efficiency of public sports services. The public with a higher level of education exhibits a deeper understanding of health and sports, and a higher willingness and motivation to participate in public sports activities. Therefore, it is recommended that educational institutions strengthen their education and publicity efforts to increase public awareness and participation in sports. Social organisations can popularise health knowledge and sports skills through various forms of sports education and publicity activities to stimulate the public's enthusiasm and motivation to participate in public sports activities. Meanwhile, the government can also encourage schools, enterprises, and public institutions to organise all kinds of sports activities through the development of pertinent policies and measures, thereby promoting the development of national fitness.

4.2 Research Limitations and Prospects

Despite the results of this study, limitations exist. First, the selected variables involve three dimensions, namely government, population, and economy. Although the study incorporates more variables that have already been demonstrated, there are still omissions, and it does not explore the impacts originating from the micro level. Due to data availability, this study analyses only one year's data and does not include case data across years, thus limiting the ability to interpret trends over time, which leads to findings that may not fully reflect the actual scenario. In addition, this study focuses on provincial administrative regions, and further exploration is still required to determine whether the findings are applicable to sub-provincial regions. Future research should optimise the quality of the study by adjusting variables and enriching cases to further enhance the scientific and comprehensive nature of the findings.

Data availability

The datasets used and/or analyzed during the current study are available from the corresponding author on reasonable request.

Author contributions

X.H and y.h.Z wrote the main manuscript text. x.y.M wrote the tables. All authors reviewed the manuscript. The author(s) read and approved the final manuscript.

Funding statement

National Social Science Foundation Project: Optimal Allocation of Public Sports Resources in Yangtze River Delta City Cluster under Regional Coordination Strategy (20BTY017);

Jiangsu Double Innovation Talent Project (JSSCRC2021544);

General Project of Social Science Fund of Jiangsu Province: Research on the realization mechanism and path of the Intelligent Public Service of National Fitness driven by digital economy (23TYB004).

Competing interests

The author(s) declare no competing interests.

Acknowledgements

The authors wish to express their sincere appreciation to all individuals involved in this study.

Ethics declarations

This study did not involve human or animal subjects, and thus, no ethical approval was required.

Additional information

Correspondence and requests for materials should be addressed to X.H.

Cui, L., Yang, Y. & Liu, X. The internal tension and relief of the modernisation of sports governance system in the community under the perspective of common wealth. Journal of Shenyang Sports Institute 1–7.
Guo, Z.-B., Zheng, L., Zhou, W. & Ningning., G. Research on the grouping and path of conditions affecting the allocation efficiency of public sports resources in China. Journal of Wuhan Institute of Physical Education 57, 50–57 (2023).
Fu, Z. & Xu, H. Realistic Dilemma and Promotion Path of Deep Integration of National Fitness and National Health. Journal of Guangzhou Sports Institute 1–13.
Zhang, F., Cui, J. & Wang, S. Discussion on the principles of performance evaluation of public sports services. Journal of Xi'an Institute of Physical Education 36, 404–409 (2019).
Zhang, Q. & Ma, Y. Evaluation of the efficiency of provincial public sports services in China and the influencing factors. Decision and Information 2 (2023).
Wei, W. & Jiahong., W. Construction and empirical research on the performance evaluation system of public sports services in China. Sports Science 35, 35–47 (2015).
Zheng, J. & Huang, J. The construction of evaluation index system of basic public sports service. Journal of Shanghai Institute of Physical Education 37, 9–13 (2013).
Fan, H. Standardised research on the evaluation index system of public sports service equalisation. Journal of Northwest Normal University (Social Science Edition) 54, 31–36 (2017).
Liu, L., Liu, Y., Wang, H. & Feng, S. Research on the construction of evaluation model and index system of sports public service equalisation in China. Journal of Wuhan Institute of Physical Education 49, 13–18 + 55 (2015).
Zhang, F. & Wang, J. Empirical study on performance evaluation of public sports services in China based on structural equation modelling. Journal of Shanghai Institute of Physical Education 44, 44–54 (2020).
Na-Mei., S., Yan-Ping., L. & Li., Z. Performance evaluation of sports public services: construction of indicator system and scoring calculation method. Sports and Science 33, 30–34 (2012).
Yuan, C. An empirical study on the evaluation and influence factors of the efficiency of sports public services in China. Sports Science 34, 3–10 (2014).
Nie, Z. Performance Evaluation of Public Sports Services Based on DEA Model. Journal of Chengdu Institute of Physical Education, 8–10 + 14 (2008).
Zeng, Q., Dong, K. & Zhong, P. Research on the technical efficiency of sports public services in China's provincial areas and its influencing factors. Journal of Wuhan Institute of Physical Education 49, 30–35 (2015).
Wang, J., Jia, H., Chen, Q. & Lv, S. Research on comprehensive evaluation of sports public service performance in China based on DEA model. Journal of Physical Education 27, 67–70 (2020).
You, G., Liu, H., Zhang, C. & Wang, D. Research on the benefits of competitive sports training in Chinese regions based on DEA model. China Sports Science and Technology 52, 26–33 (2016).
Liu, C. & Li, Y. Evaluation of the financial efficiency of public sports services in the western region of China and the study of influencing factors. Chinese Society of Sports Science. Compilation of Abstracts of the Eleventh National Sports Science Conference. College of Physical Education and Sports, Soochow University 2 (2019).
Shao, W. Analysis of mass sports financial input performance based on DEA model. Sports Science 34, 11–16 + 22 (2014).
Li, Y., Qiu, P. & Liu, C. Evaluation of public sports service efficiency of 31 provincial governments in China and its convergence. China Sports Science and Technology 56, 52–60 (2020).
Feng, W. Research on the effective supply mode and efficiency of public sports services in the national "South Jiangsu Modernisation Demonstration Zone" Suzhou University (2016).
Li, S. Research on the efficiency evaluation of sporting goods manufacturing industry:taking Hubei province as an example. Journal of Capital Sports Institute 29, 318–322 (2017).
Liu, C., Li, Y., Qiu, P. & Zhang, G. Research on the efficiency of financial investment in mass sports in central China - based on DEA-Malmquist model. Journal of Chengdu Institute of Physical Education 45, 43–50 (2019).
Zhu, P. Study on the efficiency of financial expenditure on sports public services in 31 provinces of China based on DEA. Journal of Physical Education 29, 66–71 (2022).
Hu, R., Zhu, J. & Zhou, M. The Group Path of Business Environment Ecology Promoting Total Factor Productivity Enhancement in Sports Industry–The Case of Yangtze River Delta Urban Agglomeration. Journal of Shenyang Institute of Physical Education 1–7.
Du, Y., Liu, Q., Chen, K., Xiao, R. & Li, S. Multiple Models of Business Environment Ecology, Total Factor Productivity and High-Quality Development of Cities - A Group Analysis Based on Complex System View. Management World 38, 127–145 (2022).
Du, Y., Li, J., Qiuchen., L., Zhao, S. & Chen, K. Group theory and QCA methodology under the perspective of complex dynamics: research progress and future directions. Management World 37, 180–197 + 112–113 (2021).
Qu, R. Research on Improving the Emergency Management Capability of Urban Underground Space. China University of Mining and Technology (2023).
Yuan, C. & Yang, Y. An empirical study on the level of equalisation of resource allocation for sports public services in China–an analysis based on the Thiel index. Journal of Wuhan Institute of Physical Education 48, 21–26 (2014).
Zhai, T., Guo, J., Ou, M. & Kong, W. Research on total construction land allocation in Jiangsu Province based on Gini coefficient. China Population-Resources and Environment 25, 84–91 (2015).
Zhu, Y. & Yu, W. Construction of evaluation index system for comprehensive allocation level of public sports resources in China in the new period. Journal of Wuhan Institute of Physical Education 54, 5–12 (2020).
Zhang, M. & Du, Y. The application of QCA methods in organisational and management research:positioning, strategies and directions. Journal of Management 16, 1312–1323 (2019).
You, G., Liu, H., Zhang, X. & Zhang, C. Study on the evaluation of input-output benefit and influencing factors of mass sports in China in 2012–2013 based on DEA-Tobit model. Journal of Tianjin Sports Institute 3 (2016).
Qiu, P., Li, Y., Liu, C. & Zhang, G. Research on financial input of public sports services in China:scale, structure and efficiency. Journal of Tianjin Sports Institute 34, 105–112 (2019).
Chen, W. The UK experience of public service quality improvement mechanism construction: an analysis based on the healthcare sector. Southeast Academic 1 (2012).
SchneiderC, Q. & Wagemann, C. Set-theoreticmethods forthesocialsciences:aguidetoqualitativecompar- ativeanalysis. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press (2012).
Peter, S., Julie, F. & Linda, D. E-government Services in the Local Government Context: an Australian Case Study. Business Process Management 12, 88 ~ 100 (2006).
Ragin, C. C. User's Guide to Fuzzy-Set/Qualitative Comparative Analysis 3.0. Irvine, California: Department of Sociology, University of California (2008).
Ragin, C. C. Redesigning Social Inquiry: Fuzzy Sets and Beyond. Chicago: University of Chicago Press (2010).
SchneiderC, Q. & Wagemann, C. Set-Theoretic Methods for the Social Sciences: a guide to qualitative comparative analysis. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press (2012).
Rihoux, B. & Ragin, C. C. Configurational Comparative Methods: Qualitative Comparative Analysis (QCA) and Related Techniques. (Los Angeles: SAGE, 2009).
Schneider, C. Q. & Wagemann, C. Doing Justice to Logical Remainders in QCA: Moving beyond the Standard Analysis. Political Research Quarterly 66, 211–220 (2013).
Jiao, J. L., Zhang, X. L. & Tang, Y. S. What factors determine the survival of green innovative enterprises in china? - a method based on fsQCA. Technology in Society 62 (2020).
Wang, B., Guo, D. & Guo, W. Opportunities and Challenges of the Unprecedented Changes on the Construction of Hainan Free Trade Port. Pacific Journal 31, 10–19 (2023).
Liu, H. Research on the path of building a strong mass sports province in Jiangsu in the new era. Research on Physical Education 2, 15–22 (2019).

No competing interests reported.

Download PDF

Editorial decision: Revision requested
09 Oct, 2024
Reviews received at journal
20 Sep, 2024
Reviewers agreed at journal
15 Sep, 2024
Reviews received at journal
12 Sep, 2024
Reviewers agreed at journal
11 Sep, 2024
Reviews received at journal
04 Sep, 2024
Reviews received at journal
04 Sep, 2024
Reviewers agreed at journal
04 Sep, 2024
Reviewers agreed at journal
03 Sep, 2024
Reviews received at journal
01 Sep, 2024
Reviewers agreed at journal
22 Aug, 2024
Reviewers agreed at journal
16 Aug, 2024
Reviewers invited by journal
24 Apr, 2024
Editor assigned by journal
23 Apr, 2024
Editor invited by journal
04 Apr, 2024
Submission checks completed at journal
04 Apr, 2024
First submitted to journal
13 Mar, 2024

You are reading this latest preprint version

Research on the group path of enhancing the efficiency of public sports services in China - Based on DEA and fsQCA analysis

Status:

Version 1

Abstract

Background

Materials and methods

Results

Conclusion

Figures

Introduction

Literature review

Research design

2.1.1 DEA

2.1.2 QCA

Findings

Conclusions, recommendations, and outlook

Declarations

References

Additional Declarations

Status:

Version 1