From goal framing to participation experience: a cognitive-affective process perspective on mass participation sport events

Purpose This study opens the “psychological black box” of participation experiences in mass participation sport events (MPSEs) by examining how goal frames are associated with experiential outcomes through cognitive engagement and psychological empowerment. Drawing on goal-framing theory and the cognitive-affective processing system (CAPS), it proposes a process model linking goal frames to participation experiences, with social connectedness as a boundary condition. Design/methodology/approach A quantitative survey was conducted with participants in Taiwan who had engaged in non-elite sport events within the past year (N = 405). Data were analyzed using PLS-SEM with bootstrapping, employing established scales to measure goal framing, cognitive engagement, psychological empowerment, event enjoyment, subjective vitality, and social connectedness. Findings All three goal frames were positively associated with cognitive engagement and psychological empowerment. Cognitive engagement was positively associated with both event enjoyment and subjective vitality, whereas psychological empowerment was positively associated with subjective vitality but not event enjoyment. Social connectedness significantly moderated the relationship between psychological empowerment and subjective vitality, while the other moderation effects were not statistically significant. The indirect effects further revealed two distinct pathways, with cognitive engagement operating across both experiential outcomes and psychological empowerment being associated with subjective vitality. Originality/value This study advances a process-based perspective by integrating goal-framing theory with CAPS to explain how goal frames are associated with experiential outcomes through cognitive engagement and psychological empowerment. It demonstrates that social connectedness functions as a selective rather than universal boundary condition.