Multidimensional Associations Between Digital Competence and AI-Related Competencies in Sport Management Students

This study examined associations between perceived digital competence and AI-related competencies among sport management students in Türkiye, focusing on dimension-specific relationships and differences by formal AI education and AI tool use. A cross-sectional survey included 420 undergraduate and postgraduate sport management students. Digital competence was assessed with the 29-item Turkish COBADI®, and AI-related competencies with the 34-item MAILS. Confirmatory factor analysis, HTMT, bootstrapped path modelling (5000 resamples), and independent-samples t-tests with correction for multiple comparisons were conducted. COBADI® aggregate scores were positively associated with MAILS aggregate scores (β = 0.438, p < 0.001, R2 = 0.192, f2 = 0.238). The five digital competence dimensions accounted for 24.1% of the variance in AI Literacy, 21.8% in AI Self-Efficacy, 13.7% in Create AI, and 12.6% in AI Self-Competency. After FDR correction, significant dimension-specific associations were observed for Problem-Solving, Information and Data Literacy, Digital Content Development, and Communication across different AI-related competency domains, with statistically significant local effects ranging from negligible to small in magnitude. After Holm correction, students reporting formal AI education had higher AI Literacy scores, whereas students reporting AI tool use had higher MAILS aggregate, Create AI, AI Self-Efficacy, and Digital Content Development scores than those reporting no AI tool use. No statistically significant gender differences were observed. Perceived digital competence and AI-related competencies were associated in a multidimensional and non-uniform pattern among sport management students. These findings may inform future curriculum development and intervention-based research in sport management education, but they do not establish that targeting specific digital competencies, providing formal AI education, or using AI tools will produce improvements in AI-related competence.