CHAPTER 1 –

Event Studies – academic field devoted to creating knowledge and theory

about planned events

TOPIC 2

Common Characteristics of Planned Events:

1. Temporary in Nature
Events are a temporal phenomena, with start and end points
Anticipation and recollection can be just as important as the experience
itself
2. Confined in Single or Multiple Location
3. Gatherings of People
Events provide experiences for: Participants, Guests, Spectators and
Stakeholders
4. Often Displays of Rituals
Events can be seen as a form of social interactions beyond family
structures
Many events have cultural, religious or mythological significance
Characterized by rituals, symbols, and artefacts which themselves denote
meanings
5. Unique Occurrences
6. Designed, Organized and Coordinated
Themes: music, art, sport
Settings: where they are held
Consumables: souvenirs, food and drink, rides
Services: toilets, security, first aid
Programs: what goes on

Time & Space

Events take place at a given time and place, and cannot be
replicated.
Events occopuy and transform spaces.

PLACE IDENTITY – SYDNYEY MARDI GRAS

HALLMARK EVENTS – ADELAIDE THE ARTS
ICONIC EVENTS – F1; WORLD CUP; OLYMPICS

Planned Events: live, social events created to achieve specific outcomes, including those
related to business, the economy, culture, society and environment

TYPEOLOGY:
Can be categorized by: FORM, FUNCTION, EXPERIENCE & MEANING

FORM – can be thought of as different event types

- programmed elements of style
 - style: characteristics way of doing things (uniqueness)
- sports events: athletic competition
- conference: learning mechanisms
- festival: theme, symbolism, emotional stimulation

FUNCTION:
e.g.
: public policy (economic, social, cultural)
: business
: professional event
: management

Typeology by function:
• Hallmark events • Iconic events • Premier or prestige events • Mega/major/minor
events • Media events / Publicity stunts / Pseudo events • Cause-related events •
Corporate events • Spectator (passive) and interactive/participants(active) events •
Community (local) events
Experience:
What happened, what you did, and how you felt about it (was it personally self-fulfilling)

Like: a shared cultural event (pilgrimage, blessing of the fleet, big day out)
+ the experiences of the different stakeholders, were there a variety of things to
experience during the event

Meaning:
What did you get from the event, what did it mean to you?
- Personal, social, cultural, economic, corporate, anticipatory, evolving, reflevtive
(the legacy of the event).

Pseudo Events:
are staged, scripted and counterfeit events that are:
- Not spontaneous
- Planned primarily for the purpose of being reported or reproduced
- Ambiguous in terms of its relation to the underling reality of the situation (lack of
authenticity)
- Intended to be a self-fulfilling prophecy
Example::: press conferences, advertisements, speeches

TOPIC 3

The Experience Economy:

Four Realms of Experience:

1. Entertainment
2. Aesthetic
 3. Education
4. Escapist

Communitas & Liminality

Communitas: a sense of community that excels the typical

social norms and convention

Liminality (to be in a liminal state)

: which is the conditioin outside or on the peripheries of
Everyday life; any condition that is not concerned with
Obligatory tasks (e.g. economic/political tasks) of
Everyday life

THREE DIMENSIONS OF THE EVENT EXPERIENCE:

1. Conative: dimension of experience describes actual behavior, the things people
do including physical activity
2. Cognitive: dimensioin of experience refers to awareness, perception, memory,
learning, judgement, and understanding or making sense of the experience
3. Affective: dimension of expereicne concerns feelings and emotiions, preferences
and values.

; sensational experiences of the human experience: VISUAL QUALITIES, AUDITORY,

TASTES & SMELLS, TOUCH

Experience Continuum in Events

- Level 1: Pure Entertainment (Passive)
(spectating sports or watching a performance)
- Level 2: Engagement (Participation)
(participating as an athlete, performer, volunteer, or organizer)
- Level 3: Co-creation (User Innovation)
(participants became part of the show)
- Level 4: Liberating Experiences (Self-Entertainment)
(spontaneous happenings / reject formal planning)
List of (possible) Event Stakeholders:
Paying customers, guests, regulators, sponsors/donors, suppliers/vendors, volunteers,
paid staff, the media, mthe public, participants, performers, producers/organisers, VIPs,
officials/security
Personal Meanings:
Communitas (as a result of belonging and sharing, from reaffirmation of roots or of
connections and values) • Esteem: validation of oneself in the opinions of others; self-
worth; prestige and reputation (such as may be realized though competitive or
intellectual accomplishments) • Learning, enlightenment (for example, from new
cultural experiences or a connoisseur’s appreciation of food, art, or music • Self
discovery, self actualization, understanding, wonder • Transformation (religious,
spiritual, personality or character, renewed, motivated) • Redemption and atonement
(from failure or sins) • Mastery (from skills, physical triumph) • Accomplishment or
success (from business, trade, commerce, networking, creativity, artistic expression)
Social Meanings – meanings given to events by social groups, communities and society
as a whole. Event types or forms are to a large extent ‘social constructs’, with collectively
assigned and generally recognized meanings.

Cultural meanings – “if at the heart of every festival are a place and a place-based
community actively reproducing its shared values and belief systems, there is an
important sense in which these cultural meanings are intentionally produced to be read
by the world”
- A related challenge stems from the fact that meanings are easily and often
contested, based on different values and belief systems within the same
community.

Economic Meanings – these meanings are shaped by politicans and industry rather than
the general public or travelers themselves

Purpose –
Ownership, Governance and Organizational Structure
1. Private: e.g. event management companies
2. Government Agencies: e.g. parks & recreation authorities, tourism bodies, local
councils
3. Not-for-profit: e.g. clubs, charities, and event specific organizations

Options for Events Policy and Strategy

- Direct Provision – government or agencies produce and own events
- Equity Approach – do not produce, but invest in events (equity = capital invested)
- Sponsorship.- act like corporations and make sponsorship deals for specific benefits
(image making, social marketing, etc)
- Facilitate – through various policy initiatives, facilitate event creation or operation

Public Policy – consists of a goal-directed process by governments and their agencies,

manifested in laws, regulations, decisions (both actions and inactions) and intentions of
governments regarding specific problems or general areas of public concern.

Policy Domain – broad area of government responsibility or interest, such as culture,

economy, environment or health, which usually encompass a variety of departments,
agencies, laws, regulations, and programs.

Institutions of the State:

Central government, administrative departments, government authorities, courts &
judiciary, enforcement agencies (police, etc. includes control of gambling and alcohol and
work health safety), other levels of government, government business (travel offices/bureau,
agencies, tour companies), regulatory authorities (land zoning, marine and harbors), other
semi-state orgs.

- Institutional Frameworks of the State: legislators, courts, government agencies / law

enforcement and regulators / quasi-government organizations, public-private
partnership (PPP), other organizations with power (trade unions, industry bodies,
political parties)
Is Public Sector Involvement Justified

The Public Good

o Argument: benefits that accrue to society as a whole, can only be achieved
through support & investment in events, social equity
o Key Criteria: must fit into accepted policy domain, the benefits are seen to be
substantial, rules & accountability
Ideology
o Rooted in philosophies, value sets and even religious beliefs
o Political parties with different ideologies have different approaches to event
funding and regulation
 Government intervention versus non-intervention
 Proactive versus a problem solving approach
Social Equity: access to a public or service (to the benefit of public investment) is based on
principles of fairness, justice and need
Government involvement (subsidies) justified in that access is then
guaranteed for all
o Counter-Argument: it can distort the market, subsidized events may still
charge high prices
Market Failure:
o Argument: free market may not provide sufficient incentive or reward to
stimulate entrepreneur activity or to generate public goods and services.
Governments may aid the private sector through tax breaks and other
mechanisms
o Counter-Argument: competition with subsidized events can distort the
market place, public sector “saves” money through downsizing and
outsourcing
Return on Investment:
o Argument: substantial profit (tax gain) can be made from event tourism
An alternative source of government income
Publicly funded facilities can be managed, for profit, by private
companies
The Law of Commons
o Culture, public lands and facilities, scenery and other natural resources are
considered to be ‘common’ assets
o Benefits should accrue to everyone – the “stewardship” principle in
sustainability theory
o Common assets used without regulation are potentially depleted over time

Other counter-arguments…
Funds given to special interest groups may attract opposition from private enterprise
or other unfunded groups

Cultural and/or political groups/forces opposed to spending public money on:

- Elitist projects (performing arts, etc)
- Harmful Activities (risky sports)
FOUR MAIN TYPES OF PUBLIC POLICY MAKING IN EVENTS

1. Economic Policy
2. Cultural Policy
3. Social Policy
4. Environmental Policy

Economic Policy & Events

Argument:
- Event development is now seen as a strategic policy for economic growth
- Investments can be justified because events can attract tourists and media attention.
- Leveraging of events to foster trade & economic diversification by:
o Urban Renewal possibilities through event construction
o Short-term growth in constructiioin and allied industries
o Use of events for image building, branding, re-positioning or place marketing

Counter-Argument
- A highly competitive field - & many destinations lack policy direction
- Events are not ‘economically’ viable

Cultural Poliicy & Events

Argument: the arts and culture benefit the community
Social equality argument – arts for all people (not everyone can afford the arts without
government action)
Counter-Argument: the arts are only for the elites, only ‘safe’ form of arts are
encouraged, commodification of culture / loss of authenticity

Social Policy & Events

Related to cultural policy in many ways: Social intergration, community development,
combating social problems (e.g. anti-social behavior), urban redevelopment and renewal,
health and witness (sporting & edutainment events).

Argument:
Combat social problems, enhance health and wellness (sporting and edutainment events),
develop community resilience / a sense of place, social marketing (stop-smoking campaigns)

Counter-Argument:
Some sports can glorify violence, can cause social problem (hooliganism), social benefits are
difficult to measure

Environmental Policy & Events

RRR standards – reduce, reuse, recycle / Land use planning & controls / Noise reduction /
Traffic management (Public transport, Car Pooling Rewards, Alternative transport options)

ARGUMENT
Environmental education
Availability of green event operations
Sustainability as a global movement
COUNTER-ARGUMENT
Negative effects on environment (excessive
waste, water use, noise, congestion)
Foster consumptive attitude
Any development results in ‘irreversible’
change
Externalities – event organizer will be able
to ignore costs and impacts beyond the
event

Regulating the events sector:

- Police, traffic, fire, health and safety, building inspection, land use, noise control,
labor, environmental, consumer protection