Impact of the Social Benefits of Intramural Sports on Korean Students’ Quality of College Life and Loyalty: A Comparison Between Lowerclassmen and Upperclassmen

Participation in intramural sports plays an important role in the lives of university students. To understand the impact of intramural sports on university students, this study proposed a research model to investigate the relationships between social benefits of intramural sports, quality of college life, and students’ loyalty toward the university. Also, the differences in the effects of intramural sports’ social benefits on quality of college life and student loyalty between lowerclassmen and upperclassmen groups were compared. In this study, the lowerclassmen refer to freshmen and sophomores, and upperclassmen are including juniors and seniors in the university. Students at a large university located in Seoul, Korea (N = 296) completed a questionnaire immediately following their participation in intramural sports. The results found that the perceived social benefits of intramural sports had a positive influence on students’ quality of college life, which in turn, had a positive impact on their loyalty toward the university. However, the relationship between the social benefits of intramural sports and loyalty was not found. Moreover, the results of the multi-group analysis revealed the significant difference between lowerclassmen and upperclassmen. Particularly, impacts of intramural sports’ social benefits on the quality of college life and loyalty are stronger for upperclassmen. The findings suggest that university administrators should offer various intramural sports programs and services to satisfy students’ need and further enhance their loyalty toward the university.