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An Attributional Analysis of the “Sports Buddy” Phenomenon among Generation Z Youth and Pathways for Its Guidance

Author(s)

Mengna Suo*

Affiliation(s)

Beijing Institute of Graphic Communication, Beijing, China *Corresponding Author

Abstract

"Sports partners," as a typical form of "partnership socializing" in sports contexts, have rapidly gained popularity among Generation Z youth in recent years, becoming an important lens for observing changes in contemporary youth social behavior. This study integrates online ethnography and semi-structured in-depth interviews, using mainstream social platforms such as Weibo, Xiaohongshu, and Douyin as field sites, and conducts interviews with 20 Generation Z youth aged 18–30, systematically examining the types, causal mechanisms, and potential risks of the 'sports partner' phenomenon. The study finds that Generation Z youths' 'sports partner' practices display three typical forms: time-space equivalent type, light-relationship type, and mutually beneficial type. In terms of causation, the fragmentation of time and health anxiety brought by accelerated society constitute the underlying reality logic; algorithmic matching and location-based services provide structural empowerment; belonging to sports-interest circles fulfills young people’s identity needs; and the emotional scarcity in the context of urban atomized living serves as a deeper individual motivator. At the same time, 'sports partner' socializing also carries issues such as oscillation between 'social addiction' and 'social fatigue,' solidification of sports circle barriers, and information verification risks triggered by matching with strangers. In response, this paper proposes a systematic set of guiding pathways along three dimensions—returning to the real-world relationships of the “nearby,” proactively breaking through circle barriers to achieve cross-circle integration, and strengthening the ecological governance of digital social spaces—with the aim of providing a reference for Generation Z to establish a healthy and sustainable mode of athletic socializing.

Keywords

Generation Z; Sports Buddy; Athletic Socializing; Precise Companionship

References

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