Understanding participant engagement in green sport events through the PSCI framework: when fairness meets authenticity

Purpose This study examines how incentive effectiveness in green sport events depends on the alignment among structural design, symbolic meaning, and contextual capacity. It introduces the propositional set on configurational incentives (PSCI) to explain why identical incentive schemes yield different participation, satisfaction, and stewardship outcomes across community-based ecotourism contexts. Design/methodology/approach We conducted a multi-method investigation combining structural equation modeling (SEM), response surface analysis (RSA), and non-inferiority testing (NI–TOST) on survey data from 374 participants across Thailand's peri-urban green sport events. The analysis rigorously tested five core propositions within the CIF framework, examining complementarity effects, equivalence relationships, contextual moderation, directional asymmetries, and equifinality pathways. Findings Structural incentives influence outcomes primarily through mechanisms of perceived fairness and authenticity. Cross-dimensional congruence – specifically alignment between structural and symbolic attributes – significantly amplifies engagement and satisfaction outcomes. Critically, misalignment effects are asymmetric: symbolic deficits generate disproportionately larger outcome reductions than structural deficits. Community resource capacity functions as a contingency moderator, intensifying congruence effects under resource-constrained conditions. While symbolic meaning substantially amplifies outcomes, it demonstrates limited substitutability for structural incentives, indicating complementary rather than interchangeable effects. Research limitations/implications Cross-sectional data limit causal inference; longitudinal replication is recommended to validate temporal stability. Practical implications Event managers should design incentives that transparently balance participant and community benefits, embed authenticity cues, and assess community capacity before implementation. Originality/value The study advances causal reasoning in sustainable event management by integrating symbolic interpretation and contextual readiness into a geometry-based model of incentive alignment. PSCI provides an auditable reasoning framework for analyzing complex socio-behavioral systems where outcomes depend on multi-dimensional congruence rather than linear causality.