Using equity theory to understand non-host city residents’ perceptions of a mega-event

This study draws on equity theory to understand non-host city residents’ perceptions of a mega-event and the corresponding host city. In-depth interviews were conducted with 14 residents of the non-host city three years prior to the commencement of the 2018 Gold Coast Commonwealth Games. Results revealed that while non-host community residents believed the host city would receive an increased level of funding for hosting the event, they did not perceive this funding as an inequity. Rather, residents of the non-host city compared the two cities on the basis of the tourism product, and stated their belief that the core advantage of their city’s tourism product was that it was less developed. The non-host city residents therefore viewed receiving further resources for development as both unnecessary and undesirable. The findings are consistent with the tenets of equity theory, which suggests that tensions were absent because inequity was not felt.