Gatecrashing: an exploration of community attitudes and experiences

Abstract

PurposeThis article aims to present the findings from a study designed to gain a general understanding of community attitudes and experiences associated with gatecrashing at outdoor music festivals (OMFs).Design/methodology/approachThis study was an exploratory, descriptive study with data collection involving a web based, survey tool and convenience and snowballing sampling methodologies. A total of 196 people from across Australia participated in the study.FindingsThe key findings were that 15.3 per cent of the respondents were supportive of others gatecrashing, 65.3 per cent were against others gatecrashing while the remaining study participants did not care either way (19.4 per cent). About 39 per cent of the respondents had considered gatecrashing an event however the majority of this group (86 per cent) did not go through with these intentions. The remainder of the respondents (61 per cent) had never personally considered gatecrashing an event. In total, 11 per cent of study participants reported having gatecrashed events and there was generally a level of planning associated with their gatecrashing experiences. The male respondents were more supportive and more likely to have considered gatecrashing an event than the female participants. Males also made up the majority of the study participants that had gatecrashed events.Research limitations/implicationsThe collection of data involved the use of convenience and snowballing sampling methodologies and voluntary participation. As these methods are non‐probability based and so generalisations from this sample group were not be discussed in terms of the wider population.Practical implicationsIt is expected that these findings will inform the work of event organisers and regulatory authorities involved in managing gatecrashing at these events.Social implicationsThis study provides supportive evidence to inform education campaigns designed to reduce the impacts of gatecrashing at outdoor music events.Originality/valueThis study contributes to the body of knowledge on gatecrashing behaviour within the context of OMFs.