Factors Influencing Identity Formation with an Emphasis on Consumer Culture among Athletes (A Case Study: Male Bodybuilders in Kerman City)

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

1 Ph.D. Student, Cultural Sociology, Dehaghan Branch, Islamic Azad University, Isfahan, Iran

2 Associate Professor, Department of Sociology, Shahre-Qods Branch, Islamic Azad University, Tehran, Iran

3 Assistant Professor, Department of Sociology, Zahedan Branch, Islamic Azad University, Zahedan, Iran

10.22034/jsmk.2026.69144.1192

Abstract

This study aimed to examine the factors influencing the identity formation of male bodybuilders and the role of consumer culture in this process in the city of Kerman. A mixed-methods approach (qualitative and quantitative) was employed. The qualitative phase was conducted using the classical grounded theory method, with 25 semi-structured interviews carried out until theoretical saturation was reached. The quantitative phase was designed using a descriptive-analytical method, with 385 questionnaires distributed through simple random sampling. The statistical population included active male bodybuilders (with a minimum of six months of experience) in Kerman gyms.Qualitative findings revealed that identity formation is shaped by factors such as economic constraints, social pressures, cultural norms, media advertising, gender, technology, and psychological needs. Athletes engage in creative consumption and personal efforts to achieve distinction and social acceptance. Quantitative analysis using multiple regression (R² = 0.67) confirmed that media factors (β = 0.351) and economic factors (β = 0.301) had the strongest impact.The results suggest that consumerism in bodybuilding is a multilayered process influenced by socio-cultural structures. With smart policy-making—such as the use of technology, education, and targeted advertising—it can be directed toward healthier behavioral patterns.

Keywords

Main Subjects

References

Andrews, D., & Silk, M. (2012). Sport and the reproduction of cultural values and aesthetics.
Bauman, Z. (2024). Liquid modernity revisited: Identity and consumption in a globalized world. Polity Press.
Beck, U., & Lau, C. (2025). Reflexive modernization: Politics, tradition and aesthetics. Stanford University Press.
Bourdieu, P. (1984). Distinction: A social critique of the judgement of taste. Routledge.
Christiansen, A. V. (2019). Civilized muscles: Building a powerful body as a vehicle for social status and identity formation. Social Sciences, 8(10), 287.
Coakley, J. (2009). Sports in society: Issues and controversies (13th ed.). McGraw-Hill Education.
Featherstone, M. (1991). Consumer culture and postmodernism. Sage Publications.
Giddens, A. (2024). The constitution of society: Outline of the theory of structuration. Polity Press.
Giulianotti, R. (2015). Sport: A critical sociology. Polity Press.
Jodamus, J. (2025). Masculine aesthetics and food ascetics: An autobiographical exploration of fitness religion in Cape Town. Journal of African Cultural Studies, 1–15.
King, S., & Calder, J. (2024). Multidimensional identity as bricolage: Indexing race and place in Bakersfield, California. American Speech: A Quarterly of Linguistic Usage, 1–44.
King, A., Patel, R., & Nguyen, H. (2024). Fluid identities: Bodybuilding and the aesthetics of modernity. Cultural Studies Review, 30(1), 45–62.
Liu, H., & Zhang, Y. (2024). Globalization and sport consumption. International Journal of Sports Marketing, 25(3), 68–73.
Liu, J. Z. (2024). Improvisation, collective structure, and culture change: A theory of bricolage. Anthropological Theory, 24(2), 120–138.
Mariah, L. W. (2020). What it means to be a bodybuilder: Social media influencer labor and the construction of identity in the bodybuilding subculture. The Communication.
Miller, T. (2023). Rethinking masculinities in sport and media. Routledge.
Naqdi, A., Mammar, T., & Dastani, M. (2018). A sociological analysis of the redefinition of women's social identity in light of consumerist tendencies (A case study of women born in the 1930s, 1940, and 1950s in Isfahan). Applied Sociology, 29(4), 1–20. https://doi.org/10.22108/jas.2018.110010.1334) in Persian(
Shilling, C. (2012). The body and social theory (3rd ed.). Sage Publications.
Smith, A., & Stewart, B. (2024). Sports management and consumer behavior. Journal of Sport Management, 38(2), 45–49.
Stevens, M., Rees, T., Coffee, P., Steffens, N. K., Haslam, S. A., & Polman, R. (2017). A social identity approach to understanding and promoting physical activity. Sports Medicine, 47(10), 1911–1918.
Tabatabaei, A., Zarei, B., Kamran Dashtgerdi, H., & Ahmadi, S. A. (2022). The process of national identity formation in Iran: A territorial perspective. Geography Quarterly, 20(72), 19–36. (in Persian)
Tabatabai, A., Zarei, B., Kamran Dashtgerdi, H., & Ahmadi, S. A. (2025). Sport consumption in developing cities: A sociocultural perspective. Journal of Consumer Culture, 25(1), 25–29. (in Persian)
Tajfel, H., & Turner, J. C. (1986). The social identity theory of intergroup behavior. In S. Worchel & W. G. Austin (Eds.), Psychology of intergroup relations (pp. 7–24). Nelson-Hall.
Turner, B. (2019). Rituals of consumption and sport identity. Cultural Sociology, 13(4), 501–519.
Weininger, E. B., & Lareau, A. (2024). Cultural capital and social inequality. Sociology Review, 33(3), 53–55.
Zhao, P. (2025). Sport, culture, and the liquid self. Journal of Sport and Social Issues, 49(1), 20–35
Journal of Sport Management Knowledge
Volume 4, Issue 1 - Serial Number 7
September 2026
Pages 30-40

Files

History

  • Receive Date: 14 September 2025
  • Revise Date: 10 February 2026
  • Accept Date: 21 February 2026

Share

How to cite

Statistics