Dr. Yiqi Yang, PhD

Area of Study / Keywords

Sports and Tourism Marketing Leisure Sports Participation Cross-cultural Marketing Inclusion Policy Enactment

---

About

My academic journey has always been shaped by movement between different cultures, sport systems, and marketing environments. I completed my master’s and Ph.D. in Sport Management at the University of Ottawa, where I developed a strong interest in how people experience, participate, and sustain leisure sport participation. My research focuses on consumer behaviour, leisure constraints, negotiation, and inclusive sport environments, with current work expanding toward disability inclusion and policy practice in community sport. I am currently an Assistant Teaching Professor at the University of Alberta, where I teach in the University of Alberta–Beijing Sport University international joint program. In this role, I bring together sport management knowledge, cross-cultural experience, and an applied teaching approach to support students preparing for careers in sport, recreation, and international sport industries.

---

Research

Grounded in leisure constraints and negotiation theory, my work examines how intrapersonal, interpersonal, and structural factors shape participation patterns across different cultural and market contexts. Building on this core research agenda, I am increasingly interested in extending these frameworks to examine participation experiences among marginalized and minority populations, including immigrants and people with disabilities. Specifically, I explore how organizational practices, service environments, and policy contexts influence access, inclusion, and sustained participation in leisure sport.

---

Teaching

I have extensive teaching experience in sport management and marketing, sociology of sport at both introductory and advanced levels, adaptive physical activity, and recreation studies within both Canadian and international contexts. My teaching background aligns well with interdisciplinary sport business education by integrating management theory, consumer behaviour, policy, and contemporary industry issues into applied learning environments. I emphasize active student engagement, inclusive classrooms, and the practical application of theory to real-world challenges in the sport, recreation, and tourism markets.

Yiqi Yang, Eric MacIntosh

Managing Sport and Leisure. 2025 October; 10.1080/23750472.2025.2561978

---

Yiqi Yang, Eric Macintosh, Xiaoyan Xing

International Journal of Sports Marketing and Sponsorship. 2024 August; 10.1108/IJSMS-10-2023-0218

---

Yiqi Yang, Erika Gray, Keita Kinoshita, Eric MacIntosh

Journal of Intercollegiate Sport. 2024 February; 10.17161/jis.v17i1.19739

---

View additional publications