Introduction Drawing on the Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology 2 (UTAUT2) and technological affordances theory, this study constructs a theoretical model to investigate key factors influencing adolescents' digital sports participation and its underlying mechanisms. With virtual-real integration as the core mediating variable, we examine how five antecedents—performance expectancy, effort expectancy, social influence, facilitating conditions, and hedonic motivation—affect active and deep sports participation through this mediator. Methods Data were collected from 417 adolescent participants using validated scales. Structural equation modeling was employed to test the proposed relationships, including direct and mediating effects. Results The results confirm that virtual-real integration serves as a critical behavioral mechanism linking technology affordances to digital sports participation. The UTAUT2 core variables demonstrate universal explanatory power, though their influence pathways diverge. Specifically, performance expectancy's effect on deep participation is fully mediated by virtual-real integration; facilitating conditions has no direct effect on either participation behavior, with its influence entirely mediated through virtual-real integration. The model explains 50.7%, 51.5%, and 43.1% of the variance in virtual-real integration, active participation, and deep participation, respectively, indicating strong explanatory power. Discussion By introducing virtual-real integration as a behavioral construct, this study extends the theoretical boundaries of UTAUT2, providing explanations and empirical evidence for the transformation process from technology acceptance to deep sports participation among adolescents. The findings offer insights for designers, educators, and policymakers: prioritize features that foster virtual-real integration, leverage community influence to establish blended online-offline sports communities, and improve accessibility conditions to support integrated behaviors, thereby effectively promoting technology-integrated sports activities among adolescents.
Wu et al. (2026) studied this question.