Research of Multiple Driving Mechanisms for High-Quality Development of Chinese Sports Schools

Building a sports power requires the cultivation of a large number of reserve talents in competitive sports, with sports schools serving as the main base for talent development. To explore the multiple driving mechanisms behind the high-quality development of sports schools, this study adopts a systems-thinking approach to construct an ecosystem for their high-quality advancement. Using methods such as fuzzy-set qualitative comparative analysis, it examines the configurational paths of 36 sports schools across China. The study identifies goal orientation, organizational leadership, teaching quality, resource allocation, open collaboration, and policy support as key factors in the high-quality development ecosystem. The interplay of these factors forms four configurational pathways: organization-led, collaboration-innovation-oriented, feature-dominated, and balanced-development types. Among these, the policy environment shaped by government governance performs a crucial role in promoting high-quality development in sports schools. Regionally, the eastern region relies on policy-resource synergy, the central region emphasizes collaborative resource coordination, while the western region addresses its weaknesses through endogenous drivers or external support. A multiple driving mechanism framework—based on “basic conditions, driving logic, and behavioral choices”—further reveals that internal drivers include leadership, multi-stakeholder collaboration, regional branding, and systemic integration. Accordingly, the research makes the following recommendations for the high-quality development of sports schools: adopting a systems-thinking approach to plan development, enhancing policy support for institutional transformation, optimizing teaching quality and resource allocation, and leading the differentiated development of sports schools with precise policies.