Participant expectations

People attend conferences for many reasons that have very little to do with the aims and objectives of the organisers. Those personal reasons are important to the participants and it is worthwhile bearing them in mind.

There are practical benefits, including the possibility of making contacts or meeting people who could further a career; they may be able to link into a new network and may be able to advance a project to "sell" themselves, their ideas and their concepts.

There are also psychological benefits. Conferences can cultivate a sense of belonging. Participants can be part of a group that others are not part of, and this can lead to a rise in prestige, as well as admiration and respect from those who were not there. They can feel acknowledged, having had their voice heard, having been noticed.

There are sociological benefits; a conference is a chance to assume and to demonstrate authority, power and responsibility.

Other benefits include the interest generated by the possibility of travel, meeting new people with similar interests who may become friends; catching up on the latest information and gossip; or simply the opportunity of a refreshing interruption to daily usual routine.