Search Results

The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationships among gender, type of sport, motives, and points of attachment to a team for spectators of selected intercollegiate sports. The significant MANOVA results indicated that gender explained 2% of the variance in motives and 3% of the variance in points of attachment; type of sport explained 4% and 7% of the variance in motives and points of attachment, respectively. A canonical correlation analysis suggested three significant and meaningful variates, which together showed a shared variance between motives and points of attachment in excess of 70%. This suggests that collegiate marketers and managers might want to design their marketing communications to emphasize the relationships among motives and points of attachment rather than trying to segment their fan and spectator base by gender or by type of sport.

Volunteers in sport are indispensable, but there is a dearth of systematic research in volunteer retention. The focus of this study was to investigate three different volunteer-retention models incorporating person–task fit (P–T fit), person–organization fit (P–O fit), managerial treatment (MT), empowerment, and intention to continue volunteering. Using structural equation modeling, data from 515 volunteers in the American Youth Soccer Organization (AYSO) were compared across a fully mediated model, a partially mediated model, and a direct-effects model. The results of the fully mediated model, in which empowerment mediated the relationship between P–T fit, P–O fit, MT, and intention to continue volunteering, fit well and better than the other two models. P–T fit, P–O fit, and MT jointly explained 46.8% of variance in empowerment, and empowerment explained 13.5% of variance in intention to continue. Volunteer organizations need to focus on empowering their volunteers through the fit of the volunteer to the task, organization, and appropriate managerial treatment.

It has been determined that advertising tends to mitigate a negative trial effect among low-product-involvement consumers when it precedes the negative trial but has no impact on beliefs and attitudes when the trial is positive. This case study investigated the effect of advertisements on sport consumers’ satisfaction and conative loyalty in spectating sport. Specifically, the authors examined spectators who were novice attendees at an intercollegiate men’s basketball game (N = 206). Two groups (home team winning, home team losing) were investigated to determine whether advertising mitigated the negative product–trial effect (losing). The results indicated that although advertising did not mitigate losing specific to immediate satisfaction with the game outcome or decision to attend, it did seem to mitigate losing on conative loyalty.

The growth of college sport over the last several years, combined with increased competition for the sport consumer dollar, has created a need to understand spectator consumption behavior. In addition, the impact of a new football program can generate interest that influences future spectator spending decisions. Using identity theory as a framework, the current study examined the differential effects of past sport consumer behaviors on various future sport consumer intentions within the context of a new college football program. Consumption intentions included attendance, sponsor support, and merchandise purchases. Furthermore, this investigation helped to determine how much variance past behaviors would explain in behavioral intentions after controlling for nine points of attachment. Data were collected from spectators of a Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) football program located in the Mid-Atlantic region. The findings suggest past behavior predicted future intentions; however, the amount of variance explained varied dramatically depending on specific past behaviors and points of attachment. These results can help sport marketers develop strategies to capitalize on the interest generated through new athletic programs.

Retaining volunteers is a critical issue for sport organizations utilizing volunteer labor. Based on the theory of planned behavior, the theory of work adjustment, psychological contract theory, two frameworks (person-environment fit and empowerment), and previous empirical results, we proposed and tested three models to explain intention to continue volunteering with 224 volunteers from the Special Olympics State Summer Games. We accepted a model in which Empowerment fully mediated the relationship between Person-Environment Fit and Intention to Continue Volunteering. We also found that Psychological Contract Fulfillment moderated the relationship between Fit and Empowerment.

Sport video games (SVGs) are a popular form of sport media and sponsorship, and advertising in SVGs is increasingly common. This study assessed the effectiveness of SVG in-game advertisements in 3 consumption domains: cognitive, affective, and conative. An experimental study was designed with 89 gamers randomly assigned to 1 of 2 conditions: (a) experimental, playing an SVG with advertisements, or (b) control, playing an SVG without advertisements. Consumption background and identification level were incorporated as covariates to ensure group equivalence. Participants responded to a questionnaire measuring brand awareness, brand attitude, and purchase intentions. MANCOVA revealed that after controlling for the effect of covariate variables, the experimental group had a significantly (p < .05) greater mean brand-awareness score than the control group. Mean brand-attitude and purchase-intention scores were not significantly (p > .05) different between groups. The findings indicated that SVG in-game advertising was effective in creating awareness.