Contents for SMQ Issue 11:1
| Case Study – Root, Root, Root for the Home Team? An Image Theory Explanation of Fan Behavior in Transplant-Heavy Markets Authors: John S. Clark, Kurt Schimmel, Dave Synowka |
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| Gender Differences in Perceptions and Attitudes Toward the LPGA and Its Tour Professionals: An Empirical Investigation Authors: Marlene A. Dixon |
| Abstract: Sport marketing literature suggests that consumers?perceptions of and attitudes toward a product affect their consumption of that product (Mullin, Hardy, & Sutton, 1993; Shank, 1999). In the case of women’s professional golf, the product is comprised of the LPGA Tour; LPGA clothing; a variety of golf equipment including clubs and shoes; and the LPGA Tour Professionals themselves, as marketed to commercial sponsors. Using Long’s (1991) typology regarding attitude formation, the purpose of this study was, first, to provide a theoretical basis for understanding factors contributing to the attitudes and perceptions of golf participants regarding the LPGA and its Tour Professionals. In particular, the study explores attitude differences between males and females as well as differences that exist among active golf participants (golfers) who have had varying levels of exposure to the LPGA Tour. Surveys were distributed, and 489 were collected from golfers at 13 private and public golf courses in 12 different states. Results revealed a number of differences between male and female golfers but none between volunteers and nonvolunteers. The results suggest a need for further exploration of the factors that may influence the perceptions male and female active golf participants have of golf and of the LPGA. |
| Environmental Factors Associated With Spectator Attendance and Sport Authors: Janet S. Fink , Galen T. Trail, Dean F. Anderson |
| Abstract: Sport spectating is a popular leisure activity in the United States; however, the study of sport spectator consumption behavior has been limited. The current study examines the differences that exist between genders and between spectators at men’s and women’s intercollegiate basketball games regarding several categories of dependent variables. The three categories were (a) environmental factors associated with game attendance (ticket pricing, friends, family, and promotions), (b) present behavior of spectators (merchandise consumption, media consumption, and wearing of team paraphernalia), and (c) future behavior of fans (continued loyalty, future attendance, and future merchandise consumption). Data were collected from spectators at two men’s (n = 531) and two women’s (n = 751) intercollegiate home basketball games. Multivariate analysis of variance results for the main effects of team gender and spectator gender were significant, while the interaction effect was not. Fewer gender differences were found (5 of 12) compared to the number of gender- of-team differences (10 of 12) when univariate results were examined. Results are discussed in detail, and implications for practice and for future research are suggested. |
| Characterizing Consumer Motivation as Individual Difference Factors: Augmenting the Sport Interest Inventory (SII) to Explain Level of Spectator Support Authors: Daniel C. Funk, Daniel F. Mahony, Lynn Ridinger |
| Abstract: The central focus of this study was to examine how individual difference factors could be used to explain various levels of consumer support for a specific sport property. The present study extends the Sport Interest Inventory (SII) in order to enhance current understanding of consumer motives in relation to sport in general and women’s competitive sport in particular. Confirmatory factor analysis confirmed the 54-item Sport Interest Inventory, measuring 14 individual difference factors related to spectator interest in soccer. Multiple linear regression analysis revealed that five motivational characteristics?a) sport interest, (b) team interest, (c) vicarious achievement, (d) role modeling, and (e) entertainment value—explained 54% of variance in level of spectator support for women’s professional soccer. These results suggest that augmenting traditional spectator measures offers a better understanding of motivational characteristics in different sport situations and of the impact these motivations have on behavior. Implications for marketers of women’s professional sports and of sports in general are discussed. |
| Sport Sponsorship in China: Transition and Evolution Authors: Lizhong Geng, Rick Burton, Connie Blakemore |
| Abstract: This study conducted a gap analysis (a study of differences between two groups) to compare major sport organizations with most of the commercial corporations for sponsorship applications in China. The study was undertaken with the possibility that Beijing would host the 2008 Olympic Games and that sport marketing and sport sponsorship would therefore increase in visibility in China over the next 7 years. The study yielded three major findings. First, the problems that emerged in sport marketing in China were identified as strategic issues. Second, a formidable philosophical gap separates the sport centered and the marketing centered mindsets of the entities involved and threatens the success of sport sponsorship programs in China. Third, while Chinese sport is moving from an Olympic-events orientation to a cooperative position combining sport and marketing, the transition is a slow one. To help overcome the barriers that currently prevent successful sport sponsorship programs in China, this work observes specific and distinct relationships between sponsors and sport properties. A step-by-step management and marketing approach is recommended as well. |
| Sport Marketing and the Law – Olympic Trademarks: Citius Altius Fortius— Faster Higher and Stronger Trademark Protection for the USOC and its Protected Marks Authors: Anita M. Moorman |
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| Perspectives – A Decade of Evolution: The Sport Industry Authors: David K. Stotlar |
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| Sole Influence: Basketball, Corporate Greed, and the Corruption of America’s Youth Authors: Tim DeSchriver |
| Abstract: a book review of Sole Influence: Basketball, Corporate Greed, and the Corruption of America’s Youth, by Dan Wetzel and Don Yaeger, published by Warner Books (2000) |
