Jeffrey D. James

The Psychological Continuum Model: a conceptual framework for understanding an individual's psychological connection to sport.

Research on sport spectators and sport fans is examined to develop a model of the psychological connections that individuals experience with sports or sport teams. The Psychological Continuum Model (PCM) is introduced. It provides an extended view of sport spectator and sport fan involvement, and outlines general parameters that may mediate the relationship between an individual and a sport or team. The PCM provides a framework that may account for an individuals movement from initial awareness of a sport or team to eventual allegiance. Four levels are described and differentiated: awareness, attraction, attachment and allegiance. The model proposes that the psychological connections between an individual and a sport or team are governed by the complexity and strengthening of sportrelated mental associations. The PCM provides a model that integrates current research and suggests new directions for future research and applications.

The role of cognitive development and socialization in the initial development of team loyalty.

Using Piagets (1970) theory of cognitive development, the present study examines when children first begin to demonstrate team loyalty. An interview and testing protocol was administered to children aged 5-6 and 8-9. Preoperational, transitional, and concrete operational children were capable of demonstrating a psychological commitment to a favorite team that was resistant to change, but not the behavioral consistency indicative of loyalty. The current study demonstrates that children form preferences for sports teams early in life and that they are capable of forming a commitment to a sports team as young as age 5. The present study is one of the first efforts to include a transitional phase in the assessment of cognitive development. Results from the interviews showed that fathers were the most influential socializing agent relative to introducing children to sports teams and that the gender stereotype associating sports with males was prevalent among children in both age groups.

Motivational Factors Influencing the Behaviour of J. League Spectators

The Japanese Professional Soccer League (J. League) began in 1993 and was the first professional soccer league in Japan. After an initial period of strong interest, spectator support for the League has declined. The primary purpose of the current study was to develop a means for measuring selected motives influencing the behaviour of J. League spectators. The second purpose was to then use the measurement scale to examine the impact of these motives on spectator behaviour. Seven motives for J. League spectators were identified in the current study (drama, vicarious achievement, aesthetics, team attachment, player attachment, sport attachment, and community pride), based on prior attempts to measure the motives of sport consumers (e.g., Madrigal & Howard, 1995; Wann, 1995), and an understanding of Japanese culture and J. League spectators. Items were generated to measure each of the seven motives. Confirmatory factor analysis of the scale based on a survey of J. League attendees indicated that seven factors extracted 57% of the variance and were suitable for further analysis. Additional analysis indicated the relative importance of the motives in predicting variance in length of time as a fan and frequency of attendance. Sport attachment predicted the most variance in length of time as a fan, while team attachment was the strongest predictor of frequency of attendance. These results have implications for sport practitioners seeking to improve their marketing efforts and for sport researchers seeking to better understand the motives of sport consumers.

Stepping Outside the Lines: Developing a Multi-dimensional Team Identity Scale Based on Social Identity Theory

Within the realm of sport management, team identification, a type of group identity, has been examined as a uni-dimensional construct (Wann & Branscombe, 1993). Research in social psychology, however, has examined group identity as a multi-dimensional concept. The current study examined team identity as a multi-dimensional construct. The TEAM*ID scale was developed based on the work of Ashmore, Deaux, and McLaughlin-Volpe (2004). Initial tests of reliability and validity of the proposed scale were completed based on a pilot study and feedback from an expert panel. Confirmatory factor analysis was performed on data collected from undergraduate students at a large South Eastern university (N=311) to test the group identity constructs. Six dimensions (Public evaluation, Private evaluation, Interconnection of Self, Sense of Interdependence, Behavioural Involvement, and Cognitive Awareness) were retained from the analysis. A comparison of the TEAM*ID scale with a portion of the Collective Self-Esteem Scale (Luhtanen & Crocker, 1992) and a revised version of the Psychological Commitment to Team Scale (Mahony, Madrigal, & Howard, 2000) provided initial evidence of nomological validity.

Brand Community Development Through Associated Communities: Grounding Community Measurement Within Social Identity Theory

The purpose of this study was to measure consumer identification with several (brand) communities using a multidimensional psychometric community identity instrument grounded in social identity theory. Use of such instrumentation allowed the authors to examine how consumer identification with associated communities affected identification with the brand community. Data were collected on four different community identities (college football team, university, city, state) among students at the three major Florida universities. Results indicated that identification with the respective teams was affected by identification with other communities surrounding the team. This interplay among community identities had a strong subsequent effect on consumer behavior.

The role of gratitude in sponsorship: the case of participant sports

This paper proposes a framework that focuses on instilling feelings of gratitude within consumers. Participant sports events are often funded largely by sponsorship revenues, and their consumer base is considered to represent an identifiably unique market. These conditions are argued to be favourable for integrating a gratitude framework. A model is presented that depicts gratitude as a mediating mechanism within a reciprocal relationship between the sponsor and the consumers. It includes purchase intentions as the behavioural outcome of gratitude. The findings suggest that incorporating feelings of gratitude may prove to be advantageous for potential sponsors within the participant sports industry.

Marketing the University to Student-Athletes: Understanding University Selection Criteria

ABSTRACT As competition for top athletes intensifies, and as challenges associated with recruitment increase, universities must develop and employ recruiting strategies based upon attributes that student-athletes identify as important to their decision-making process. The study investigates college choice decision attributes of student-athletes, identifies key choice criteria, and examines gender and ethnicity issues related to student-athlete college choice. Three of the four decision attributes identified as being most important focused on academic characteristics of the university. Male student-athletes placed a higher value on athletic characteristics of the university as compared to female student-athletes, and females placed a higher value on academic characteristics as compared to male student-athletes.

Seven Deadly Sins of Manuscript Writing: Reflections of Two Experienced Reviewers

ABSTRACT Acceptance rates of quality journals in the sport management field are typically below 20%. We have identified seven problems that often prevent submitted manuscripts from being accepted: (1) Failure to derive research from theory and/or a failure to consider more than one potential theory to support the research. (2) No synthesis of existing, similar information already published within the sport field. (3) A lack of assessment of the validity of prior research. (4) Creation of new scales when existing scales work sufficiently well. (5) Limiting potential explanatory variance. (6) Not reporting the variance explained and/or a failure to discuss the meaningfulness of the results. (7) A lack of reporting viable alternative explanations when the data do not support the hypotheses or focal model. We discuss each of these issues and provide examples, both good and bad.

A Ten-Value-Type Framework Associated With Spectator Sports: A Qualitative Inquiry

Prior value studies in sport settings have been focused on participation rather than spectatorship. This study is an initial step in examining the values associated with spectator sports. Interviews and focus groups were utilized in this qualitative study within four progressive phases for triangulation, transferability, and constant comparative assessment. A total of 54 individuals participated in the study. Because values were subjectively perceived at the highest level of abstraction reflecting desirable preference experiences, the interviews were designed to include seven categories of questions: Three categories dealt with observed behaviors and implied metaphors, and four categories including questions comparing spectator sports and sport participation, religion, other leisure activities, and substitutes. Grounded data techniques guided the coding procedure. Using the transcriptions and notes from 26 interviews and three focus groups, five coders were used to provide evidence of interrater reliability. Based on the results of the data analyses, a 10-value-type framework was developed in relation to spectator sports: (a) Enjoyment (pleasure and satisfaction), (b) Sociability (social interaction through sport spectating), (c) Identity (enhancing self-esteem), (d) Status (pursuing social recognition), (e) Moral, (f) Spirituality (inner peace, strength, meaning, and purpose in life), (g) Epistemic, (h) Aesthetics, (i) Ritual (sports spectating becomes a series of formal and serious acts followed regularly and invariably as end-experience), and (j) no or negative values. Different from Kahle’s (1983), Maslow’s (1970a), and Schwartz’ (1992) value theories, the framework was specifically associated with spectator sports and is expected to better predict spectator sport behavior than does a scale measuring motivations of sports fans.

Role of the Internet Site in the Promotion Management of Sports Teams and Franchise Brands

This study examines the role that a website plays in the development of fan allegiance and as a promotion management tool for a sports team and brand. Research indicates that the combination of sports, media (television in particular), and sponsorships when employed in an integrated manner, can develop consumer connection to brands. This study suggests that the Internet is also an important part of an integration strategy of sports, media, and promotion. By working with a new team in the AIFA indoor football league, the researchers were able to determine what helped make fans allegiant to the team before the franchises inaugural game. The results show that even before the team played its inaugural home contest, fans had become allegiant to the franchise brand and team by using the team internet site. These results indicate that an internet site can serve as a strong promotional tool in an integrated marketing plan of sports, media, and promotion to move fans toward brand loyalty and toward primary goals of the firm, including increased sales.