Sport and Identity Was, to a Great Extent, Influenced by My Personal Interests
FAN IDENTITY AND IDENTIFICATION DRIVERS - STOKING THE FLAMES OF THE PHOENIX By Markus Rühl A thesis submitted to the Victoria University of Wellington in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Management Studies Victoria University of Wellington 2010 ABSTRACT ABSTRACT Fans are of highest importance for the financial success of sports clubs (van Leeuwen, Quick, & Daniel, 2002). However, the nature of fandom and the meaning that fans place upon their relationship with a sports club varies and different degrees of fandom exist (Wann & Branscombe, 1990). Whilst much research has been done on the assessment of fan identification, little work has contributed to its practical application. For example, for sport marketers to actively strengthen their fan base, more than a mere assessment of the identification level of their fans is necessary. It is suggested that knowledge about the underlying identification drivers of fans with different identification levels is needed to inform any managerial action. This research aims to enhance understanding about the relationship between the level of fan identification and the drivers of identification, and it does so, via a study of New Zealand‟s only professional football club Wellington Phoenix FC. A cross-sectional convenience sample of 517 Wellington Phoenix fans was surveyed using both online and researcher administered/respondent completed questionnaires. The Sports Spectator Identification Scale (Wann & Branscombe, 1993) was used to measure fan identification, and participants were categorized into five identification levels. Findings show that ten of 16 identification drivers are correlated with the identification level. Of particular interest are findings that indicate a mediating impact of the identification level on specific relationships.
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