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Measuring Sponsorship Effectiveness: Examining the Connection

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Measuring Sponsorship Effectiveness: Examining the Connection MEASURING SPONSORSHIP EFFECTIVENESS: EXAMINING THE CONNECTION BETWEEN FAN IDENTIFICATION AND PHYSIOLOGICAL RESPONSE TO SPORTS SPONSORSHIP EVALUATION AFTER EXPOSURE by MICHAEL BRANDON DEVLIN ANDREW C. BILLINGS, COMMITTEE CHAIR LANCE KINNEY JAMES LEEPER REGINA LEWIS SHUHUA ZHOU A DISSERTATION Submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in the Department of Communication and Information Sciences in the Graduate School of The University of Alabama TUSCALOOSA, ALABAMA 2013 Copyright Michael Brandon Devlin 2013 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED ABSTRACT This dissertation investigates the extent to which exposure to a sponsorship during images from a highly arousing sporting event affects cognitive, affective, and behavioral evaluations of the sponsorship. Additionally, this study examined the role that fan identity to a particular sport has on cognitive capabilities and sponsorship evaluations. Mere exposure and fan identity theories were employed to measure influence on sponsorship outcomes. Despite the quantity of existing conceptualized models regarding sponsorship effectiveness, the advertising field lacks sufficient empirical investigation of interaction effects, particularly in a controlled environment. An experiment was employed to empirically examine how exposure to different types of sponsors, (both functionally congruent and incongruent to the sport) impacted recall, recognition, attitude, and purchase intentions, while gauging an individual’s fan identity and emotion (pleasure and arousal) during the event. Self-report was used to measure emotion (pleasure and arousal), and psychophysiology measures were used to collect physiological arousal, a measurement all but absent in fan identification and sponsorship research. Immediate exposure to a sponsor had no impact on evaluations; however, fan identification to the sport was a significant predictor for sponsorship success. Furthermore, sponsors that were functionally congruent to the sport received more favorable evaluations than those that were functionally incongruent. Differentiating congruency in terms of its functionally rather that articulation added a new level and definition to consider when examining sponsorship effectiveness. Lastly, the results contradicted previous studies, finding that no relationship ii existed between psychophysiological arousal and recall and recognition in this study. The results could be due to the length of time of exposure or the stimuli type, warranting future research. In terms of fan identification, the study supports previous tenets of fan identification to a sport that is moving from niche to mainstream status. Secondly, one’s fan identification to the sport is less influenced by geographical location and community affiliation, antecedents that were previously labeled as strong predictors for one’s identification. Fan identification is a strong predictor for all UFC-related consumption, involvement, liking, and self-reported arousal. Interestingly though, this study found differences between levels of physiological arousal and one’s level of identification--but not in the same direction as previous studies. Low identified fans showed higher levels of physiological arousal than highly identified fans, suggesting that either the novelty or arousing nature of the sport superseded identity, warranting future areas of research. Lastly, this study shows support for the role that fan identification and sponsorship congruency have on sponsorship success. The findings in this experiment support conceptualized models, as well as empirical findings using other quantitative methods, such as surveys. iii DEDICATION To my grandfather, Jonny Tafoya: a continuous source of inspiration and encouragement, proving anything is possible with honesty, hard work, and dedication. iv LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS AND SYMBOLS a Cronbach’s index of internal consistency ANS Automatic nervous system CNS Central nervous system IAPS International Affective Picture System IRB Institutional Review Board M Mean: the sum of a set of measurements divided by the number of measurements MMA Mixed Martial Arts NBA National Basketball Association NFL National Football League p Probability associated with the occurrence under the null hypothesis of a value PI Purchase Intention PGA Professional Golfer’s Association PNS Parasympathetic nervous system rs Spearman’s rho product-moment correlation SCR Skin conductance response t Computed value of t test UFC Ultimate Fighting Championship v ACKNOWLEDGMENTS First, I would like to thank God for helping me endure the many challenges encountered throughout the years, and blessing me with all the opportunities and amazing people He has brought into my life. Next, I would like to acknowledge my parents, Gary and Angela Devlin, who have always supported, sacrificed, and loved unconditionally so their children would succeed at life. They have been with me every step of the way, both professionally and personally, and I am grateful to have such a terrific family. To my brother and sister, Josh and Amanda, thank you for tolerating and supporting me these past few years! I love you guys! I would also like to thank my grandparents, Jonny and Anita Tafoya for all their cards and words of encouragement. I’m blessed that I get to share this moment with them both. I truly couldn’t have done completed this dissertation, yet alone the doctoral program, if it weren’t for a few key individuals. First, I must acknowledge Natalie Brown, the most supportive, giving, and unselfish individual I have ever met. She helped make me a better scholar, and more importantly, a better person. Without her support, I may not have even been in the program after my first year, and I am so thankful God put her in my life. Secondly, Dr. Andrew Billings, my dissertation chair, advisor, mentor, and friend. The phrase, “I couldn’t have done this without your help,” gets overused too often; however, I truly could not have done this without his help. Dr. Billings, your careful attention to detail, prompt response to questions and revisions, and professional guidance along every step of the way enabled me to have success, and I was so fortunate to have been able to work and learn from you. I can only hope that I can pay it forward, and can be as good of a mentor to a young scholar as you were to me. vi I’ve been fortunate to be surrounded by a tremendous and talented group of individuals while at the University of Alabama. To my dissertation committee, thank you for your guidance throughout this process. Dr. Kinney, thank you for your guidance in sport sponsorship, and I hope to continue to work with you in the future. Dr. Lewis, thank you for bringing excitement and energy to the project. To Dr. Leeper, a huge thanks for all your help in the data analysis process. Lastly, thank you Dr. Zhou for your assistance, both with this dissertation and as our graduate student advisor. To the faculty/staff in the APR department, thank you for your trust and professionalism. You truly have set a standard of what I should expect in my future position. I’d like to especially acknowledge Dr. Joe Phelps for giving me the opportunities to grow professionally in the department, allowing me to better myself as an educator before taking the next steps. Last but not least, I would like to acknowledge Nathan and Laura Brown who opened their home and hearts to me and have been like a second family. I’d like to thank my friends in the “Den of Snakes”: Ray Harrison, Kenon Brown, and Natalie. Thank you for providing the laughs and distractions necessary to endure this long process. I cannot wait to dominate at conferences. Thank you to my roommate, Jeff Walker, a great scholar and teacher. I was fortunate to have you as a roommate during our final two years at program! And thank you to my longtime friends, Alex Vescovi, Dave Webster, Jonny Peters, and everyone from NI who supported my decision to leave Texas to pursue a doctorate at Alabama. vii TABLE OF CONTENTS ABSTRACT .............................................................................................................................. ii DEDICATION ......................................................................................................................... iv LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS AND SYMBOLS ..................................................................... v ACKNOWLEDGMENTS ....................................................................................................... vi LIST OF TABLES ................................................................................................................... xi LIST OF FIGURES ............................................................................................................... xiii CHAPTER 1- INTRODUCTION ............................................................................................. 1 The Importance of Sports Sponsorship ......................................................................... 1 The Growth of Ultimate Fighting Championship as a Consumer Sport ....................... 4 Ultimate Fighting Championship Sponsorship Content ............................................... 6 Purpose of the Dissertation ........................................................................................... 7 Significance of the Dissertation .................................................................................... 9 Overview of the Dissertation .....................................................................................
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