Psychophysiological Responses to Gendered Sports Announcing: Effects of Announcer Gender on Audience Arousal and Emotion

ABSTRACT

During live sporting events, female announcer teams for men’s sports are becoming increasingly common, however, there is a lack of research examining viewers response to this.. Using psychophysiological measures, this study examines sports fan arousal and depicted emotion while watching sports highlights with female announcers, comparing it to the same highlights using male announcers. Results show that male participants were more aroused than female participants when watching sporting events announced by male and female announcers. However, female participants had a more significant emotional response. Sports fandom was also found to be a predictor of arousal. Results are interpreted using social identity theory.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Emily Dirks

Emily Dirks (MA, Texas Tech University) is a Ph.D. student in the University of Alabama’s College of Communication and Information Systems. Her research interests are focused in sports, race, gender and activism.

Sean R. Sadri

Sean R. Sadri (Ph.D., University of Florida) is an Assistant Professor of Sports Media in the Department of Journalism and Creative Media at the University of Alabama. His research primarily examines sports journalism in the modern media ecosystem, gender dynamics in sports media, and evolving perceptions of media credibility.

Travis R. Bell

Travis R. Bell (Ph.D., University of South Florida) is an Associate Professor of Digital and Sports Media in the Zimmerman School of Advertising & Mass Communications at the University of South Florida. He has published more than 30 journal articles and book chapters in sport and media communication.

Joshua R. Jackson

Joshua R. Jackson (MA, Louisiana State University) is a Ph.D. student in the University of Alabama’s College of Communication and Information Systems. His research interests lie in the convergence of sports, race, social advocacy, and identity.

Andrew C. Billings

Andrew C. Billings (Ph.D., Indiana University) is the Ronald Reagan Chair of Broadcasting in the Department of Journalism & Creative Media at the University of Alabama. His research interests typically reside in the intersection of sport, media, and issues of identity.