The Impact of Subjective Camera in Sports on Arousal and Enjoyment

Abstract

Although scholars have generated much research examining enjoyment of mediated sports, much of it has failed to explore how visual production elements shape viewer response. This study examines the impact of one increasingly common technique, subjective camera, on viewer arousal and enjoyment of game play. Participants viewed multiple plays from a college football game that varied in excitatory potential as well as viewing angle. Game play viewed via subjective camera elicited a greater sense of presence in the mediated environment and elicited more frequent arousal responses compared to traditional sideline perspectives of game play. However, the impact of viewing angle on enjoyment as well as self-reported arousal was dependent upon the exciting or dull nature of game play. Invoking the dynamics of excitation transfer theory, we discuss the potential explanations for this relationship as well as its implications for sports broadcasters.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

R. Glenn Cummins

R. Glenn Cummins (Ph.D., University of Alabama, 2005) is an Assistant Professor in the College of Mass Communications at Texas Tech University. His research interests include the impact of various structural, content, and user characteristics on the enjoyment of media entertainment.

Justin R. Keene

Justin R. Keene (M.A., Texas Tech University, 2009) is a dual-Ph.D. student in the Department of Telecommunications and the Cognitive Science program at Indiana University. His research interests include motivated cognition, differential cognitive processing of sports fans, and cognitive modeling.

Brandon H. Nutting

Brandon H. Nutting (M.A., Texas Tech University, 2009) is a doctoral candidate in the College of Mass Communications at Texas Tech University. His research interests include cognitive processing of mediated messages and time perception.