Consumer Perceptions of Sport Sponsor’s Corporate Social Responsibility Activities

Abstract

The popularity of sports provides sponsors with a unique opportunity to reach large numbers of customers. The aim of this study was to examine and understand consumers’ perception about the sponsors’ sport-related CSR activities, and the potential impact of such perceptions on sponsor image, attitude toward the sponsor, and attitude toward a sport property. As such, two studies were conducted to examine the proposed hypothesis. A quasi-experimental pre-test, post-test design with an experimental and control group was employed. Study 1 employed a cross-sectional quantitative survey design conducted in a classroom setting in the U.S. Study 2 was conducted in a longitudinal research design by replicating Study 1 with participants recruited from 12 countries. These studies provide evidence that the type of information regarding an organization’s sport-related CSR activities and sponsorship activity influenced participants’ perception of sponsor image and attitude toward the sponsor.

消费者对于体育赞助商企业社会责任活动的看法

体育运动的流行使得其赞助商能够有机会接触到大量的消费者。本研究为的是分析与理解消费者对于体育赞助商企业社会责任活动的看法, 并分析消费者的这种看法对于赞助商的形象、消费者对赞助商的态度以及消费者对体育产业态度的潜在影响。因此, 进行了两项实验以检验所提出的假设。按照准实验前测、后测的设计, 采用实验组与对照组进行研究。实验1, 在美国一个教室中进行横断面定量调查设计。实验2, 仿照实验1, 对来自12个国家的参与者进行纵向研究设计。这些实验的结果表明, 一个组织与体育相关的企业社会责任活动和赞助活动的信息类型会影响参与者对于赞助商形象的看法以及其对赞助商态度的看法。

keywords:

• Sport sponsorship
• corporate social responsibility
• sport marketing
• consumer behavior
• sport property

关键词:

• 体育赞助
• ；企业社会责任
• ；体育营销
• ；消费者行为
• ；体育产业

Disclosure Statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Notes on Contributors

Yoseph Z. Mamo is a Ph.D candidate in Louisiana State University. His research interests include corporate social responsibility in sport organizations and sport governance, sports marketing and sponsorship, and data analytics in sport management. His work has appeared in the Journal of Sport Management and Journal of Global Sport Management.

Jeffrey D. James (Ph.D., The Ohio State University, U.S.) is a Professor of Sport Management in the Department of Sport Management at Florida State University. Dr. James’ research focuses on the psychological connection people form with sport objects, whether that is a particular sport, team, athlete, or other sport object. Particular research interests include the processes by which individuals form a psychological connection to a sports team, and the cognitive and behavioral consequences of such connections. He has conducted research on the development and maintenance of fan loyalty, the transference of loyalty, and identification with a sports team. Areas of application include sport marketing, sport consumer behavior, sponsorship, and branding. Dr. James has over 70 refereed works published in various journals including the Journal of Sport Management, Sport Management Review, Journal of Sport Behavior, Leisure Studies, International Journal of Sport Management, Sport Marketing Quarterly, Journal of Business Ethics, and the Journal of Marketing Theory and Practice.

Damon Andrew (Ph.D., Florida State University, U.S.) serves as Dean and Professor of the College of Education at Florida State University. Dr. Andrew’s research interests can generally be classified into three areas: (1) leadership in sport, (2) the attraction of sport to participants, spectators, sponsors, employees, and stakeholders, and (3) the effective integration of individuals with disabilities into the sporting environment. To date, his scholarly productivity has included a published research methods and design textbook, 29 funded grants and contracts (total amount funded: >$2.54 million), 156 peer-reviewed articles, reviews, proceedings, and book chapters, and 104 presentations at national and international conferences. He has been elected to serve as Member-at-Large for the North American Society for Sport Management, Financial Officer for the Sport and Recreation Law Association, and as Vice Chair, Chair-Elect, and Chair of the Board of the American Association of University Administrators. He is currently the Senior Editor of the Journal of Higher Education Management and Associate Editor of the International Journal of Sport Management and Marketing, having previously served as the Associate Editor and Editor of the Sport Management Education Journal and Editor of the Journal of Applied Sport Management, in addition to service as an editorial board member for seven other journals. His scholarship has been recognized via the Applied Sport Management Association Scholar Lifetime Achievement Award, the National Association for Kinesiology in Higher Education Scholar Award, the Southern District Society of Health and Physical Educators Scholar Award, the Society of Health and Physical Educators Mabel Lee Award, and, in 2015, he was elected as a Fellow of the National Academy of Kinesiology.