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COPYRIGHT 2007 University of South Alabama
Sport has become a pervasive aspect of the lives of those who are involved in it either actively as sport participants or vicariously as sport spectators. Although sport undoubtedly offers social and psychological benefits to those who consume it (Sloan, 1989), elucidating consumers' social cognitions and the social psychology that undergirds sport consumption is a daunting task. Consequently, a substantial amount of research on the dynamics of sport consumption has focused on constructs related to the psychological and/ or sociological dimensions of self and the situations in which sport consumption takes place.
Concerning research on self and sport consumption, Harrison, Lee, and Belcher (1999) illustrated how bits of information and salient attributes that comprise an individual's self-schema (which includes self-knowledge, self-cognitions, and self-perceptions) influences their motivations and desires for participation in certain sports or leisure activities. Mahony, Madrigal, and Howard (1999) revealed that self-monitoring, which refers to a personality tendency regarding one's sensitivity and willingness to modify their behaviors in accord with the norms of a situation and their desired presentation of self (Mahony et al, 1999; Miller & Thayer, 1989; Snyder, 1974), influenced behavioral loyalty to a sport team. Cialdini, Borden, Thorne, Walker, Freeman, and Sloan (1976) demonstrated how the self-presentation of university students' was apparently influenced by the performance of their university's sport team such that the students made conscious attempts to visibly and verbally enhance their self-image after their team's successful performance by wearing identifying clothing and using the pronoun "we". In a series of studies, Branseombe and Wann (1991) showed how identification with a sport team positively influenced the self-concept of sport fans. Warm, Royalty, and Roberts (2000) also demonstrated how self constructs (such as self-esteem and identification) influenced the manner in which sport fans sought to present themselves as followers of a specific team when describing themselves to others in a hypothetical scenario involving a fan of a rival team. Bizman and Yinon (2002) also evidenced the manner in which self-esteem influenced sport fans' emotional responses.
Regarding the uniqueness of the social setting or situation of sport consumption, Melniek (1993) contended that the sport setting offers a place for spectators "to enrich their social psychological lives through the sociable, quasi-intimate relationships available" (p. 1, abstract). According to Underwood, Bond and Baer (2001), "the kinship with the group (fellow fans) can contribute greatly to a sense of self, where self is psychologically intertwined with the fate of the team and other fans" (p. 5). Wakefield (1995) confirmed that spectator's perceptions of their reference group opinions influenced their situational involvement with the sport experience (i.e., their general interest and their perceived significance and importance of being in attendance at the game).
Notwithstanding the increasing importance of research on self and the social situations influencing sport consumption, Duncan (1983) long proclaimed the need to also ascertain the self in the context of the meanings of spectator sports to sport audiences that contribute to their deep commitment (to the teams and/or to the experience). As she asserted, "It is the symbolic dimensions which scholars must study to understand the power of spectator sports' attraction" (p. 29). Herein was the impetus for this study.
Symbolic Interactionism
Symbolic interactionism is an interactionist theory, which helps to illuminate how human beings define their experiences and give meaning to their identities, behaviors, realities, and social interactions (Hewitt, 2000). A central focus of symbolic interactionism is on self. Symbolic interactionism seeks to examine the symbolic meanings associated with individual's experiences in relation to their self-identity as created by and based on interactions with others (Coakley, 2001; Hewitt, 2000). This perspective asserts that self is one of the central objects being negotiated in human interactions. It also insists that human beings act towards themselves and situations with purpose and it views self both as "an object that is created as we interact with others and the process through which this object is created" (Hewitt, 2000, p. 49).
In addition to a central focus on self, symbolic interactionism also emphasizes situation, which is defined as "an organization of perception in which people assemble objects, meanings, and others, and act toward them in a coherent, organized way" (Hewitt, 2000, p. 72). Symbolic interactionism posits that individuals often organize their conduct in accord with their expectations of others and depending upon their familiarity with the situations. Consequently, definitions and meanings attached to situations often govern individual and group behavior. Hewitt (2000) stated that defining the situation provides a map or abstract presentation of where the individual's 'place' is. Furthermore, the definition of a situation allows individuals to anticipate and understand the actions of others, while also providing a mechanism for the individuals to see themselves.
Three basic premises of symbolic interactionism are: (a) human beings act toward things/experiences on the basis of the meanings those things/experiences have for them, (b) the source of the meanings for things/experiences are derived from or arises out of social interaction with others, and (c) the meanings of things/experiences are handled in and modified through an interpretive process used by the individual in dealing with the things he/she encounters (Hewitt, 2000). Each of the basic premises and postulates of symbolic interactionism may be demonstrated in the sport spectating experience.
For example, as Haggard and Williams (1992) contended, sport and leisure activities may have a perceived identity that may influence meanings consumers affix to them such that individuals may affirm their preferred leisure identity images by participating in the respective activities. Warm, Hamlett, Wilson, & Hodges (1995) suggested that sport fans are conscious of their sense of self when in a sport setting, as many of them often internalize their sport experiences in a manner that influences their self-concepts and governs their behaviors. According to Underwood, et al. (2001), sport spectators comprise a distinct subculture whose consumption patterns (as a distinct subgroup that identifies with certain activities or products) give meaning to their lives. These findings are in accord with the first premise, implying that sport spectating may be a meaningful and symbolic experience.
Regarding the second premise, audiences and reference groups of other spectators in...
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