Advisor
Stotlar, David kent, 1952-
Committee Member
Gray, Dianna P.
Committee Member
Heiny, Robert L.
Department
Sport Administration
Institution
University of Northern Colorado
Type of Resources
Text
Place of Publication
Greeley (Colo.)
Publisher
University of Northern Colorado
Date Created
5-1-2015
Genre
Thesis
Extent
176 pages
Digital Origin
Born digital
Description
Much of the previous sport attendance research focuses on the motivations for attendance, while there are a limited number of studies that focus on the constraints and barriers to attendance, or sport non-attendance. Even fewer investigations focus simultaneously on the motivations and constraints to attendance in the sport management literature. Past research has indicated that investigating both attendance factors contributes to a more complete understanding of sport consumer behavior, Further, it appears that while football attendance has been an area of research that has received some attention, there is a dearth of work specifically analyzing the lower levels of football, in particular the Football Championship Series (FCS) division. Therefore, the current investigation contributed to this research area that is lacking inquiry, and contributed to the area of sport consumer behavior in regards to both to motivators and constraints to attendance. This research aimed to better understand the internal constraints, external constraints, internal motivators, and external motivators that impacted student attendance to FCS football games. The data were collected from currently enrolled students at a mid-sized mountain university that competes at the Football Championship Series division, as this consumer is a strategic target of athletic departments for sport attendance, as well as future support of athletics to aid in the continued existence of collegiate athletic endeavors. Data collection with pen and paper and on-line surveys resulted in 305 usable surveys. The data were analyzed to determine which items and factors impacted attendance positively and negatively. Measures of central tendencies indicated FCS student attendance was positively influenced by the motivators of Social, Community Attachment, Drama, and Promotions/Giveaways, while Commitments impacted attendance negatively. The regression results indicated attendance was impacted positively by the Internal Motivators of Team Attachment and Player Attachment, while attendance was negatively impacted by the Internal Constraint of No Interest From Others, the External Constraint of Leisure Alternatives, and the perceived Internal Motivator of Level Attachment. None of the External Motivators were relevant in the selected regression model. Overall, it appears there are several variables that impact student attendance both positively and negatively at the FCS level. Gaining a better understanding of the motivations and constraints to attendance can lead to a more complete understanding of sport consumer behavior, and aids marketers to better retain, and increase the consumption of, their current student attendees by knowing which factors increase or decrease their attendance to the contests.
Degree type
PhD
Degree Name
Doctoral
Language
English
Local Identifiers
MayerJr_unco_0161D_10394
Rights Statement
Copyright is held by author.
