Micro-Scholarship, What it is, How can it help me.pdf
Sport & Society
1. SPORTS & SOCIETY ARTICLES DISCUSSION QUESTIONS What Makes Fans Tick? 1) Explain the 8 basic motives that drive people to be sports fans. 2) How does the "social identity theory" explain our attraction to spectator sports? 3) Explain the concepts of "BIRGing" and "CORFing." 4) What is a "Deep Fan?" 5) What are the differences between blue collar and white collar fans? What Makes Fans Crazy About Sports? 1) What is the #1 "passion driver" of most NFL fans? 2) What is the #1 "passion driver" of most MLB fans? 3) Explain the following 3 groups of baseball fans: A) Field of Dreamers B) Team Obsessors C) Family Connectors 4) What sports property had the largest U.S. fan base in 2009? 5) What sports property had the largest U.S. fan base in 2001?
2. Sport is the subject of much conversation, reading material, leisure activity, and discretionary spending. Over one-tenth of the World Almanac is devoted annually to sport, more than is allotted to politics, business, and science. USA Today , the most widely read newspaper in the United States, devotes one-fourth of its space to sport. Even the Wall Street Journal has a weekly sports page. There are numerous cable television networks providing twenty-four-hour coverage. Annually, the most watched television event in the United States is the Super Bowl. The amount of sports betting is staggering, with unknown billions waged legally and illegally. Why all the attention?
3. WHAT WAS THE SOCIAL IMPACT OF THE FOLLOWING SPORT EVENTS & ATHLETES?
25. SOCIAL IDENTITY THEORY “ US VERSUS THEM” -STATES THAT GROUP MEMBERSHIP CREATES SELF-CATEGORIZATION & ENHANCEMENT IN WAYS THAT FAVOR THE IN-GROUP (US) AT THE EXPENSE OF THE OUT-GROUP (THEM). -THE GROUPS THAT WE BELONG (FRATERNITIES & SORORITIES) TO & THE TEAMS THAT WE CHEER FOR (YANKEES & RED SOX) INFLUENCE OUR SELF-IDENTITY.
26. DEEP FAN -FORM AN EMOTIONAL ATTACHMENT TO A TEAM THAT IS OUTSIDE OF NORMAL. -THESE PEOPLE LIVE & DIE WITH THE TEAM.
32. FIELD OF DREAMERS -AGE: 55-64. -INCOME: +$75,000/YEAR. -COMBINE A LOVE OF THE HISTORY OF THE GAME WITH TEAM DEVOTION. -CONSIDER THE GAME A SOCIAL EVENT & LOVE TALKING ABOUT IT WHEN NOT WATCHING IT.
33. TEAM OBSESSORS -AGE: 25-34. -INCOME: $75,000-150,000. -CONTEMPORARY HARDCORE FANS. -HYPERCOMPETITIVE & FEEL A DEEP NEED TO CONNECT WITH SIMILAR MINDED FANS. -LISTEN TO SPORTS TALK RADIO & READ ONLINE SPORTS CONTENT.
34. FAMILY CONNECTORS -AGE: MARRIED WITH CHILDREN (TEND TO BE FEMALE). -INCOME: $50,000-75,000. -SEE BASEBALL AS A WAY TO ENJOY TIME TOGETHER WITH FAMILY OR WITH OTHERS IN THEIR COMMUNITY. -SUPPORT TEAM, BUT NOT VERY CLOSELY. -MORE LIKELY TO CONNECT WITH TEAM FOR THE ROLE IT PLAYED FOR THEIR FAMILY.
