Bringing baseball to the big screen: building sense of community outside of the ballpark

Fairley, Sheranne and Tyler, B. David (2012) Bringing baseball to the big screen: building sense of community outside of the ballpark. Journal of Sport Management, 26 3: 258-270.

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Author Fairley, Sheranne
Tyler, B. David
Title Bringing baseball to the big screen: building sense of community outside of the ballpark
Journal name Journal of Sport Management   Check publisher's open access policy
ISSN 0888-4773
1543-270X
Publication date 2012-05-01
Sub-type Article (original research)
Open Access Status Not yet assessed
Volume 26
Issue 3
Start page 258
End page 270
Total pages 13
Place of publication Champaign, IL, United States
Publisher Human Kinetics
Language eng
Abstract Sport fandom, particularly game attendance, offers an opportunity for social interaction. However, actual attendance at sport events is unrealistic for many individuals. In an attempt to foster a sense of community among such fans, sport marketers have begun to create additional consumption sites by televising live games in central locations, such as in a movie theater. This study examines the motives and experiences of fans who attend a cinema to view live baseball games. Data were collected through participant observation, a survey distributed to event attendees (n = 188), and focus groups. Results suggest that the sense of community and social environment created at the cinema were key factors in the viewing experience. The cinema provided individuals a collective viewing experience with likeminded fans, which helped create a stadium-like environment. This atmosphere, which affords the opportunity to focus on the game (compared with viewing at home or in pubs), allows fans to feel more connected to the team as they believe the cinema offers an authentic environment. Thus, providing sites for fans to view the game with likeminded fans outside of the stadium can be used as a means of creating social ties that could lead to increased fan loyalty. For some individuals, the cinema experience was preferred over that of the ballpark.
Q-Index Code C1
Q-Index Status Provisional Code
Institutional Status Non-UQ

Document type: Journal Article
Sub-type: Article (original research)
Collection: UQ Business School Publications
 
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Citation counts: TR Web of Science Citation Count  Cited 12 times in Thomson Reuters Web of Science Article | Citations
Scopus Citation Count Cited 13 times in Scopus Article | Citations
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Created: Sat, 14 Jun 2014, 00:35:25 EST by Susan Peeters on behalf of UQ Business School