Psychological
and Sociological influences on attendance at Small College Sports Events
Franklin Krohn looks at many different factors that would effect the
attendance. They
include: personal objectives, excitement and escape, inspirational, personal
grievances, and fan identification.
Attendance= f(personal
objectives, excitement and escape, inspirational, personal grievances, and fan
identification)
This group represents those who
have personal goals (status, power, security) that are associated with
sporting attractions. Social fans make up the majority of people featuring
these characteristics. These fans are interested in attending sporting events
not just to witness a winner and loser, but primarily to be included in the
overall atmosphere the game presents. The number of social fans is presently
growing in size.
These factors represent a large
portion of total fans. People use athletic events to escape for many reasons.
One of the reasons is to take a break from the monotony of a repetitive job
schedule. Others use sporting events as a type of remedy to cure businesses
father than families. The excitement factor coincides with the escape factor
for some. For instance, fans not only like to break up a work week by going to
a game, but also because they enjoy the risks athletes take during
competition.
Dedicated sports fans follow
teams and players because of the emotional stimulation they get from watching
a particular player or team perform. Other's fascination lie in the pure
beauty of the event's atmosphere.
A fan may attend an event just
for the sole or primary purpose to see punishment inflicted between
competitors.
The last factor, fan
identification is extremely important when examining fan behavior. They can
experience pre-game symptoms such as nervousness and an increased heart rate.
Some go a step further and actually go over game plans as if they were
actually competing in the event.
Krohn
goes on to conclude the ways to attract the student body. He says the schools
must make the events into more of a social gathering, i.e. music,
cheerleaders, and mascots. These attractions give the fans a way to interact
and enjoy more than just the event itself.
A second way to attract students
krohn feels, is to get them involved.. By giving the fans a sense of
responsibility you make them more a part of the event. You can give prizes for
such things as the loudest or the craziest fan. On certain nights you may be
allowed to let a fan sit on the bench with the team itself. Big prize give a
ways will always attract fans. Giving students half court shots at basketball
games, or center ice shots at hockey games creates a lot of enthusiasm. The
chance to win a 50/50 raffle is another great way to develop loyalty. These
types of special events give the fans not only a reason to cheer, but a reason
to really feel like they are a part of the game.
Krohn goes on to say, letting
fans know how important they are is also a great way to get them there. By
having fan appreciation nights you let the students know exactly how important
they are to the program. T-shirt giveaways or free cup nights often attract
more than the normal amount of supporters.
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~~~~~~~~
By FRANKLIN B. KROHN,
DISTINGUISHED SERVICE PROFESSOR; MARK CLARKE, RESEARCH ASSISTANT; ERIC
PRESTON, RESEARCH ASSISTANT; MIKE McDONALD, RESEARCH ASSISTANT; AND BRADLEY
PRESTON, RESEARCH ASSISTANT, State University of New York College
at Fredonia
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Source: College
Student Journal, Jun98, Vol. 32 Issue 2, p277, 12p
Item: 759268