Dissertations / Theses on the topic 'Sports administration'

The purpose of this study is to investigate the impact of smart device's interactivity on customer value co-creation in the sports industry through bridging social capital and collective efficacy. A total of 262 students participated in the study, and a structural equation modeling (SEM) was carried out to measures the relationship between variables in the conceptual model. The results revealed that interactivity consisting of user control, responsiveness, and synchronicity had a significant impact on bridging social capital. In addition, both technological interactivity and bridging social capital were positively associated with collective efficacy. Lastly, collective efficacy had a positive influence on co-creation value, but bridging social capital did not appear to directly affect co-creation value. Based on these results, this study suggests the need to take advantage of new platforms that can build value co-creation with customers in the rapidly changing marketing environment.

Athletic administration is a growing field of study with many educational institutions offering sport management degrees. As a field of study it is important for sport managers to be aware of the management functions at the various levels of athletics.

Government funding shortages are changing the financial landscape of collegiate athletic programs. Athletic administrators struggling to discover alternative financial sources have frequently focused their efforts on increasing home game attendance, which leads to increased concession and licensing revenues. The problem is that schools sporting programs will continue to lose funds if schools do not attract and maintain a larger fan base at athletic events. The purpose of this multiple case study is to identify and explore the factors that motivate fans attendance at NCAA Division II football games using both a survey and interviews at four universities within the Great American Conference, the Lone Star Conference, and the Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association. The research study that is employed is based on multiple case study and triangulated data collected from a small sample group at four universities: Northeastern State, Southeastern Oklahoma State, Southwestern Oklahoma State, and West Texas A & M. Data collection methods included the administration of a Sport Fan Motivation Scale survey to fans at a home game for each university, individual interviews of the sample group athletic directors, and review of online sources. Key results of the study yielded significant insight into optimal methodologies athletic administrators can employ to increase program revenues by increasing home game attendance. The findings were evaluated based upon the data collected utilizing four research questions. Economic factors were most likely to affect motivation of fans to attend home football games. Game attractiveness factors have a positive effect on fans at home football games. Demographic factors affect the motivation of fans to attend home football games. Residual factors affect the motivation of fans to attend football games. Many commonalities were found in the collected data that helped to identify themes and connect this information to previous research described in the literature review. A review of economic, team oriented, demographic, and ancillary factors yielded results indicating that integration of promotional activities, ensuring ample parking space for non-tailgaters, and a feeling of commitment or identification with the team are means to increase attendance.

This study purposely examined the types of extrinsic rewards in male youth soccer programs and measures those that are most preferred by players to influence their participation motivation. It also checked if young soccer players skew towards programs that provide more reward opportunities. For this reason, 1000 teenage soccer players were randomized in an online survey administered by a community-based organization. 800 chose programs that provided extrinsic rewards and identified fame, trophies, travel, scholarship, exposure opportunities and money as the six main rewards that influenced their decision to join soccer programs.

A Participation Motivation Questionnaire (PMQ) was then modified using the identified factors and issued to 400 participants between ages 14-18 years, randomly selected from 20 Las Vegas soccer clubs in another survey to rank extrinsic rewards according to importance. Data was collected and entered into the SPSS 17.0 software for analysis. Descriptive statistics were used to calculate frequencies, percentages, mean, and standard deviation. Cronbach alpha was applied to measure internal consistencies based on the demographics and attitudes towards participation motivation. One way ANOVA sought to determine the extent to which the identified extrinsic rewards affected participation motivation, and regression analysis examined the relationships across all factors.

Results from data analysis revealed that, exposure opportunities constituted the most important extrinsic reward that influenced young male soccer players' decision to join soccer programs. Scholarship, travel, fame, money and trophies followed suit. One-way ANOVA showed that race had a significant effect on scholarship, exposure opportunities, and fame. Multivariate regressions revealed that young players that are more motivated by scholarship, fame and travel tended to have higher ability levels. These effects were held even after adjusting for grade and age.

Results from the online survey also concluded that more young players tend to be attracted to soccer programs that provide extrinsic reward opportunities. Thus, extrinsic rewards should be considered and included in programs to enhance motivation.

This purpose of this mixed model study was to ascertain the implicit leadership theory (ILT) content held by National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I baseball teams. Data were collected during the 2012 baseball season from 34 Division I programs, and 1032 coaches and players participated in the research.

As an information-processing approach to understanding leadership, ILT is concerned with the knowledge structures persons maintain and utilize when identifying and interacting with leaders. Ample ILT research has examined such structures within the business context. This study, however, is believed to be the first in-depth exploration of ILT content within the sports domain.

Leadership categorization and connectionist architecture served as the theoretical bases for the study's four research questions, which addressed: the effect that the target cues leader and coach had on ILT (RQ1); the impact that team context (RQ2) and player tenure (RQ3) had on ILT; and whether a sports ILT existed—and if so, how it differed from a business ILT (RQ4). Research was conducted in four sequential steps using qualitative and quantitative methods. Importantly, no external or explicit measures were used to collect data, as such instruments can bias implicit perceptions. The primary tools for processing quantitative data were principal components analysis and confirmatory factor analysis.

A 21-item, 5-factor ILT model for NCAA Division I baseball was derived from factor analysis processes and generalized across two separate data sets. This model demonstrated the existence of a sports ILT, as it differed noticeably from models that explain ILT content within the business domain. Data also indicated that team context had some correlation with ILT differences, whereas player tenure did not. Furthermore, results showed that players do delineate between the targets leader and coach; that is, being perceived as a leader within Division I baseball may not correspond with holding an official organizational/team position.

This study's findings strengthen the idea that leadership is social-cognitive phenomenon that differs according to context. Implications for applying these findings within Division I baseball are discussed. Additionally, this research might be cause for revisiting some of the previous models of leadership within sports studies.

The purpose of this quantitative correlational study was to test the full-range leadership theory and measure the relationship, if any, between team captains’ leadership styles and team outcome (by winning percentage). Analyzing the relationship between team captains’ leadership styles and performance would add knowledge to the existing research on leadership development in the area of sport. A review of literature yielded few studies of athlete leadership and performance compared to coach leadership. Discovering potential relationships between athlete leadership and performance may challenge beliefs that coach leadership is more important than other types of informal leadership. The study involved the surveying of student-athletes, team captains, and coaches of collegiate athletic programs from a single Division III College located in the Midwest. The Multifactor Leadership Questionnaire (MLQ-5x) was used to assess the four leadership constructs: transformational, transactional, passive-avoidant, and laissez-faire leadership of team captains. Results of the correlation indicated a significant relationship between transformational and transactional leadership mean scores and team performance via winning percentage. ANOVA regression results indicated that no significant differences existed between team captain’s mean scores that could be attributed to the survey participant’s role on their respective team. Recommendations for future research include replication with a larger sample, including more schools and various sports.

As technology development has made the world better, the benefits of such development are also increasingly related to sports activities. Many sports devices have been combined with Information Technology (IT). One great example is an IT-combined sport device called "Activity Tracker." It is a device that is worn on the body and records a user's body status such as calories burned, steps walked, or heart rates. With people's increasing attention to their health, it is expected that the popularity of the devices will increase. To aid in the sales of activity trackers in a competitive market, the manufacturers should be familiar with the impact of product cues such as brand, price, and design on consumers' perceived quality, which will influence their willingness to buy.

The study was quantitative; paper and pencil questionnaires were utilized. The instruments were derived from three existing studies. The study participants were Florida State University undergraduate and graduate students; 200 questionnaires were distributed to students enrolled in Lifetime Activity Program (LAP) courses and/or visiting a recreation center on campus. The final sample size was 144 participants. The data was analyzed using several statistical methods with PASW Statistics 20.0. From the descriptive statistics, the frequency counts and/or mean scores were computed for profiling the participants. The Cronbach's alpha scores, and item-to-total correlations were utilized to assess the internal consistency of the factors measured with the questionnaires. The assumptions of multiple regression, including as normality, linearity, homoscedasticity, and multicollinearity were assessed. Multiple regressions were utilized to gauge the extent to which price, brand, and design influence perceived quality. As the final step, a simple regression was utilized to measure the relationship between perceived quality and willingness to buy.

Examination of this data revealed several significant results regarding the relationships between product cues, perceived quality, and willingness to buy. While brand (t=6.779; p<.05; beta=.522) and design (t=5.934; p<.05; beta=.450) had a positive impact on perceived quality, price (t=-1.681; p>.05; beta=-.139) had no significant impact on perceived quality. Perceived quality (t=6.060; p<.05; beta=.453) had a positive impact on willingness to buy; however, the variance (20%) accounted for in willingness to buy was low, meaning that there may be mediating variables between perceived quality and willingness to buy.

The purpose of this study is to determine if a league guided sportsmanship program will have an effect on the sportsmanship behaviors of youth sports athletes. The sample will draw from 8-14 year old participants in an 8-week volleyball program in a Southern California School District's youth volleyball program. The study will assess whether there will be measurable change in the sportsmanship behaviors including: respect for the game, rules, opponents, authority, playing fair, leadership and personal conduct.

An observational study methodology will be used with a modified version of the Sportsmanship Observation Sheet. Observers will use the adapted sportsmanship observation sheet to measure the sportsmanship behaviors of the players during the first week of the season. Observations and implementation of the league guided sportsmanship curriculum will take place during the first week of the season. A second day of observations will take place the sixth week of the season and data will be collected and analyzed to examine if the sportsmanship curriculum had an effect on the sportsmanship behaviors of the players, parents, and coaches.

The current funding situation for community college athletics and future funding remains unclear (Byrd & Williams, 2007). The purpose of the qualitative phenomenological study was to explore the lived experiences and perceptions of athletic directors to understand the financing issues with athletic programs. Sixteen athletic directors from the state of California were interviewed until the point of data saturation on the topic. Analysis of the interview responses revealed that managing the athletic programs, the budget, and Title IX are ways athletic directors can deal with the financial issues. The results of the current research study may provide current and future business leaders with information that will facilitate making decisions about financing community college athletic programs.