sports rivalry comparison by geography: are canadians more friendly?

Are Canadians really more friendly?Rivalry variation by geographic regionJeremy Ditter, Dr. Joe Cobbs, Dr. Bridget NicholsNorthern Kentucky UniversityDr. B. David TylerWestern Carolina University

Identification and Rivalry• Social Identity Theory

• Formation of ingroups—consisting of members perceived as similar to oneself—and outgroups, composed of others perceived as different from oneself (Stets & Burke, 2000).

• In sports, identification is salient identity feature of fans who embrace team identity by absorbing team success/failure as their own fortune (Cialdini et al., 1976)

• Rival defined as “highly salient outgroup that poses an acute threat to the identity of the ingroup or to ingroup members’ ability to make positive comparisons between their group and the outgroup” (Tyler & Cobbs 2015, p. 230)

Rivalry Outcomes

Schadenfreude• Propensity for joy in rivals' failure (Havard, 2014)

Adverse reactions• Aggression toward rivals that threaten fans' positive identity

(Havard, Wann, & Ryan, 2013; Wann, 1993)

Regional variation

• H1: There are differences of rivalry intensity among regions

• H1a: Northeast US harbors most animosity• H1b: Canadians harbor least animosity

Hypothesis

• Krug and Kulhavy (1973) compared US Census regions by creativity, imagination, intelligence, etc.

• Rentfrow, Gosling, and Porter (2008) examined five personality traits within regionally clustered states

• Northeastern US harbors more neuroticism (linked to antisocial behavior) and lower agreeableness (linked to friendliness)

• Canadians most friendly and generous by nationality stereotype (Gardner et al., 1972)

Regional

• Northeast• Midwest• Southeast• West• Canada

Census Regions

Method• Qualtrics online survey • Respondents recruited from team

message boards • Name favorite team • List favorite team’s top rival • Questions pertaining to relationships

with favorite team and top rival• Dalakas & Melancon, 2012; Elsbach &

Bhattacharya, 2001; Mael & Ashforth, 1992; Pettigrew & Meertens, 1995

• 7-point scales from Strongly Disagree to Strongly Agree

SAMPLEN = 514591% Male70% with some undergraduate education or higherRegions

• 25% NE• 28% Midwest• 17% Southeast• 20% West• 10% Canada

Measures

• Prejudice • [Rival Team’s] fans are more obnoxious than the fans of a typical team

• Relationship discrimination (Pettigrew & Meertens, 1995)

• I would not mind if my child became a(n) [Rival Team] fan

• Schadenfreude (Dalakas & Melancon, 2012)

• I will feel joy if a player from the [Rival Team] gets suspended for a year, even if the suspension was not completely deserved

• Disidentification (Elsbach & Bhattacharya, 2001; Mael & Ashforth, 1992)

• When someone criticizes the [Rival Team], it feels like a personal compliment

Descriptive Stats

RegionsID Mean

(SD)Prejudice

Mean (SD)Relations Mean

(SD)Schadenfreude

Mean (SD)DisID Mean

(SD)

1-NE 4.88 (1.05) 5.23 (1.43) 3.32 (1.37) 3.76 (1.68) 4.06 (1.61)

2-MidW 4.96 (1.10) 4.98 (1.51) 3.23 (1.30) 3.56 (1.70) 3.93 (1.59)

3-SE 5.10 (1.07) 4.74 (1.64) 3.21 (1.35) 3.48 (1.70) 3.97 (1.60)

4-W 4.95 (1.09) 5.06 (1.54) 3.11 (1.30) 3.44 (1.75) 3.94 (1.57)

5-CN 4.65 (1.16) 4.62 (1.61) 2.72 (1.23) 3.14 (1.71) 3.65 (1.55)

Overall 4.94 (1.09) 4.98 (1.54) 3.18 (1.33) 3.53 (1.71) 3.94 (1.59)

Highest = RedLowest = Blue

MANOVA results

Prejudice Relations Schadenfreude DisID

F (df) 11.16 (3223) 10.52(3342) 9.07 (3241) 4.90 (4439)

P Value <.001 <.001 <.001 .001

Post hoc tests (H1a: NE)

• Fans of Northeast US teams Greater rivalry animosity• Significantly more feelings of prejudice against rival team fans

compared to each other region (vs. West not significant level)

• Higher relationship discrimination toward rival fans (vs. West/Canadian fans significant).

• Significantly greater schadenfreude for rival teams (all sig.)

• Higher dis-identification toward rivals (only vs. Canada sig.)

• Fans of NE teams scored lowest identification mean compared to other US regions (only vs. South sig.)

Post hoc tests (H1b: CN)Fans of Canadian teams less rival animosity• Significantly lower means compared to each of the four US

regions in 13 of 16 tests (four DVs)• Significantly less feelings of prejudice against rival fans compared to each

other region (only vs. South not sig.)• Significantly less relationship discrimination toward rival fans compared to

each US region• Lower schadenfreude toward rivals (only vs. NE/MW sig.) • Significantly lower dis-identification toward rivals for fans of Canadian teams

• Also, significantly less ID with their favorite teams compared to each US region

Implications• Regional marketing/promotions• Future research

• Expand to more sports, global regions• NBA and college sports• Other continents

• Other methods to measure human behavior pertaining to rivalry• A more micro look into geographic differences incl. ID

• Smaller grouped regions• Urban vs. Rural

• Limitations• Highly male sample• Majority of respondents from Northeast and Midwest• Least respondents from Canada