Experience

Publications

• Savannah Hockey Classic Attendance Motivation

  Journal of Tourism Insights

  The Savannah Hockey Classic has become a very successful annual university club hockey team tournament. The 21st edition of the tournament was held in January 2020 in Savannah, Ga. featuring the Georgia Institute of Technology, University of Florida, Florida State University, and University of Georgia club hockey teams—the same teams that have comprised the tournament for many years. This study utilized Personal Investment Theory (Braskamp, 1986) and the SPEED scale (Funk, Filo, Beaton, & Pritchard, 2009) for attendance motivation assessment. Social interaction motivations were significantly higher for county residents, spectators attending with friends, spectators attending with family, and past Savannah Hockey Classic attendees. Motivations related to athlete performance were significantly higher for those who had attended the event in the past. Excitement based motivations were greater for those who had attended the event in the past as well as for those who identified as a fan of one of the teams. There were significant differences related to the esteem and diversion constructs for those who had a team rooting interest. The article fills a gap in the literature by providing the first study of club hockey attendance motivations.

• Savannah Hockey Classic Attendance Motivation

  Journal of Tourism Insights

  The Savannah Hockey Classic has become a very successful annual university club hockey team tournament. The 21st edition of the tournament was held in January 2020 in Savannah, Ga. featuring the Georgia Institute of Technology, University of Florida, Florida State University, and University of Georgia club hockey teams—the same teams that have comprised the tournament for many years. This study utilized Personal Investment Theory (Braskamp, 1986) and the SPEED scale (Funk, Filo, Beaton, & Pritchard, 2009) for attendance motivation assessment. Social interaction motivations were significantly higher for county residents, spectators attending with friends, spectators attending with family, and past Savannah Hockey Classic attendees. Motivations related to athlete performance were significantly higher for those who had attended the event in the past. Excitement based motivations were greater for those who had attended the event in the past as well as for those who identified as a fan of one of the teams. There were significant differences related to the esteem and diversion constructs for those who had a team rooting interest. The article fills a gap in the literature by providing the first study of club hockey attendance motivations.

• Conceptual Distinctions in General and Local Sponsorship Objectives: A Qualitative Inquiry

  Contemporary Issues in Global Sport Business: Management, Marketing, and Cultural Perspectives

  This publication is a research article that serves as a chapter (Chapter 14) in a book of research articles.

• Savannah Hockey Classic Attendance Motivation

  Journal of Tourism Insights

  The Savannah Hockey Classic has become a very successful annual university club hockey team tournament. The 21st edition of the tournament was held in January 2020 in Savannah, Ga. featuring the Georgia Institute of Technology, University of Florida, Florida State University, and University of Georgia club hockey teams—the same teams that have comprised the tournament for many years. This study utilized Personal Investment Theory (Braskamp, 1986) and the SPEED scale (Funk, Filo, Beaton, & Pritchard, 2009) for attendance motivation assessment. Social interaction motivations were significantly higher for county residents, spectators attending with friends, spectators attending with family, and past Savannah Hockey Classic attendees. Motivations related to athlete performance were significantly higher for those who had attended the event in the past. Excitement based motivations were greater for those who had attended the event in the past as well as for those who identified as a fan of one of the teams. There were significant differences related to the esteem and diversion constructs for those who had a team rooting interest. The article fills a gap in the literature by providing the first study of club hockey attendance motivations.

• Conceptual Distinctions in General and Local Sponsorship Objectives: A Qualitative Inquiry

  Contemporary Issues in Global Sport Business: Management, Marketing, and Cultural Perspectives

  This publication is a research article that serves as a chapter (Chapter 14) in a book of research articles.

• Brand Spillover Effects within a Sponsor Portfolio: The Interaction of Image Congruence and Portfolio Size

  Marketing Management Journal

  A sponsor portfolio exists where multiple brands sponsor a single activity or property, such as a sporting event, team, league, or a charity simultaneously. While sponsor portfolios are common in practice, little is known about how the brand perceptions of several concurrent sponsors spill over to influence each individual sponsor’s brand. This paper summarizes two experiments that investigate sponsor portfolios to determine how spillover effects influence consumers’ perceptions of a particular sponsor’s brand within the portfolio. In Study 1, empirical evidence substantiates a brand spillover effect between multiple sponsors of a single sport property. In Study 2, the influences of image congruence and portfolio size on this spillover effect are empirically assessed. Results demonstrate an interaction effect whereby brands incongruent to the sponsored property enjoy a more favorable brand perception when included in either a small portfolio inclusive of another incongruent co-sponsor, or a larger portfolio of otherwise congruent sponsors.

• Savannah Hockey Classic Attendance Motivation

  Journal of Tourism Insights

  The Savannah Hockey Classic has become a very successful annual university club hockey team tournament. The 21st edition of the tournament was held in January 2020 in Savannah, Ga. featuring the Georgia Institute of Technology, University of Florida, Florida State University, and University of Georgia club hockey teams—the same teams that have comprised the tournament for many years. This study utilized Personal Investment Theory (Braskamp, 1986) and the SPEED scale (Funk, Filo, Beaton, & Pritchard, 2009) for attendance motivation assessment. Social interaction motivations were significantly higher for county residents, spectators attending with friends, spectators attending with family, and past Savannah Hockey Classic attendees. Motivations related to athlete performance were significantly higher for those who had attended the event in the past. Excitement based motivations were greater for those who had attended the event in the past as well as for those who identified as a fan of one of the teams. There were significant differences related to the esteem and diversion constructs for those who had a team rooting interest. The article fills a gap in the literature by providing the first study of club hockey attendance motivations.

• Conceptual Distinctions in General and Local Sponsorship Objectives: A Qualitative Inquiry

  Contemporary Issues in Global Sport Business: Management, Marketing, and Cultural Perspectives

  This publication is a research article that serves as a chapter (Chapter 14) in a book of research articles.

• Brand Spillover Effects within a Sponsor Portfolio: The Interaction of Image Congruence and Portfolio Size

  Marketing Management Journal

  A sponsor portfolio exists where multiple brands sponsor a single activity or property, such as a sporting event, team, league, or a charity simultaneously. While sponsor portfolios are common in practice, little is known about how the brand perceptions of several concurrent sponsors spill over to influence each individual sponsor’s brand. This paper summarizes two experiments that investigate sponsor portfolios to determine how spillover effects influence consumers’ perceptions of a particular sponsor’s brand within the portfolio. In Study 1, empirical evidence substantiates a brand spillover effect between multiple sponsors of a single sport property. In Study 2, the influences of image congruence and portfolio size on this spillover effect are empirically assessed. Results demonstrate an interaction effect whereby brands incongruent to the sponsored property enjoy a more favorable brand perception when included in either a small portfolio inclusive of another incongruent co-sponsor, or a larger portfolio of otherwise congruent sponsors.

• Student-Athletes at an Historically Black University: Examining the Relationship Between Student-Engagement on Campus and Career Situation Awareness

  Journal of Athlete Development and Experience

  The purpose of this exploratory study was to examine the relationship between student-athletes’ engagement experiences on campus and their career situation awareness at an historically Black university (HBU) in the Southeastern United States with NCAA Division I affiliation. Data was obtained from a sample (n = 118) of female (n= 45) and male (n = 73) student-athletes using measures from the revised versions of the Student-Athlete Experiences Inventory (SAEI) and the Student-Athlete Career Situation Inventory (SACSI). One-way ANOVA, Pearson product-moment correlation tests, and t-tests were employed to analyze gender, race, year classification, and sport played effects. Following data analysis, three key findings were identified. First, HBCUs are likely to provide socially enriching environments for minority student-athletes of both genders that promote career confidence; particularly for Black, female student-athletes. Second, in an HBCU context, White student-athletes may not be as academically involved in university life when compared to their minority counterparts. Third, the use of the library for academic purposes and engagement in socially enriching experiences may have diminishing effects on female student-athletes’ sport identities. Implications and future research recommendations are discussed. To better validate and improve the generalizability, future research should conduct similar studies that employ data from multiple HBCUs.