It is not uncommon for a National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I school to have an athletic apparel contract (AAC) with an established athletic apparel company. These relationships have evolved over time to the point that the AACs seem to have become institutionalized in collegiate athletics. Institutionalization refers to the repetition of organizational arrangements (Washington & Patterson, 2009) to the point that it exists as a 'norm' within a culture. While there are certain benefits to these contracts, there are also associated risks. AACs often include clauses requiring every student-athlete at the school to wear brand name apparel for practice and competition, regardless of satisfaction with the product. Considering volleyball is typically a non-revenue generating sport at many NCAA Division I schools, student-athletes are often required to wear a certain type of shoe due to contract restrictions. Problems may arise if the sponsored shoes do not meet the needs, specifically the health and safety needs, of the student-athlete. Coaches are often involved in the selection of the teams' shoes, while athletic trainers must manage any medical consequences resulting from ill-fitting shoes. Given the notion that AACs have been institutionalized in the collegiate athletic setting, including restricted shoe selection, this study was conducted to gain insight into the factors influencing volleyball shoe selection. The study was qualitative and involved semi-structured interviews with 11 volleyball coaches and athletic trainers in the Southeastern and Atlantic Coast athletic conferences. For purposes of data analysis, the researcher utilized the four dialogic moments as described by Markula and Silk (2011): recalling, listening around, close reading, and representing self and others. Results were presented according to coaches and athletic trainers, separately. Factors identified by coaches were the evidence of dissatisfaction, general benefits of a school's AAC, insufficient volleyball shoe options from sponsors, and medical concerns. Factors identified by athletic trainers included medical concerns, general benefits of a school's AAC, and insufficient volleyball shoe options from the sponsor. In general, results of this study supported the notion that AACs have become institutionalized in select NCAA Division I volleyball programs through the development of volleyball teams being a dependent beneficiary from their school's AAC. While the sponsored brands met participants' expectations in regard to the quantity of volleyball shoes provided, the sponsored brands did not meet participants' expectations regarding quality. Overall, participants were willing to overlook these negative concerns for the benefit of their athletic department as a whole. The subject matter adds value to the sport management profession by providing sport managers, Division I schools, and athletic apparel sponsors a perspective on the sponsor-school relationship as it pertains to athletic apparel contracts, but further research into other sports' shoe selection processes, as well as the student-athletes' and sponsored brands' perception of the effect of an AAC is needed. / A Thesis submitted to the Department of Sport Management in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science. / Summer Semester, 2014. / June 25, 2014. / Athletic trainer, Coach, Division I, Institutionalization, Volleyball / Includes bibliographical references. / Janelle E. Wells, Professor Directing Thesis; Jeffrey D. James, Committee Member; Joshua I. Newman, Committee Member; B. Cecile Reynaud, Committee Member.

This dissertation provides an exploration into the intricate relationship between the emotional volatility extant during spectator sport consumption and consumer memory for marketing stimuli. Emotional activity is measured across two dimensions (i.e., emotional arousal and valence), and an experimental methodology is implemented that allows for the competition of several theoretical predictions deriving from a variety of domains pertaining to the effect of volatility within each dimension upon consumer memory. Regarding the arousal-memory interaction, these predictions include (1) the arousal enhancement hypothesis, which predicts a comprehensive improvement in memory due to the presence of emotional arousal, (2) the cognitive resource allocation model, which predicts a comprehensive decline in memory due to the presence of emotional arousal, (3) the peripheral neglect hypothesis, which predicts the enhancement of memory for temporally, conceptually, and spatially central information and impairment of memory for peripheral information due to the presence of emotional arousal, and (4) state dependent memory, which refers to the phenomenon that memory relies upon a consistency in psychological contexts across encoding and retrieval. Regarding the valence-memory interaction, three predictions were tested: (1) positive valence effect, which refers to the prediction that emotional valence is positively related to probability of recall, (2) selectivity for valenced stimuli, which refers to the tendency to selectively encode/retrieve information with a non-neutral affective tone, and (3) state-dependent encoding, which refers to the tendency to selectively encode information with an affective tone that is congruent with one's current emotional valence state. This research provides support for a state-dependent view of the emotion-memory relationship. Recall patterns also approximated those predicted by the peripheral neglect hypothesis. The theoretical and practical implications of these findings are provided / A Dissertation submitted to the Department of Sport Management in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy. / Summer Semester, 2014. / June 26, 2014. / Advertising, Consumer Behavior, Emotion, Memory, Sponsorship, Sports Marketing / Includes bibliographical references. / Jeffrey James, Professor Directing Dissertation; Jeffery Smith, University Representative; Yu Kyoum Kim, Committee Member; J. Joseph Cronin, Jr., Committee Member.

Using the lens of positive thinking is an essential key to improving one's psychological well-being, especially in the modern workplace. In today's "flat-world" and fast-paced environment, modern organizations are well-fitted with the perspective of positive organizational behavior (POB) because POB assumes state-like capacities highlighting flexibility for different situations. The sport industry, one of the most competitive workplace arenas (Plunkett, 2008), creates a particularly exceptional environment in which POB needs to be adapted for an improved employee's work experience and well-being. In transferring the idea of POB to the practice of human resource management, Luthans and Youssef (2004) proposed the concept of psychological capital or simply PsyCap. PsyCap is a high-order construct of self-efficacy, hope, optimism, and resiliency, and is considered as state-like, potentially having a synergistic impact on individual and organizational outcomes. Given the importance of POB and PsyCap in sport organizations, the three-fold purpose of this study is to: (1) provide a conceptual framework of POB in sport (POBS), (2) empirically examine the effects of various influences on PsyCap, and (3) investigate the role of PsyCap in increasing employees' PWB. Top management teams of an organization will expect their employees to be efficacious, hopeful, optimistic and resilient, but only a few studies have offered a systematic consideration for antecedents of PsyCap (Avey, 2014). Employees' PsyCap levels are determined by leaders' behavior, organizational culture, and individual perspectives and attitudes. Therefore, the conceptual framework of POB in sport (POBS) considers leader, employees, and organizational influences for PsyCap. The ultimate goal of POB is the pursuit of employees' happiness and well-being beyond higher levels of organizational performance. Thus, POBS emphasizes the inclusion of employees' PWB to general organizational outcomes. By proposing a testable research model, 11 research hypotheses were addressed, including both direct and indirect effects. This reduced model consisted of six main constructs, including authentic leadership, meaningful work, supportive organizational climate, PsyCap, job satisfaction and PWB. To create reliable and valid scales to test the research hypotheses, an initial set of items was developed in a pilot test by collecting data from employees in athletic departments of Division II and III institutions. The three-fold purpose of the main study is to (1) provide further evidence of construct validity of constructs in the research model, (2) test research hypotheses in regard to causal relationships among five constructs, and (3) examine the mediating role of PsyCap between three predictors (i.e., authentic leadership, meaningful work, supportive organizational climate) and PWB. To achieve each aforementioned purpose, the main study targeted employees in athletic departments of Division I institutions and included three stages of data analysis, respectively: (1) evaluation of full measurement model through a CFA, (2) empirical test of research hypotheses through SEM, and (3) examination of indirect effects of PsyCap. The results from the empirical tests of the hypothesized model indicated that employees' meaningful work and supportive organizational climate positively influence PsyCap level, leading to higher levels of job satisfaction and PWB. On the other hand, the path from authentic leadership of athletic directors in athletic departments, to employees' PsyCap was not statistically significant with the sample from the current study. Based on the results of the direct effects, indirect effects regarding PsyCap as a central value were also tested. PsyCap played important roles between antecedents (i.e., left) and outcomes (i.e., right) as either a partial mediator or a full mediator. The current study provides empirical evidence regarding not only antecedents and outcomes of PsyCap but also mediating role of PsyCap in the context of sport. For practitioners in the sport industry, the current study offers a new perspective of positivity in workplace by conceptualizing a POBS as a roadmap. / A Dissertation submitted to the Department of Sport Management in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy. / Summer Semester 2015. / June 23, 2015. / Includes bibliographical references. / Amy Chan Hyung Kim, Professor Directing Dissertation; Gerald R. Ferris, University Representative; Joshua I. Newman, Committee Member; Pamela L. Perrewé, Committee Member.

A review of sport media on any given day seemingly includes news about an athlete involved in some type of questionable behavior, or what is likely referred to as a "scandal." For example, consider the numerous stories published about Lance Armstrong's denial then subsequent admission of using performance-enhancing drugs, or the stories about Tiger Wood's marital infidelity. Despite what seems to be daily reports in the media about scandals involving athletes, empirical assessment of the impact of knowing about such scandals on sport consumers' remains limited (Prior, O'Reilly, Mazanov, & Huybers, 2013). With the viability and prosperity of commercially-oriented sport teams dependent on consumption by sport fans and spectators, it is important to ascertain the impact scandals involving athletes have on consumer behavior. There is anecdotal evidence that sport scandals have a negative impact on sport consumer behavior. There remains limited empirical research, however, examining the direct impact of sports scandals on sport team-related consumption patterns of consumers. This project was an attempt to investigate the impact of reported sports scandals on team identification and sport consumers' sport team-related behavior intentions. Two objectives guided the research. First, ascertain whether on-field and off-field sports scandals have an impact on sport consumers' team identification and sport team-related behavioral intentions. Second, assess whether a sport consumers' level of team identification moderates the impact of on-field and off-field sports scandals on subsequent sport team-related behavioral intentions. A pretest-posttest quasi-experimental research design was used to collect quantitative measures of team identification and sport team-related behavioral intentions prior (pretest) and subsequent (posttest) to on-field or off-field sport scandal condition exposure. The results of the investigation are contradictory to anecdotal evidence. It was concluded from the results that irrespective of the type of sports scandal, sport consumers' team identification levels and sport team-related behavioral intentions remained static subsequent to learning of a scandal. There was no negative spillover effect on the associated sport team. / A Dissertation submitted to the Department of Sport Management in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy. / Fall Semester 2015. / December 9, 2015. / consumer behavior, scandal, team identification / Includes bibliographical references. / Jeffrey James, Professor Directing Dissertation; Amy Guerette, University Representative; Joshua Newman, Committee Member; Amy Kim, Committee Member.

The motives of volunteers provide an important key to understanding an individual's decision to become involved in volunteering (Kim, Zhang, & Connaughton, 2010). One challenge sporting event managers face is that community sport organizations in particular have suffered from a lack of volunteers (Cuskelly, 2004). To date, scholars have focused their research efforts to study the motivation and retention of volunteers for mega-sporting events. Previous researchers, however, suggested that individuals volunteering with mega sporting events may demonstrate different motivations and behaviors compared to those volunteering in other settings such as community sport. Therefore, attention should be given to assess whether the motives of those volunteering to work at community sporting events differ from motives to volunteer at mega sporting events. In spite of the observed differences between community and mega sporting events, there has been little effort to compare volunteer motivations for the different types of sporting events. Kim et al. (2010) started their research based on the perspective that different motives may drive volunteers to work in different sport settings, an approach that is similar to the proposed research. Even though Kim et al. (2010) studied volunteers working with community sport events, (e.g., youth community sports), a majority of participants in their study were parents who had children participating in sport programs. While youth sports are considered a facet of community sports, the proposed research focused on volunteers at community sporting events that were primarily adult oriented other than youth sports oriented. The purpose of this study was to: (a) identify the motives that are most and least important to those who volunteer with community sporting events, and (b) assess whether the particular motives influence intention to continue volunteering in the future. The results from this study provide community sport organizers with information as to why people volunteer to work with community sporting events, and how to retain them. The results from this study may be used by administrators in community sport organizations to develop policies to aid recruitment and retention of volunteers. To achieve the goals of proposed study, participants who were currently involved in volunteering activities, or had volunteer experiences with community sporting events (e.g., community tennis tournaments, road races, and soccer leagues, etc.) were recruited. I collected data via both e-mail and face-to-face. To analyze the data, Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) using Mplus was used to assess the hypothesized relationships between volunteer motivation and intention to continue volunteering. I concluded from the results that Value was the most important motive for volunteering. The remaining factors, in order of importance for volunteering were Social, Career, Enhancement, and Protective. In terms of intention to continue volunteering in general, Protective and Career had significant and negative relationships, while Social and Enhancement had significant and positive influences on overall intention to continue volunteering. Protective had a significant and negative relationship on intention to continue volunteering relative to the influence by family or friends. Enhancement had a significant and positive influence on intention to continue volunteering relative to the influence by family or friends. Social and Career did not have a significant influence on intention to continue volunteering relative to the influence by family or friends. / A Thesis submitted to the Department of Sport Management in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science. / Spring Semester 2016. / April 11, 2016. / Community Sport, Motivation, Retention, Sport, Volunteer / Includes bibliographical references. / Jeffrey James, Professor Directing Thesis; Joshua Newman, Committee Member; Amy Chan Hyung Kim, Committee Member.

In this dissertation, I developed a measure of sports team reputation. The reputation construct is one that has been the subject of decades of scholarly focus in the broader management field, but has been comparatively neglected by sport management scholars. Consumers use the reputations held by organizations to predict future behavior, and decide the ways in which they will engage (or not engage) with those organizations; thus, it is intuitively important for sports teams to cultivate and manage their reputations in order to receive positive benefits from external stakeholders (e.g., fans, spectators, general sport consumers). The development of the measure provides scholars a tool with which to empirically investigate the relationship between sports team reputation and consumer outcomes. As such, this research should be viewed as a first—and necessary—step toward increasing our understanding how reputation affects sport consumer behavior. Herein, reputation is treated as a multidimensional construct comprising consumers’ collective beliefs and attitudes about a focal unit—in this case, a sports team. Beliefs pertain to reputations for actions pertaining to performance- or character-related attributes, while attitudes are related to favorable or unfavorable overall assessments of reputation. The measure is based upon this conceptualization. To develop this measure, I followed the six-step scale development process detailed by Hinkin (1998): (1) item generation; (2) questionnaire administration; (3) initial item reduction; (4) confirmatory factor analysis; (5) construct validity; and (6) replication. In the project, I completed the first five of these steps, through which I was able to provide evidence of the validity and reliability of the measure. Using two independent samples (n = 300; n =181), I demonstrated internal validity of a three-factor measure comprising subscales for performance, character, and organizational prominence. A fourth subscale for favorability was removed. Further analysis provided evidene of acceptable model fit in the three-factor models for both samples (Sample 1: RMSEA = .078, SRMR = .049; Sample 2: RMSEA = .075, SRMR = .039). Based on the results, a significant strong positive relationship was found between organizational performance and organizational prominence (Sample 1: β = .92, p < .001; Sample 2: β = .96, p < .001); while a weaker significant negative relationship was observed between organizational character and organizational prominence (Sample 1: β = -.28, p < .001; Sample 2: β = -.24, p < .001). One conclusion from the results is that sports teams become known primarily for good high performance, and to a lesser extent, their misdeeds. Reasons for these trends are discussed, in addition to managerial implications, and limitations of the study. Ultimately, the development and validation of the present measure enables future empirical study of the reputation construct within the context of sports teams, and other organizations within the sport industry. / A Dissertation submitted to the Department of Sport Management in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy. / Summer Semester 2016. / May 16, 2016. / Includes bibliographical references. / Jeffrey D. James, Professor Directing Dissertation; Gerald R. Ferris, University Representative; Amy C. H. Kim, Committee Member; Ryan M. Rodenberg, Committee Member.

In this dissertation, I compare three case study-based analyses of collaborative governance arrangements between municipal government parks and recreation departments and civil-sector disc golf associations. I utilize theories of collaborative governance, an arrangement between two or more organizations sharing responsibility for decision making, problem solving, and/or the provision of a good or service (Ansell & Gash, 2007; Bradley, 2012), to examine the extent to which free-market economic approaches to public sector sport and recreation administration (and namely practices associated with the implementation of devolution) influence the structurations within which disc golf courses are developed, administered, and resourced (Ansell & Gash, 2007; Elwood and Leitner, 2003; Ghose, 2005; Roy, 2015). Although some scholars have examined the use of collaborative governance in sport and recreation (e.g. Brownlow, 2006; Joassart-Marcelli et al., 2011; Perkins, 2009; Perkins, 2010; Pincetl, 2003), there has been little research on sport specific models of collaborative governance at the municipal level and the perceptions of those involved in this model. I look specifically at how the restructuring of government agencies to partner with civil sector organizations for the provision of parks and recreation affect the quality and fluency of those services/facilities (Joassart-Marcelli, Wolch, & Salim, 2010; Holifield & Williams, 2014; Pincetl, 2003; Wolch, 1990). For this analysis, I conducted three inductive, qualitative case studies using interviews, observation, and document analysis of disc golf course development and administration in three differentially scaled cities. Overall, I examined participant perceptions of: 1) the management of disc golf space; 2) responsibilities of the organizations involved in collaborative governance; 3) benefits and challenges of the collaborative partnership; and 4) anticipated outcomes of disc golf related to economic development, social inclusion, and public health for policy. The results indicate a variety of collaborative governance models by public administrators and members of local disc golf associations who work together to plan and maintain courses, provide funding, and enhance the local disc golf scene. / A Dissertation submitted to the Department of Sport Management in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy. / Summer Semester 2016. / July 7, 2016. / Civil Sector Organizations, Collaborative Governance, Disc Golf, Shadow State / Includes bibliographical references. / Joshua I. Newman, Professor Directing Dissertation; Christopher Coutts, University Representative; Amy C. H. Kim, Committee Member; Michael D. Giardina, Committee Member.

How do sport consumption activities (i.e., sport participation, sport spectating, and sport media viewing) affect the subjective well-being (or happiness) of sport consumers? To fulfill the ethical creed of sport marketers and to effectively utilize ‘well-being’ as a marketing strategy, it is imperative to know whether and how sport consumption influences one’s psychological state. Learning the existence and degree of sport consumption’s influence on happiness is essential in laying the fundamental basis of sport consumer well-being research. Research on the mechanism of achieving happiness through sport consumption can be informative for sport marketers in deriving strategies to enhance the consumer’s benefits. However, the fundamental questions about sport consumer’s subjective well-being are not yet fully answered, calling for further research particularly in the sport spectating and sport media consumption contexts. A research project was conducted based on the revised model of hedonic treadmill, activity theory, and need theory: (1) to investigate the influences of sport participation, sport spectating, and sport media viewing activities on one’s baseline and momentary fluctuation of subjective well-being, and (2) to examine ‘need fulfillment’ (i.e., fulfilling one’s needs for detachment-recovery, autonomy, achievement, and belonging) as the psychological process linking sport consumption activities to increased happiness. A repetitive self-report based research project was completed to examine subjective well-being state and need fulfillment experiences in the three sport consumption contexts, and the link between need fulfillment and subjective well-being. Two pilot studies were conducted to construct scales for measuring subjective well-being and need fulfillment and to pre-test the data collection plan of the main study. The main study was conducted to test the relations among sport consumption activities, subjective well-being and need fulfillment. Data was collected based on ecological momentary assessment—that is, repetitive data collection took place on a panel of respondents via mobile phones during their daily lives, 2-3 times per week, over 9 weeks to capture perceptions of subjective well-being state and need fulfillment experience in relation to the type of activity engaged at the time of signal. A total of 2,746 responses were collected from 242 respondents. Multi-level structural equation modeling was conducted for the data analysis, with responses at level-1 and respondents at level-2. Sport participation and sport spectating activities had positive influences on baseline and momentary fluctuation of subjective well-being, and was effective for detachment-recovery, autonomy, achievement, and belonging needs fulfillment. Both positive and negative influences of sport media viewing on subjective well-being state and baseline were found; detachment-recovery, autonomy, and belonging needs were fulfilled in the activity, while achievement need was not. Among the four types of fulfillment, autonomy and achievement needs fulfillment were identified as the most influential on subjective well-being state. Compared to non-sport activities (e.g., work, study, socializing, exercising), sport participation and sport spectating had positive, stronger and more comprehensive needs fulfillment and thus well-being effects; the effects of sport media viewing were positive (or less negative), stronger and more diverse than that of non-sport media viewing. Based on the findings, sport participation and sport spectating are identified as activities beneficial for contributing to short- and long-term well-being, while the valence of well-being effects in sport media viewing is ambiguous. The notion of short-term well-being effects being accumulated and developing into long-term well-being effects through repetitive exposure aligned with the findings in the study, but a more rigorous study examining the causal relations is required. Detachment-recovery, autonomy, achievement, and belonging needs fulfillment are highlighted as key constructs explaining the well-being effects associated with sport consumption. Particular attention on achievement need fulfillment is warranted, for being an influential construct on one’s subjective well-being state that may cause positive as well as negative well-being effects in the sport media viewing context. Examining the moderating effects of psychological connection between sport consumers and one’s favored sport team is proposed, for better understanding achievement need fulfillment through vicarious experiences of sport spectating and sport media viewing. Practical implications are presented for effective fulfillment of the four psychological needs through sport consumption activities, and thus for better improved well-being. Limitations of this study and directions for future research are suggested. / A Dissertation submitted to the Department of Sport Management in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy. / Summer Semester 2016. / June 13, 2016. / Ecological Momentary Assessment, Happiness, Multi-level Structural Equation Modeling, Need Fulfillment, Sport Consumer Well-being, Subjective Well-being / Includes bibliographical references. / Jeffrey D. James, Professor Directing Dissertation; Gerald R. Ferris, University Representative; Insu Paek, Committee Member; Amy Chan Hyung Kim, Committee Member.

Includes abstract. / Includes bibliographical references. / Patellofemoral pain syndrome (PFPS) is a common clinical condition affecting physically active individuals. It is characterised by pain behind or around the patella during loading of the lower limb. It is recognised that there are multiple factors that contribute to PFPS; however these factors are not well understood. There is equivocal evidence for differences in lower limb kinematics in participants with PFPS, particularly during the running gait cycle. The aim of this study was to investigate lower extremity kinematics during running in individuals with a history of PFPS compared to those without symptoms. Specific objectives: (a) To describe lower extremity kinematics during running for individuals with PFPS. (b) To determine whether there are differences in pelvis, hip, knee and ankle kinematics during running in participants with and without PFPS. (c) To determine whether there were any kinematic variables at the pelvis, hip and knee joint during stance phase of running that may be associated with an increased risk of developing PFPS. Methods: This study had a descriptive cross-sectional study design. Thirty one physically active individuals, who participated in at least two hours of physical activity per week for at least three months prior to testing, were recruited for the study. Fifteen participants presented with PFPS, and 16 participants without PFPS formed the control group. Participants were also required to have a Q-angle within the normal range for males (8.2º-14.2º) and females (11.4º-20.3º) respectively. Participants in the PFPS group were required to have a history of unilateral anterior or retro-patellar pain of non-traumatic origin that did not exceed a six-month period prior to testing. The participants’ PFPS also needed to be elicited during one or more symptom provocation tests, namely: resisted terminal knee extension, stair descent, or a unilateral partial squat. The PFPS participants had to be able to run without pain for a minimum period of 10 minutes, which allowed the running test to be completed without reproducing symptoms of PFPS. All participants gave written informed consent before taking part in the study. Participants were familiarised with all testing procedures. Participants completed medical and training questionnaires, and body composition measurements were performed. Sixteen retro-reflective markers were placed on anatomical landmarks of the lower limbs according to the modified Helen Hayes marker set. Participants were then required to perform a running test, which consisted of 10 sets of running at a self-selected speed on a 10 m pathway. Kinematic data of the pelvis, hip, knee and ankle were recorded by an eight-camera motion analysis system during each repetition of the test. The specific data extracted included range of motion at heel strike and toe off, peak range of motion during swing phase and stance phase. In addition, the range of motion travelled during stance and swing phases and the percentage of stance phase a participant took to reach the peak range of motion during stance phase were calculated.

Word processed copy. Bibliography: leaf 42.