Loyal customers contribute to an organization's continued survival by repeatedly purchasing a product or service. The importance of loyal customers is seen through attempts by organizations to retain those who repeatedly purchase a product or service. While loyal customers or fans are the lifeblood of sports, very little is known about when and how individuals form an enduring attachment to a particular team or player. The intent of this study is to examine the origin of fan loyalty and those factors which influence its development. This study represents a first effort to provide a theoretical overview that focuses on the role of cognitive development and socialization in the formation of fan loyalty.
Individuals characterized as loyal fans are thought to demonstrate particular behaviors: talking and reading about sports, watching sports, and purchasing sport-related products. While an individual may demonstrate fan behaviors, an accurate assessment of fan loyalty should consider an individual's behavior and their commitment to a sport, team, or player. Commitment is thought to be characterized by cognitive complexity, volition, and resistance to change. In order to form a psychological commitment to a sport, team, or player, a minimum level of cognitive development must be achieved, in order to evaluate alternatives, to choose among alternatives, and to formulate reasoning which is resistant to change.
A clinical-observational interview protocol was utilized with two groups of children (5-6 year-olds and 8-9 year-olds, N=50), to determine when fan loyalty may first be demonstrated, based on level of cognitive development. Patterns of responses within the interviews were assessed using Q.S.R. Nudist; comparisons were made among and between children at different levels of cognitive development. Analysis of responses indicated that children characterized by concrete operational thinking were capable of demonstrating the behavioral and attitudinal components of loyalty, while those characterized as preoperational were not. The capacity for emotional, long-term attachment to a sport, team, or player may not be evident until children reach a concrete operational level of thinking, generally around 8 or 9 years of age.
Responses from the children interviewed provided an opportunity to not only characterize children in terms of cognitive development, but to also recognize distinct points of transition between preoperational and concrete operational thinking. Results further suggested that the development of loyalty may progress from attachment to a sport, then to a team, then to a player. From the analysis of the responses a potential progression in the development of fan loyalty emerged, which included a description of the socializing agents thought to provide the initial influence on the development of fan loyalty. Socializing agents, which had differing levels of influence at various stages of cognitive development, included a child's family (father, mother, and an older sibling), television, and personal participation (playing with friends and participation in organized youth programs).