Sport fandom and parenthood

Research question: Sport fandom is acknowledged as offering consumers the opportunity to differentially engage as well as co-create value through network interaction, enhancing social well-being and social integration. However, recent research indicates that sport fandom escalates or de-escalates over time with calls to examine the intersection of parenting and sport fandom. This research focuses on mothers and fathers and examines how their sport fandom intensifies or declines as a consequence of having and raising children. This research will add to our understanding of fandom by identifying when and under what circumstances sport fandom is a bonding or detaching experience for parents and the role it plays in socialization and consumer behavior.  Research methods: The study adopts a multi-method interpretive qualitative approach, using in-depth interviews and an online discussion forum. The sampling frame consists of a total of thirty five parents using two stages of research (Stage 1 n=15, Stage 2 n=20). Participants are at varying stages of parenthood with single and mixed gender families.  Results and Findings: The study develops a typology of (de)escalating sport fandom during parenthood and differentiates between fandom as pertaining to an individual or social identity. Data also reveals varying dichotomies such as: excess and moderation, risk and reward, individual and shared behaviors (including customer-to-customer interaction) as well as perceptions of allegiance and disloyalty.  Implications: Knowledge of parenting and sport fandom will assist managers in developing effective loyalty schemes and marketing packages and will offer an understanding of the temporal effect of having children on fandom

Student attitudes to games-based skills development: learning from video games in higher education

Qualitative interview data is presented in support of previously-published quantitative evidence that suggests commercial video games may be used to develop useful skills and competencies in undergraduate students. The purpose of the work described here was to document the attitudes of those students involved in the quantitative study and to explore how the game-based intervention was perceived. To this end, student attitudes to the use of specified games to develop communication skill, resourcefulness and adaptability are examined. A broadly positive perception of the games' efficacy for skills development is revealed, and the aspects of game play that students believe contribute to skills development are discussed. These aspects include the need to communicate with team mates in order to succeed, and the fluid, unpredictable nature of in-game challenges. It is suggested that while the games played an important role in skills development, interaction between students, facilitated by game play, was also a significant factor

Panel: IS journals in which Europeans should publish more

In the past few years, virtual worlds – such as Second Life, World of Warcraft and RuneScape – have demonstrated the potential to be a promising online business model. Millions of paying users around the world now participate in virtual worlds and trade virtual items with each other. However, little empirical research has been conducted into players’ purchase behaviour in virtual worlds. To address this research gap, the current study develops and tests a conceptual model of purchase behaviour in the context of virtual worlds. An online survey was conducted within Second Life (n=250) and SEMPLS (Structural Equation Models by Partial Least Squares) was used to confirm the conceptual model. Among the statistically significant paths found in the conceptual model, effort expectancy, performance expectancy, perceived value, customisation, habit, advancement and enjoyment all have strong impact on virtual world residents’ purchase intention. The study rounds off with a discussion and conclusions, highlighting implications for practice, research limitations and promising areas for future researc

MMOGs as Emerging Opportunities for Research on Virtual Organizations and Teams

Massively Multiplayer Online Games (MMOG) offer new promising opportunities to research virtual organizations and teams. The characteristics of MMOGs allow researchers to obtain objective data from a large and multi-national population. Lasting over months or even years, MMOGs facilitate longitudinal studies and ensure a high involvement of participants. Moreover, collecting data from online surveys and game servers keeps the costs of MMOG studies low. In this paper, we illustrate how research in MMOGs can utilize these opportunities to overcome some limitations of traditional research environments. Further we discuss the diverse information and communication technology (ICT) usage in MMOGs and therefore argue that research in MMOGs can provide a glimpse into the future application of ICT in real life organizations