Gender Effects on Sport Twitter Consumption: Differences in Motivations and Constraints

Abstract

This study sought to identify gender differences among sport fans who utilize Twitter, and subsequently build a valid and reliable tool for measuring important motivation and constraint elements based upon any observed differences. In order to identify which factors strongly motivate respondents to use sport-related Twitter and which keep them from using it, this study recruited 1,077 participants. The instrument in use assessed four types of motivations (i.e., information, entertainment, pass time, and fanship) and constraints (i.e., accessibility, economic, skill, and social constraints). The current study utilized a one-way MANOVA in order to examine gender differences in relation to sport social media usage motivations and constraints. Results revealed significant differences in both entertainment and pass-time motives and accessibility constraints between female and male users.

Headnote

Abstract

This study sought to identify gender differences among sport fans who utilize Twitter, and subsequently build a valid and reliable tool for measuring important motivation and constraint elements based upon any observed differences. In order to identify which factors strongly motivate respondents to use sport-related Twitter and which keep them from using it, this study recruited 1,077 participants. The instrument in use assessed four types of motivations (i.e., information, entertainment, pass time, and fanship) and constraints (i.e., accessibility, economic, skill, and social constraints). The current study utilized a one-way MANOVA in order to examine gender differences in relation to sport social media usage motivations and constraints. Results revealed significant differences in both entertainment and pass-time motives and accessibility constraints between female and male users.

Keywords: sport, social media, Twitter, gender, motivations, constraints

Introduction

Social media platforms have become increasingly popular among sports fans because of their ability to provide access to sport events at any time (Boyle & Haynes, 2002). Twitter, an important tool of social media, has rapidly become a popular online means of communication in the sport industry (Clavio & Kian, 2010) for sharing news in both professional and collegiate sports (Sanderson, 2011). Particularly, the use of Twitter by college student sports fans reached new heights in 2011 when 68.4% of the students indicated they possessed a Twitter account (Clavio & Walsh, 2013). In this sense, Twitter has been an effective marketing tool to attract more fans and consumers, expanding the audiences (Trail & Kim, 2011), and allowing sport organizations to build and manage brands (Pegoraro & Jinnah, 2012; Rinaldo, Tapp, & Laverie, 2011).

Recognizing the significant impact of social media in sport, it is vital for both academicians and practitioners to explore the motivations and constraints for sport consumers in Twitter usage. Yet, while a great deal of research into the motivations for web-based online sport consumption has been conducted (e.g., Browning & Sanderson, 2012; Hur, Ko, & Valacich, 2007; Seo & Green, 2008; Suh, Lim, Kwak, & Pedersen, 2010), only limited research has been carried out on the motivating factors for Twitter usage. Furthermore, as women comprise a majority of Twitter users (59%) (Skelton, 2012), it has become more important to identify whether there are statistically meaningful differences between the major factors affecting male and female Twitter users. To date, previous studies attempted to identify the gender differences in social media usage but limited themselves to motivation and usage patterns (e.g., Clavio & Kian, 2010; Clavio et al., 2013; Haferkamp, Eimler, Papadakis, & Kruck, 2012; Raacke & Bonds-Raacke, 2008), and research is lacking on the constraints that prevent people from connecting with sport organizations through social media. Because motivating factors and constraints influence consumer behavioral patterns considerably, more studies on constraint factors for Twitter users' behaviors are necessary in the context of sports in order to determine sports fan attitudes and perceptions of social media (Lim, Chung, Frederick, & Pedersen, 2012).

Hence, the purpose of this study is to investigate the gender effects on motivators and constraints among sport fans in sport Twitter consumption (STC) and to build a valid and reliable tool for measuring important motivation and constraint elements based upon any observed differences.

Gender and Social Media

Thompson and Lougheed (2012) found that more than 80% of undergraduate males and females make Facebook a part of their everyday activities, and the female users have different patterns within their habits, perceptions, and attitudes related to communication on the social networking site (SNS). Females tended to spend more time than intended on Facebook; more frequently lose sleep due to Facebook; have feelings signifying a closer friendship with Facebook friends than friends seen daily; develop a negative self-body image of themselves through Facebook photos; develop more stress through Facebook, and feel more addicted to Facebook (Thompson & Lougheed, 2013). Further differences found that females inclined to have more Facebook friends and post more photos than males. Males leaned toward visiting their Facebook site more than females whereas females tended to spend more time on Facebook (Moore & McElroy, 2012).

On another popular SNS, Pinterest, different behavioral patterns have been found between male users and female users (Gilbert, Bakhashi, Chang, & Terveen; Ottoni, Pesce, Las Casas, Franciscani, Meria, Kumaraguru, & Almeida, 2013). The study of Gilbert and colleagues (2013) confirmed that 80% of the "pinners" were female, which supported the demographic statistics Wallace (2013) found, with the population of North American Pinterest users being 83% female. Gilbert et al. (2013) also found that men may pin content within Pinterest that is less interesting to the rest of the Pinterest community since female Pinterest users receive dramatically more re-pins. A surprising finding was females tend to have fewer followers (Gilbert et al., 2013). Moreover, the study of Ottoni and colleagues (2013) showed the differences on gender roles and behaviors in relation to the use of Pinterest. Males displayed their pins in a way that echoed their preferences or tastes, while females took advantage of the commercial capabilities within Pinterest. Females also showed stronger signs of interaction and communication within Pinterest than males. These results indicate that females tended to show an exertion in reciprocating social links. Females were also more active in content generation, and used their profile of pins to describe their positive emotions and affection, whereas males tended to be more emphatic in their representation.

Among Twitter users, Clavio and his colleagues (2013) found that female sport fans rated a variety of informational and commercial functions of sport team Twitter feeds more highly than their male counterparts, including functions relating to in-game updates, game results, individual player news, contests and giveaways, and ticket promotions and discounts. The study also found that female sport fans were significantly more likely to respond to Tweets sent out by team Twitter feeds than were males.

Studies investigating the human behavior of social media have found that certain personality traits within males and females can influence their desires to interact through social networking sites or via instant messaging (Correa, Hinsley, & De Zuniga, 2010; Ehrenberg, Juckes, White, & Walsh, 2008). It appears to be possible to link these personality traits to extraversion, emotional stability, and the openness for new experiences. Correa and colleagues (2010) found that the more males seemed to be anxious and extraverted within their personality, the more they tended to use social media. Emotional stability within males also has negative relation to social media use. Females had positive correlations to social media use through extraversion and openness to new experiences.

Motivations and Constraints in Social Media Consumption

For a better comprehension of consumer behaviors toward STC, it is necessary to identify both motivational and constraint factors that influence individuals' STC and overall Twitter usage behaviors. Witkemper, Lim, and Waldburger (2012) examined four motivations in sport consumption that influence consumers; Information Motivation (IM), Pass-Time Motivation (PTM), Fanship Motivation (FM), and Entertainment Motivation (EM). The constraints in the study of sport Twitter consumption were Economic Constraints (EC), Social Constraints (SOC), Skill Constraints (SC), Accessibility Constraints (AC), and Interest Constraints (IC). The researchers found that motivations with Twitter use by consumers lie within the desires for information and entertainment, suggesting that social media enables sport organizations to gain initial opportunities to interact with their consumers. Moreover two constraints - social and skill constraints found decrease in the likelihood of fan experience in this study.

The study of Hur and colleagues (2007) confirmed that consumers have motivation to pursue sport consumption for its convenience, up-to-date information, diversion, socialization, and economic benefits in their conceptual model. The constraints presented within their study show concerns for privacy, delivery, product quality, and online customer service.

Gender Effects on Motivation

In an investigation examining the motivations of Twitter users, Witkemper et al. (2012) found that gender is a significant predictor of STC among college students. According to Clavio and Kian (2010), female Twitter followers of a retired female athlete were more likely than males to use the Twitter feed because of their perceived like-mindedness with the retired athlete. Their desire to buy the athlete's products, find news on the retired athlete, be a longtime fan, or just simply to appreciate the retired female athlete's posts on Twitter are the underplying reasons for their frequent use of the Twitter feed in comparison to males. Males' tendency to follow the Twitter feed was due to the physical attractiveness of the retired female athlete (Clavio & Kian, 2010).

Among celebrities, Stever and Lawson (2013) found that female celebrities used Twitter 56.17% of the time to post specifically about information that was personal. By contrast, male celebrities posted about personal information only 18.83% of the time. It is worth noting that none of the other categories had a gender effect for Twitter use, including the areas of work, communications with other celebrities or fans, and making jokes (Stever & Lawson, 2013).

Gender Effects on Constraint

Raymore, Godbey, and Crawford (1994) investigated whether the perceptions of constraints within leisure - be they intrapersonal, interpersonal, or structural, - were connected to gender, self-esteem, and socioeconomic status. The scholars noted that self-esteem has a negative connection to the constraints within leisure. Their significant findings led to evidence of females having a lower self-esteem, thus having higher amounts of constraint within leisure than males. Further results of the study by Raymore and colleagues revealed that socio-economic status was unconnected to perceptions of interpersonal and structural constraints, but did show a negative relationship to the perceptions of intrapersonal constraints. Pennington-Gray and Kerstetter (2002) conducted a study aimed at investigating how perceived intrapersonal, interpersonal, and structural constraints on nature-based travel differed depending on gender as well as socioeconomic status, family life cycle, and age. They found there were no gender differences in the constraint dimensions.

In the sports realm, neither Zhang, Smith, Pease, and Lam (1998) nor Funk, Mahony, and Ridinger (2002) found gender differences regarding the perceptions of constraints on ticket prices of a sporting event they are contemplating attending. On the contrary, significant gender differences within intrapersonal constraints reside within the perceptions of recreational sport participation. Alexandris and Carrol (1997) indicated that women generally have more constraints in sport participation than men. The significant difference in the individualpsychological and lack-of-knowledge group dimensions of the constraints in the study explains this phenomenon.

Despite the great amount of sport fan behavior studies, no study has investigated the gender effects on consumer behavior among Twitter users specifically in the context of sports. To fill this gap, we established two research questions as follows:

RQ1. Are there significant gender differences in motivational factors for sport-focused Twitter consumption?

RQ2. Are there significant gender differences in constraint factors for sport-focused Twitter consumption?

Methodology

In order to identify which factors strongly motivate respondents to use sport-related Twitter and which keep them from using it, data were collected using an online survey of male and female college sports fans enrolled at a large public university in the Midwestern United States. Students were first asked to provide demographic information, including their gender, and then to respond to questions about motivation and constraints. In addition to the demographic questions, we divided the survey instrument into two parts to assess motivations and constraints. Based on the study by Witkemper et al. (2012), the scale examined (1) four areas of motivations including information motivation (IM), entertainment motivation (EM), pass time motivation (PTM), and fanship motivation (FM), and (2) four areas of constraints including economic constraint (EC), accessibility constraint (AC), social constraint (SOC), and skills constraint (SC) using a five-point Likert-type scale made up of three items each (1 = strongly disagree; 5 = strongly agree). For example, for the "Pass-Time Motivation" factor, the survey asked participants to respond to the following statements (see Table 1 for the whole section): "I follow athlete Twitter accounts because it gives me something to do to occupy my time," "I follow athlete Twitter accounts because it passes the time away, particularly when I'm bored," and "I follow athlete Twitter accounts during my free time." Overall, there were a combined total of 24 items measuring the four different motivations and constraints. Please refer to Witkemper et al. (2012) for indicator loadings, construct reliability values, average variances extracted, and means for the factors and items used in the present study.

We analyzed the motivations and constraints of gender in terms of their STC using SPSS 20.0. Analyses include but are not limited to Cronbach's internal consistency, descriptive atatistics, correlation analysis, and Multivariate Analysis of Variance (MANOVA). Cronbach's internal consistency analysis gauges inter-item reliability for each element. Descriptive statistics provide overall demographics, motivations, and constraints in the use of sport Twitter. A correlation analysis examines the relationship among the sport Twitter usage motivation and constraint factors. To examine gender effects in STC, we also utilized two one-way (gender) MANOVA of the multiple dimensions of event locations related to motivations and constraints respectively.

Results

We collected demographic information - including gender, age, ethnicity, and educational level - from the study's respondents. Using convenience sampling, participants (N = 1077) were recruited from an introductory level business school class and sports management courses. Previous Twitter knowledge was not required to participate in this study because the presence of previous knowledge can be a factor for the perception of potential constraint factors such as skill, accessibility, and social constraints. The sample included both male (n = 651) and female (n = 426) participants. The majority (99.8%) of participants was between 18 and 34 years old, representing 45% of Twitter users in the United States (Quantcast, 2011). The overall participants ranged in ages from 17 to 40 (M = 20.12, SD = 1.49).

Table 2 presents results of inter-item correlation and Cronbach's alpha that examine the reliability of each motivational and constraint factor. For motivational factors, the Cronbach's alpha values for IM (α = .88), EM (α = .86), PTM (α = .85), and FM (α = .86) achieve acceptable levels based on previous research (e.g., Biehal, Stephens, & Curlo, 1992; Kwak et al., 2010; Yi, 1990). For constraint factors, the Cronbach's alpha values EC (α = .81), AC (α = .80), SOC (α = .80), and SC (α = .77) also achieved acceptable levels, indicating the scaled measures were likely to be reliable in this sample.

As revealed in the second table, the overall means for each motive ranged from a low for entertainment (M = 3.08, SD = 1.00) to a high for fanship (M = 3.21, SD = 0.99). Information (M = 3.19, SD = 1.03) was the second most important factor influencing university students in their use of sport Twitter, followed by pass-time (M = 3.14, SD = 1.00). The overall means for each constraint ranged from a low for accessibility (M = 2.09, SD = 0.90) to a high for socialization (M = 2.59, SD = 0.91). Skills (M = 2.44, SD = 0.91) was the second most important factor influencing college students use of sport Twitter, followed by economic factors (M = 2.42, SD = 0.97).

As can be seen in Table 3, results revealed the existence of gender effect on both motivations (Wilks' λ = .946, F(1,1075) = 6.693, p = 0.00 , = .054) and constraints (Wilks' λ = .979, F(1,1075) = 5.688, p = 0.00 , = .021) in STC. Among four factors of motivation, two yielded a significant difference between females and males. First, there is a significant difference in entertainment motive (F(1,1075) = 4.937, p = .027, with women (M = 3.16, SD = 0.98) more likely to use sport Twitter to find enjoyment than men (M = 3.03, SD = 1.01), and the pass-time motive (F(1,1075) = 18.795, p = .000, with women (M = 3.30, SD = 0.93) more likely to access Twitter to simply spend time than men (M = 3.04, SD = 1.01). Furthermore, in terms of constraints, only the accessibility constraint shows a significant difference (F(1,1075) = 9.488, p = .002, with men (M = 2.13, SD = 0.93) more likely to have anxiety about following the athlete or team via Twitter than women (M = 2.03, SD = 0.86).

Discussion

The commonly accepted initial discovery at the turn of the 21st century of a perceived digital divide between new and social media use and gender support a view that the findings in this study are surprising (e.g., Jackson, Ervin, Gardner, & Schmitt, 2001; Leung, 2001). In addition, this perception of a digital divide points to a possible realignment in both the concept of computer-mediated female fan's interests and constraints and the possibilities for realignment of the social media audience. With this in mind, the main purpose of the current study was to identify meaningful gender differences in motivations (i.e., information, entertainment, passtime, and fanship) and constraints (i.e., economic, accessibility, social, and skill).

In response to questions related to the first research question (RQ1), the result of the one-way MANOVA test confirmed that there are significant differences in both entertainment and pass-time motives between female and male users. To be more specific, for female respondents, entertainment and pass-time factors play an important role in making a decision to engage in STC than other factors such as information and fanship. These findings suggest that when assessing marketing efforts by sports organizations, it is important to consider these motivational factors based on gender in order to devise effective strategies to enhance the use of sport Twitter. To enhance STC intent in consumers, it is necessary for sport organizations to utilize social media to create more interest in their enterprises. In regard to entertainment, a sports entity can use social media to promote events as well as upcoming games. Not only does this offer consumers entertainment, but it can also make it appealing for Twitter users to spend their free time checking in on their favorite teams or athletes. Regarding college students who use Twitter simply to spend free time sport organizations need to improve their options for consumers by concentrating on useful applications for mobile phones. Of equal importance to comprehending the motivations, practitioners and marketers need to examine ways to overcome constraints.

In response to the inquiries affiliated with the second research question (RQ2), only the accessibility constraint shows statistically significant differences in constraint factors between gender groups. This result reveals that an accessibility constraint has a greater negative influence on making a decision to engage in STC for male users than it does for female users. Therefore, it is important for marketers to decrease male consumer concerns related to accessibility anxiety. Giving consumers a detailed explanation could solve this constraint factor. For example, sport organizations might develop promotional videos or visual aids focusing on male sport Twitter users to inform this audience about how to navigate their information in order to connect with their favorite athletes and to help them understand the security procedures that are in place with social media networks.

Conclusions and Future Recommendations

Twitter is a medium that sport organizations can use more effectively to connect with sport Twitter consumers at relatively low costs. In addition, social media sites can help firms achieve higher levels of communication than with more traditional communication tools (Kaplan & Haenlin, 2010). The results suggest that factors influence STC based on gender among college students. There are many choices for sport organizations to improve their relationships with fans. For example, findings from the current study indicated that Twitter is a good tool to develop the relationships with fans. Sport management, marketing, and communication professionals within sport entities can use suitable strategies to target users to position themselves to meet their needs. Specifically, they might focus on using social media primarily as a source of entertainment for their consumers and an accessible outlet for them to pass time.

As with all research, there are some limitations related to our study and areas for further research. First, the current study utilized only college students. Due to this demographic, the investigators cannot generalize the results beyond this population. Future research should examine whether there are differences in motivation and constraint factors in STC based on gender among diverse groups of Twitter users. In addition, in this study it was impossible to capture constraints from individuals who have not recently used Twitter. We recommend that future studies target samples of active Twitter users to more accurately generalize to this population. We also suggest that scholars continue this line of research and expand such investigations to include diverse social media to understand the influence it has on sports consumers. Last, scholars are encouraged to explore gender effects on the patterns of other social media usage such as Facebook, Myspace, LinkedIn, YouTube, Digg, or Fantasy Sport Sites. Strengthening this understanding could lead to more effective sport marketing strategies designed to assist sport organizations in connecting with fans while also working to enhance social connections and relationships between sport industry stakeholders (e.g., consumers, practitioners, advertisers).

Sidebar

Discussion Questions

1. Do you think the usage of social media platforms other than Twitter (e.g., Facebook, Myspace, Instagram, YouTube, and Digg) also shows significant gender differences in motivations and constraints toward sport social media usage?

2. In this study, four motivation factors and four constraint factors for building effective marketing strategies through Twitter were mentioned. What other factors would there be?

3. In this study, it was mentioned that it was impossible to capture constraints from the individuals who have not recently used Twitter. What would be an effective way of capturing constraints from respondents who have not recently used Twitter so that the reliability of future studies could be improved?

To Cite this Article

Yoon, J., Smith, C., Kim, A. C. H., Clavio, G., Witkemper, C., & Pederson, P. M. (2014, Fall). Gender effects on sport Twitter consumption: Differences in motivations and constraints. Journal of Multidisciplinary Research, 6(3), 25-37.

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