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The present studies assess similarities and differences between sport fans and other types of fans in terms of identification with the fan interest (fanship), identification with other fans (fandom), entitativity, and collective happiness. In Study 1, a unidimensional 11-item scale to measure degree of identification with a fan interest was constructed. In Study 2, convergent and divergent validity for the measure was examined. In Study 3, criterion validity was examined. In Study 4, fanship positively correlated with entitativity, identification with other fans, and collective happiness. Sport fans were found to be similar to fans of other interests. Fans perceived themselves to be in a group even when they are not actively part of an organized group. Fanship and fandom were found to be positively correlated yet distinct constructs.
Psychological research on fans has been almost entirely focused on sport fans, with a few studies on celebrity worship being the exception (Maltby, Day, McCutcheon, Houran, & Ashe, 2006). Yet, any individual who is an enthusiastic, ardent, and loyal admirer of an interest can be reasonably considered a 'fan.' Accordingly, the term fan can be used to describe individuals who are devoted to a myriad of interests, not only sport teams and celebrities. The heavy emphasis on sport fans in the psychological literature led us to ask whether sport fans are similar to or different from fans of other interests?
A recent trend in the sport fan literature has been to view fans as a group. However, researchers have at times blurred the meaning of team identification - using the term to signify two theoretically different concepts. A distinction can be made between a fan's personal connection with a sport team, and a fan's connection with other fans as a group. We term the individual's sense of connection to a sport team "fanship," and the individual's connection to other fans of the team "fandom." Stated differently, fanship is identification with the object itself, while fandom is identification with others who share a connection with the object. Our term "fanship" is comparable to that of "team identification" as defined by Wann ( 1 997) as "the extent that a fan feels psychologically connected to a team" (p. 33 1). Fandom is similar to social identity, defined by...