ABSTRACT

Research question

One general conclusion from existing studies is that if a team spends more resources and efforts on socially responsible initiatives, fan responses are more likely to be favorable. In the current study, however, the researchers tested a boundary condition in which consumer responses toward a team's sponsorship of cause-related messages may be paradoxically unfavorable. That is, we sought to explore when and how ‘doing good’ (cause sponsorship) might not complement ‘doing well’ (performance).

Research methods

Two online experiments were conducted employing participants through MTurk. The main experiment was a 2 (sponsor competency: low vs. high) × 2 (cause orientation: philanthropic vs. promotional) × 2 (message source: team-controlled channel, sponsor vs. third-party channel, news media) between-subjects design; three specific cause categories (community service, donation, and pro-environmental activism) were utilized as a within-subjects factor. Four NFL teams were identified based on their cumulative athletic performance records.

Results and findings

The results revealed that for high (vs. low) competency teams, philanthropic (vs. promotional) cause sponsorship induced more favorable consumer responses. Also, communication with fans through sponsor-controlled channels exacerbated unfavorable fan reactions, especially in the case of competitive teams’ philanthropic cause sponsorship initiatives.

Implications

The current study helps broaden the existing knowledge of CSR effectiveness by exploring the seemingly counterintuitive consequences of cause sponsorship. The outcomes of the study also offer important suggestions for managers regarding potential approaches for sports organizations to strategically allocate their resources toward developing effective CSR initiatives.

中文翻译：

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当团队赞助与事业相关的消息导致粉丝做出不利反应时：能力、事业导向和消息来源之间的相互作用

摘要

研究问题

现有研究的一个普遍结论是，如果一个团队在对社会负责的举措上花费更多的资源和精力，粉丝的反应更有可能是有利的。然而，在当前的研究中，研究人员测试了一个边界条件，在该边界条件下，消费者对团队赞助与事业相关的信息的反应可能是矛盾的不利。也就是说，我们试图探索何时以及如何“做好事”（引起赞助）可能无法补充“做得好”（绩效）。

研究方法

通过 MTurk 雇用参与者进行了两项在线实验。主要实验是2（赞助商能力：低与高）×2（事业导向：慈善与促销）×2（消息来源：团队控制的渠道、赞助商与第三方渠道、新闻媒体）之间-科目设计；三个具体原因类别（社区服务、捐赠和环保活动）被用作受试者内部因素。根据累积的运动表现记录确定了四支 NFL 球队。

结果和发现

结果显示，对于高能力（与低能力）团队来说，慈善（与促销）事业赞助会引起更有利的消费者反应。此外，通过赞助商控制的渠道与球迷沟通加剧了球迷的不利反应，特别是在竞争球队的慈善事业赞助举措的情况下。

影响

目前的研究通过探索事业赞助看似违反直觉的后果，有助于拓宽企业社会责任有效性的现有知识。研究结果还为管理者提供了有关体育组织战略性分配资源以制定有效的企业社会责任计划的潜在方法的重要建议。