Brand Management Strategy for Korean ... - Brunel University

In the same way, the concept of a prestigious organisation is sufficiently seductive in
the field of team sports. The pride of fans is shaped when they connect themselves with
a team through history, symbols, shared goals, and so on. In this regard, supporting a
team means extending themselves as well as communicating with others. There is
therefore a greater opportunity for fans to improve self-esteem and obtain various
benefits by identifying themselves with a prestigious team (Sutton et al., 1997).
Hypothesis 6.
Identity prestige has a positive influence upon identity attractiveness.
2.3.3.5. The link between identity attractiveness and F-T identification
The proposed model in this thesis suggests that attractiveness of a sports team has a
critical influence on F-T identification. Compared with brands perceived as less
attractive, consumers feel a particular relationship with those attractive brands (Hayes,
1999). Rossiter and Percy (1987) suggest that, unless an individual finds an organisation
or brand to be attractive, he or she will find it difficult or undesirable to identify with it.
The level of organisational identification is decided by the attractiveness (Dutton et al.,
1994), and it can be applied to a sports team as well. The attractiveness judged by fans‟
perceptions is founded on not only their perceptions of the general characters and
culture surrounding the team, but also their personal experiences.
Identity attractiveness is a measure of the degree to which individuals find an
organisation‟s attributes to justify a lasting relationship with that group (Ahearne et al.,
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