“We do revolve our lives around it”–The meaning and significance of being a collegiate women’s basketball fan among older women

Xingxing Wu, Logan Schuetz, Milae Lee, Laura L. Payne, Kimberly J. Shinew

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract

When individuals engage in social contexts such as attending a college basketball game, opportunities to enrich and broaden social connections with others often transpire. The University of Notre Dame Women’s Basketball (NDWB) program has a comparably larger and more loyal fan base than most universities in the country, of which older women comprise a big portion of season ticket holders. The purpose of this study was to investigate the motivations and meanings of being a NDWB season ticket holder among older women. Nineteen participants ages 55–85 years old completed individual interviews. The findings indicated that being season ticket holders fostered a strong sense of identification with the team, allowing them to have a sense of pride of being part of the program. Additionally, being season ticket holders enabled the older women to enhance their social contacts and friendships with other women that fostered a sense of community.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)493-511
Number of pages19
JournalJournal of Leisure Research
Volume54
Issue number4
DOIs
StatePublished - 2023

Keywords

  • Older women
  • identification
  • season ticket holders
  • sense of community
  • women’s basketball

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Environmental Science (miscellaneous)
  • Sociology and Political Science
  • Tourism, Leisure and Hospitality Management

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