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Why are Americans Addicted to Baseball? An Empirical Analysis of Fandom in Korea and the U.S

Author

Listed:
  • Trenton Smith
  • Young H. Lee

    (School of Economic Sciences, Washington State University)

Abstract

Theories of rational addiction posit that certain habit -forming goods "characterized by an increasing marginal utility of consumption "generate predictable dynamic patterns of consumer behavior. It has been suggested that attendance at sporting events represents an example of such a good, as evidenced by the pricing strategies of commercial sports interests. In this essay, we provide new evidence in support of rational addiction for the case of Major League Baseball, but fail to find such support in data from the Korean Professional Baseball League. We then review the scientific literature on sports fans from the perspective of human behavioral ecology and propose a theory of endogenous habit formation among sports fans that could explain our findings.

Suggested Citation

  • Trenton Smith & Young H. Lee, 2006. "Why are Americans Addicted to Baseball? An Empirical Analysis of Fandom in Korea and the U.S," Working Papers 2006-05, School of Economic Sciences, Washington State University.
    • Handle: RePEc:wsu:wpaper:tgsmith-3
    as

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    File URL: http://faculty.ses.wsu.edu/WorkingPapers/fandom051606.pdf
    File Function: First version, 2006
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    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Young Hoon Lee, 2006. "The Decline of Attendance in the Korean Professional Baseball League," Journal of Sports Economics, , vol. 7(2), pages 187-200, May.
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    13. Marc Poitras, 2006. "Do New Major League Ballparks Pay for Themselves?," The Journal of Business, University of Chicago Press, vol. 79(5), pages 2275-2300, September.
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    Cited by:

    1. Dong C. Won & Young H. Lee, 2008. "Optimal dynamic pricing for sports games with habitual attendance," Managerial and Decision Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 29(8), pages 639-655.
    2. Young Hoon Lee, 2013. "Estimation of temporal variations in fan loyalty: application of multi-factor models," Chapters, in: Plácido Rodríguez & Stefan Késenne & Jaume García (ed.), The Econometrics of Sport, chapter 8, pages 135-153, Edward Elgar Publishing.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Attendance Demand; Habit Formation; Baseball Addiction; Fan Psychology; Testosterone;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • C32 - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods - - Multiple or Simultaneous Equation Models; Multiple Variables - - - Time-Series Models; Dynamic Quantile Regressions; Dynamic Treatment Effect Models; Diffusion Processes; State Space Models
    • D83 - Microeconomics - - Information, Knowledge, and Uncertainty - - - Search; Learning; Information and Knowledge; Communication; Belief; Unawareness
    • L83 - Industrial Organization - - Industry Studies: Services - - - Sports; Gambling; Restaurants; Recreation; Tourism

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